War Room

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope & trust this post finds you having a great day as a glorious new opportunity begins to dawn on the Texas Gulf Coast! 

Did you see the movie, War Room? It is a Christian drama that was written by the brothers, Alex & Stephen Kendrick. This is a brief description I found to help you understand the concept behind the War Room:

"Miss Clara shows Elizabeth a special closet she has dedicated to praying, and calls it her "War Room" because as she puts it, 'In order to stand up and fight the enemy, you need to get on your knees and pray.'"

Inspired by this movie, I wanted to create my own War Room. My sweet, so very beautiful, Bride wanted to help me. She went to this little closet upstairs in our house and cleaned it out. She proudly announced she had found my War Room. The thing is, I am not really a tiny, neat little closet kinda guy! :) No, I had a different idea for my War Room. We have a barn garage...a garage which looks like a barn and has a loft above it. Yes, this would be my War Room.

For those of you who don't know, the Happy Friday greetings from the Texas Gulf Coast are soon going to become greetings from our Sweet Home in Alabama. Yes, the Haslam family is moving! With this, last Saturday, my Sweet Girl and I went up to clean out my War Room. As we went up there, the emotions of how much that room has meant to me overwhelmed me. I felt very emotional...not sad, but more in awe, euphoric. I had spent so much time there! I asked Kath how much time she guessed I had spent there and she wouldn't even take a guess! It is hundreds, if not thousands, of hours. My mind raced back - when my Mom made her final journey home I went up to the War Room and did push ups until I couldn't push up any more...talking to God the whole time. When we were waiting for Hurricane Harvey to make landfall, I went to the War Room and carved and talked to God. When the storms of life would rage, I would go up to the War Room, carve and talk to God. I have spent countless hours in that War Room, carving gifts for family & friends, talking to God and praying for them the whole time.

Yes, my War Room became a very, very special place to me. Over these past 4 years in that War Room I have learned the deep truth behind the statement, "In order to stand up and fight the enemy, you need to get on your knees and pray." Or, you sit, carve and pray! :)

Please allow me to tell you a little bit about my War Room. As you crest the steps going into my War Room, there is a small wall to your right. This is the wall that I made my praise wall. I had written on a piece of paper, "Praises" and on heart shaped post it notes I had written a bunch of different times God had answered prayers. There were the names of family & friends. There was the restoration of relationships, the healing from illnesses and injuries, the finding of jobs and the deliverance from the storms of life. I should note, not every praise was answered the way I had asked God to answer it, however, each one was answered.

As you turn to your left, you enter into this vast room...filled with wood & sawdust. Everyone in the Haslam family finds this disgusting except me and my chocolate lab...she loves the smell of it all! :)

On the short little wall back to your left, I had dedicated to my #1 priorities. There I had placed a picture of Kathy, Payton, Gehrig & Landry. I had asked each of them to write their favorite scripture on a piece of paper and I hung these on the wall as well. I also asked them to give me a list of things I could be praying for them. These lists were hung on the wall. As I sat at my table carving, this is the wall I faced.

As you are sitting at the table, there is a long wall to your right. This wall is covered in post-it notes with scriptures, thoughts and sayings written on them. They are all in my handwriting and the post-notes themselves kinda tell a story. There are notes written on paper from different hotels - I had spent 1 1/2 years traveling every other week, there are notes written on all different colors of post it notes, scribbled on scrap pieces of paper, etc. As I daily sought God and His leading in my life, if I read, saw or heard something that spoke to my heart, I wrote it down and it went up in the War Room.

It was amazing as I took all of this down last Saturday. Re-reading the praises, the scriptures, the quotes. There were so many times I had walked up those stairs, feeling so desperate and God had met me there every single time! :)

I want to do a couple of things this morning. First, I am going to share a several of the things I had written down. I thought that, perhaps, something I had written down will speak to someone this morning. Now, in all honesty, I didn't intentionally pick these out for any specific reason. Last night I simply went through the bag that contained all of those post-it notes and randomly gathered several of them.

I am not sure where I got this first group of things from. I think they came from the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. Each of these groupings were written on a separate post-it note.

"For we are Gods workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Ephesians 2:10
Point to Ponder:
Service is not optional."

"Everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. - Colossians 1:16
Point to Ponder:
It's Not About Me!"
*I had underlined "It's Not About Me!" twice.

"For God has said, I will never leave you; I will never abandon you. - Hebrews 13:5
Point to Ponder:
God is real, no matter how I feel."

"Dear Jesus, more than anything else, I want to get to know you intimately.
Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. - James 4:8
Point to Ponder:
I am as close to God as I choose to be."

"May He fulfill by His power all your desire for goodness and complete your work of faith. - 2 Thessalonians 1:11
I am your creator. You were in my care even before you were born. - Isaiah 44:2
What areas am I struggling to accept?"

"Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken. - Psalm 55:22
*I had underlined "never,"
Everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him. - Colossians 1:16
It's not about me."

"God works through different men in different ways, but it is the same God who achieves His purpose through them all. - 1 Corinthians 12:6
Point to Ponder:
I was shaped for serving God.
As water reflects the face, so one's life reflects the heart. - Proverbs 27:19"
*Good thing I write small...that post-it was full!!! :)

"I am your creator. You were in my care even before you were born. - Isaiah 44:2
Point to Ponder:
I am not an accident.
What areas of me am I struggling to accept."

"You, Lord, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in you. - Isaiah 26:3
Point to Ponder:
Living on purpose is the path to peace."

"Friendship with God is reserved for those who reverence Him. - Psalm 25:14
Point to Ponder:
God wants to be my best friend."

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. - Mark 12:30
Point to Ponder:
God wants all of me."

"Share each others troubles and problems, and in this way obey the law of Christ. - Galatians 6:2
Point to Ponder:
I need others in my life."

And then, I had several scriptures I had written and stapled to the wall. Here is a small sampling.
"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. - Isaiah 41:10

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. - Proverbs 3:5-7 or 9" (can't read my own writing!) :)

"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. - 1 Peter 5:7"

"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. - 1 Corinthians 15:58"

"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act. - Psalm 37:5"

"For I know that plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11"

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. - Philippians 4:13"

"Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. - Proverbs 16:3"
*I underlined "will"

"And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. - Romans 5:5"

And finally, I had several sayings/quotes I had posted. Here are a few:
"When criticism comes - and it will - I must make up my mind not to worry about defending myself. Use it as an opportunity to be a witness of the love, grace and mercy of Jesus."

"Your decisions reveal your priorities."

"You only have control over three things:
1) The thoughts you think
2) The images you visualize
3) The actions you take"

"Faith
Hope
Believe"

So, Sweet Friends, I want to encourage you to create a War Room. You don't have to put up scriptures, quotes, signs or anything else. It is simply the place where you are going to consistently go to meet with God. Consider it like your favorite booth at a restaurant or coffee shop. The place where you are going to go meet a dear friend. It has had a profound impact on my life and I am truly looking forward to creating my new War Room in Alabama.

I had shared this quote on Twitter yesterday:
"Every life is a profession of faith and exercises and inevitable and silent influence." - Henri Frederic Amiel
Connecting this to what I have written about this morning, I offer two additional thoughts/questions:
1. We are all putting our faith in something. What are you putting your faith in?
2. I think we all have a War Room of some sort. Some people, when the struggles and challenges come, go to bars, go fishing, go shopping, etc. We all get hit by the storms of life and nature...where do you go? 
Nobody can tell you in whom or what you should put your faith and nobody can tell you where to go or what to do when the storms come. These are things that each one of us has to decide on our own. I can only testify to what I have found in my life. :)

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for your or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please cherish your precious families!

Kev

How About Today?

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope & trust this post finds you having a great day as a glorious new day begins to dawn on the Texas Gulf Coast!

Before diving into this Happy Friday I want to respectfully ask that y'all please keep Nebraska in your thoughts & prayers. There is so much devastation and loss. We all need others we can lean on from time to time - be it storms of life or storms of nature. Let's be there for these precious souls. Thank you.

This week I came across a quote, a question really, that I shared on Twitter on Wednesday. It was profound to me. This morning I simply want to share the question with you and then talk about it a little bit.

"When was the last time you woke up and realized that today could be the best day of your life?" - Steve Maraboli

As I read that question, I feel a deep conviction in my spirit. If I am honest, I think back to events that where going to happen in a given day and those were the days that I woke up thinking that day could be the best day of my life - a day with my Beautiful Bride, doing something with my Tender Warriors or, perhaps, it was something big going on in my work life. The problem is, every one of those things is circumstantial. It is based on what I perceive will happen that day and then I let that determine whether or not I will realize, believe, that this could be the best day of my life. You and I are called to be so much more than that!

What we are talking about here Friends, is attitude. And, based on my thoughts and convictions when reading the question, I need an attitude adjustment! :) Perhaps you don't find yourself where I do...that's great! You can listen in on my conversation with myself this morning! :)

Dictionary.com defines attitude as, "Manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc., with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, especially of the mind." That, I think, is really the key..."especially of the mind." What are the things we are allowing to flood our minds. What are our thoughts? Our feelings? Are we listening to our feelings or facts? They are different you know?! :) So, I am going to unpack this, in what I consider, the right way. First, I am going to go to the Book of Truth. I find some interesting things there...

Psalm 118: 24 tells me, "This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it."

It doesn't tell me to rejoice and be glad in this day if My Sweet Girl and I have a date planned, if my boys and I are planning some great adventure, if things are going great at work, if there are no storms in my life, etc. There is no "if" at all. It simply says "This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it." Period. Nothing more. This is the Lord's day so we should rejoice and be glad. Oh how I need the help of the Holy Spirit!!! :)

Psalm 55: 22 tells me, "Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall."

I don't know about you but for me I find the major reason why I don't wake up every morning realizing that this could be the best day of my life is because I have fears, worries, cares, and concerns about...well, I can pretty much make anything a big deal in my mind! :) And yet the Bible tells me to give my burdens - no matter how big or small and please remember Sweet Friends, we all think our burdens are the biggest...and to us they are! - to the Lord and are you catching those beautiful promises? "He will take care of you," and, "He will not permit the godly to slip or fall." How different would the lives we live be if every morning we knew, to the depths of our souls, that God will take care of you and He will never allow you to slip or fall? Remember when you were little and your Mom, Dad or someone really important in your life said, "It's o.k., everything is going to be fine."? Remember the fears falling away? Remember how all of the sudden you weren't afraid of the Boogie Man any more? Yeah, you know where I am going with this. Our Heavenly Father is telling us, "It's o.k. I got you. It is going to be o.k. I will take care of you." Let's let this sweet truth wash over us this morning Friends! :)

Matthew 6:34 tells me, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

How much time have I wasted, how much emotional energy have I spent, worrying about the things of tomorrow? Augh! And yet we are specifically told not to worry about tomorrow. And, did you catch the "therefore?" Ever wonder what then proceeded this statement about not worrying about tomorrow? Well, here it is; "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness." Seek God. Seek God and don't worry about tomorrow...again, God has us!

As I read this verse I fully recognize the war - be sure Friends, it is a war! - between choosing to believe our faith or our fears. Between choosing to live our faith or our fears. I am reminded of the saying, "Faith and fear are both a belief in something that has not yet happened." All of us get to choose what we will believe...I am going to choose to believe in the God who created everything and choose faith. And I will absolutely need God to live out what I have declared in this moment! :)

I was thinking about all of this yesterday. I was kinda beating myself up for falling into this trap of worry, regret, fear...the things that keep me from realizing that today could be the best day of my life. You ever get in this vicious spin cycle? Worry - Feel bad about it - Regret - Feel bad about it - Fear - Feel bad about it...the cycle speeds up. Somebody turn this off and let me out of here! The Deceiver filling my mind with untruths. And as I was thinking about all of this yesterday, and praying a whole lot, I was reminded that it is my pride that is getting in the way. If I could handle all of these things on my own - which is my prideful desire - I wouldn't need God. And in that moment, His love, mercy and grace washed over me! :)

There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other scriptures that speak to all of this and I would encourage you to look them up and study them. What I have shared with you here this morning are the first three that came to my mind. Now, I would like to share a few other tools for your toolbox that I have come across.

Jon Gordon shared "2 Keys to Help You Be Your Best:"
1. Failure is not meant to define you, it's meant to refine you. Sometimes you have to lose a goal to find your destiny.

2. Ignore the critics. Show up and do the work. You are here for a reason. You have a purpose and you are meant to share it.

Bob Goff shared a beautiful reminder; "Don't let other people decide who you are."

And finally, Dr. Tim Drinkwine shared, "The power of our thoughts:"
"What we think determines who we are and who we are determines what we do. Therefore, our thoughts determine our destiny. So let's make our thoughts good ones."

I also feel convicted to share a beautiful reminder from Ken Whitten, Senior Pastor at Idlewild Baptist Church:
"What's in the well will always come up in the bucket."
Please Sweet Friends, very intentionally choose the things you will allow to feel your heart and mind. It is impossible to pull something out of the well that has not been poured into it. And maybe, just maybe, if we will fill ourselves with truth, faith, hope & love, we will wake up every day realizing this, in fact, could be the best day of our lives! :)

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for your or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please cherish your precious families!

Kev

You ARE A Model

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope this post finds you all having a had a great day as a beautiful Friday evening is upon us!

Earlier this week I was listening to Focus on the Family when one of the folks speaking said something like, "You are a model. The only question is, what are you modeling?" I don't remember what brought it up, who said it, or, quite honestly, what day it was! :) But that thought, "You are modeling something...what is it?" stuck with me.

It is very similar to the comment I heard last weekend when I was at a men's conference at our church. A gentleman, who is in education, was speaking. He said, "Kids have never listened. But, they have never failed to imitate." Pretty powerful statement don't you think?! Kids don't listen...well, neither did you and I! :) But that next part, well, that should both frighten and inspire us all! :)

Yes Friend, you are a model. The only thing you & I have to determine, daily, is what we will model. Faith or fear? Compassion or judgement? Love or hate? Are you getting a little uncomfortable right now?! :) Should I keep going? I think you get the point: you and I are modeling something...every day!

And then I heard Chris Brown from Stewardship.com say something about influence on Thursday, or maybe it was Wednesday... Doh! Been one of those weeks however it fell in line with being a model, understanding you & I have influence, etc. I went to the Stewardship.com website to try to get exactly what he said the other day - see what I did there? :) - however I could not find it. Instead, I found two articles from the Stewardship Team about influence and I wanted to share a few excerpts from each with you.

The first article was titled, "Why Influence Isn't Based on How Much You Have", and was published September 7, 2016. Here are the excerpts I wanted to share:

"The world says that to be influential, you have to be powerful."

"But God says something else: Influence is available to anyone in any walk of life. It's earned through persistence and wisdom. It comes when you honor God in whatever He's given you, whether that's very little or a whole lot. And it comes to those who don't necessarily go looking for it. In other words, influence is the result of biblical stewardship - managing God's blessings, God's way, for God's glory."

"You can influence others at your job, in your town, or among your family and friends, even if you don't fit the world's criteria for an influential leader."

The second article is titled, "5 Essential Traits for Being Influential." It was published on June 29, 2014.

"If you're a living, breathing human being, you've got something to offer. You matter. And there's someone out there who can learn from you."

"Set aside your notes for everyone else and work on yourself. You've got the drive, knowledge and integrity that's needed to make a difference."

As for the 5 essential traits:

"Be kind. A gentle spirit goes a long way. If you want the ears of others, you must first be kind."

"Be sincere. Mean what you say. Kindness is only effective when it is perceived to be real."

"Be consistent. Influence is subtle. If you character must change, be sure it does so in a positive direction."

"Be humble. You may be right, but acting haughty is wrong. When you don't know best, admit it."

"Be trusting. Relinquish control whenever possible. Build confidence in others by expecting results."

Bottom line Sweet Friends, you ARE a model and you ARE influencing others. It is 100% up to you what you will model and what your influence will be. 

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please cherish your precious families.

Kev

Yeah, Just Perfect

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope & trust this post finds you all having a great day, and that you have had a great week, as a beautiful new opportunity begins to dawn on the Texas Gulf Coast! :)

On Monday my Beautiful Bride and I celebrated our 30th Wedding Anniversary. I took the day off from work and spent a wonderful day with Kath. I am blessed beyond measure and I know it! :)

One of the things that has always bothered me is when people talk about how "perfect" we are. They don't mean it bad however I know that the reality is far different than their perception! I know how broken and flawed we are. Please, allow me to tell you just how "perfect" we are.

So, I am so excited about our anniversary. In my mind this whole, what I have made a 3 day, weekend is going to be a celebration. I thought it was, well, perfect. On Friday night and Saturday morning our church was having a men's conference. What could be a more perfect way to start a weekend where you are going to celebrate your marriage than learning what it means, and how to be, a Godly man, husband & father?!?! God knew - He always knows - what I needed! The conference was great. I learned so much and left truly inspired. I came home and took a nap before Kath and I were to head to the movie, Run Your Race. So, I have been to a conference about being a Godly man, husband & father and we are going to see a Christian movie about running your race - perfect, right?!?!

I wake up from my nap and my Sweet Girl and I get in a argument...about a couch!!! Seriously?!?! I am mad at her, she is mad at me. I am rude, she is rude. Finally, we just quit talking, baffled by the behavior of the other. Neither one of us wants to go to the movie now, however we decide to go as we have already paid for the tickets. We don't say two words to each other as we drive to the movie. We don't hold hands or anything during the movie - I did offer to share my popcorn however! :) We talk briefly about the movie as we drive home. When we get home I go sit in the backyard, she stays in the house. This last for longer than an hour.

Isn't our marriage perfect?! Aren't you jealous?! Here we are, celebrating 30 years of marriage by fighting...over a couch! Let the good times begin!!! :)

Before I go on I do have to tell you that we both eventually apologized for being so...childish. We reaffirmed our love and commitment to one another and discussed how we would behave/do things in the future to better handle these, um, high level discussions! :)

When these types of arguments/issues happen in our marriage I get the double dose of guilt - I can't believe our marriage is not better than that and I can't believe I am such a failure - that's the story I tell myself - as a man, husband & father. At the men's conference they did not encourage us to argue over couches! :)

And then, on Monday, Kathy gave me a card that had this written in it:

"A perfect marriage is just two imperfect people who refuse to give up on each other."

In that moment, my heart & Spirit felt a peace that I can't describe to you. I felt the weight of trying to be perfect as a man, husband & father fall off my shoulders. And I realized, in that moment, we do in fact have a perfect marriage.

I remember exactly where I was on Highway 387 in Arizona when I made the decision in my mind that I would not quit on my Beautiful Bride or our marriage. I determined I did not care if she loved me back, tried, etc. I was not going to quit on her or us. I will fight for her, for us, until the day I die. It changed everything!

I once heard the late football coach, Bill Stewart, tell the story of the Dog Soldier. According to Coach Stewart, Dog Soldiers, were Native American men who, when going into battle, would tie a rope around their ankle and on the other end, drive a stake into the ground. They did this to keep them from running during the battle. They might die on the ground they were staked to but they were not going to run. This, for me, is the perfect picture of my marriage. I might very well die on this hill, however I am not going to run.

So yes Friends, Kathy & I have the perfect marriage. It has nothing to do with where we go to eat, the trips we take, the gifts we lavish on each other, etc. It has everything to do with a refusal to give up on each other, a commitment, even if we argue over a high level stuff like couches! :) And within this definition of perfection, every one of us can have the perfect marriage. We simply have to make the intentional decision about whether we will be Dog Soldiers or whether we will run. Please choose carefully as the consequences are immense! 

Many of us struggle with this idea of perfection. God made it very clear that none of us could achieve perfection and thus, He sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins. Sadly, many religions try to tell people that they have to strive for perfection, that they have to earn their way to Heaven. Many husbands and wives put the expectation of perfection on each other. We expect our children to be perfect. We have bosses who make us believe that if we are not perfect, we are failing. And yet, not a single one of us can ever achieve perfection. I wanted to end this "perfect" Happy Friday by sharing a few quotes about striving for perfection.

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing." 

- Harriet B. Braiker

"Don't waste your time striving for perfection; instead, strive for excellence - doing your best." - Laurence Olivier

"There's no such thing as perfection. But, in striving for perfection, we can achieve excellence." - Vince Lombardi

"I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence I can reach for; perfection is God's business." - Michael J. Fox

And, hoping that we have now understood the difference between perfection and excellence, I wanted to share this quote which I absolutely love:

"If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude." - Colin Powell

Please don't hesitate to contact me at any time if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please, cherish your precious families.

Kev

Lists

Happy Friday Friends!

I hope & trust this post finds you all having a great day as this glorious new day begins to dawn on the Texas Gulf Coast! 

This morning I want to share several lists with you. Unlike the "to do" lists that we so often deal with, these lists are not about doing. No, I am sharing these lists to encourage, empower and equip you to be...to be all that you were created to be! :)

This list was on the pietrafitness.com website.
DO YOU WANT TO FAST THIS LENT?
In the words of Pope Francis

• Fast from hurting words and say kind words.
• Fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude.
• Fast from anger and be filled with patience.
• Fast from pessimism and be filled with hope.
• Fast from worries and have trust in God.
• Fast from complaints and contemplate simplicity.
• Fast from pressures and be prayerful.
• Fast from bitterness and fill your hearts with joy.
• Fast from selfishness and be compassionate to others.
• Fast from grudges and be reconciled.
• Fast from words and be silent so you can listen.

Jon Gordon shared this in a tweet:

2 Things To Do Today:

1. Worry less about what people think of you

2. Focus more on serving others and making a greater difference

*Sorry! Technically that one was a "to do" list! :)

Steve Maraboli said this:

"When a new day begins, dare to smile gratefully.

When there is darkness, dare to be the first to shine a light.

When there is injustice, dare to be the first to condemn it.

When something seems difficult, dare to do it anyway.

When life seems to beat you down, dare to fight back.

When there seems to be no hope, dare to find some.

When you're feeling tired, dare to keep going.

When times are tough, dare to be tougher.

When love hurts you, dare to love again.

When someone is hurting, dare to help them heal.

When another is lost, dare to help them find the way.

When a friend falls, dare to be the first to extend a hand.

When you cross paths with another, dare to make them smile.

When you feel great, dare to help someone else feel great too.

When the day has ended, dare to feel as you've done your best.

Dare to be the best you can -

At all times, Dare to be!"

Jerry Acuff tweeted this:

THE 5 FUNDAMENTALS OF SUCCESS:

1. Seek knowledge from those who've come before you

2. You must never stop learning

3. Expect and overcome failure

4. Everything you do produces a result, good or bad

5. Progress is a result of ACTION

Idowu Koyeniken said this: (More of a declaration than a list...wise to repeat often!) :)

"Today is a new day and it brings with it a new set of opportunities for me to act on.

I am attentive to the opportunities and I seize them as they arise.

I have full confidence in myself and my abilities.

I can do all things that I commit myself to.

No obstacle is too big or too difficult for me to handle because what lies inside me is greater than what lies ahead of me.

I am committed to improving myself and I am getting better daily.

I am not held back by regret or mistakes from the past. 

I am moving forward daily.

Absolutely nothing is impossible for me."

Lolly Daskal tweeted this:

WORDS TO ELIMINATE FROM YOUR VOCABULARY

I can't

I doubt

I won't

I don't think

I am afraid

I don't believe

It's impossible

This was posted on Facebook...don't know who said it.

SIMPLE FORMULA FOR LIVING

Live beneath your means.

Return everything you borrow.

Stop blaming other people.

Admit it when you make a mistake.

Give clothes not worn to charity.

Do something nice and try not to get caught.

Listen more; talk less.

Every day take a 30 min. walk.

Strive for excellence, not perfection.

Be on time. Don't make excuses.

Don't argue. Get organized.

Be kind to unkind people.

Let someone cut ahead of you in line.

Take time to be alone.

Cultivate good manners.

Be humble.

Realize and accept that life isn't fair.

Know when to keep your mouth shut.

Go an entire day without criticizing anyone.

Learn from the past. Plan for the future.

Live in the present.

Don't sweat the small stuff.

It's all small stuff.

Todd Gongwer tweeted this...not really a list but I love it! :)

Influence is a gift every one of us has been given.

Steward this gift wisely...for it is THE mark of the very best leaders!

Every Word

Every Attitude

Every Behavior

...MATTERS!

Todd Gongwer also tweeted this! Again, not really a list however I think it contains great wisdom!

Every WORD

Every ATTITUDE

Every BEHAVIOR

is a direct reflection of the heart of YOUR leadership.

No one "made" you say a word

No one "caused" your attitude

No one "forced" your behavior

YOU made a choice, and that choice always sends a message...what will it be today?#BeElite

Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.

Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please, cherish your precious families!

Kev