Daydreams or not...they become reality

I have been thinking recently about how unique we all are and how much we all have to offer the world. It doesn’t matter our background or past accomplishments, we all have huge potential. I think the thing the world fails to teach us is that there is always a way to accomplish dreams and goals. It doesn't happen overnight and it may come in the form of a non traditional vehicle...BUT there is always a way.

I remember many days even as a young child where I would dream of doing incredible things instead of being confined to a classroom. One day in particular sticks out in my mind. I was in 6^th grade and I was staring outside through the windows while the lesson was going on. I felt the playground calling me and I felt like I was there as I stared intently out the window. Some people call it daydreaming but I felt alive while in those dreams. I do admit I became a professional daydreamer throughout Junior High and High School and reached my peak in College. This was until that kid inside of me, the one that was staring through the window at the playground, decided that enough was enough. I will never forget the day I decided that I was going to make something happen in my life, one way or another. I was 22 years old and pulled out of the driveway and headed west.

This leap of faith led me to Los Angeles where I met my amazing wife. Her belief in me made me realize I could do anything I set out to accomplish. So many times in my life I have felt scared that I wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything or provide for a family. I realize now that we need to draw on hope, courage and belief from any place we can. For me it is from my faith, my wife and kids and yes…even from my dreams. Whatever it is for you, find it and use it.

I don’t write this to make myself sound like a success, because I believe success is a never ending process. Success to me is simply the consistent pursuit of a worthy goal. I write this because I have met many people recently that have experienced some things that I couldn’t imagine experiencing and I see them gain strength from many places… and that makes them a success.

There is a story I love about when Disneyworld was completed and they had the opening celebration to celebrate the great accomplishment. Walt Disney had already past away at this point but Disneyworld was a dream of his so it was a significant occasion. Someone turned to Walt Disney’s wife and said “It’s too bad Walt wasn’t here to see this.” Walt’s wife responded with “Oh Walt saw this long before any of us ever did.”

Dreams become reality. If you want something enough….go and get it! Even if it means taking the road less traveled.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
and sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
and looked down one as far as I could
to where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
and having perhaps the better claim
because it was grassy and wanted wear;
though as for that, the passing there
had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
in leaves no feet had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less travelled by,
and that has made all the difference

La dolce vita in Italia

I recently returned home from another trip to Italy. But this time I had my amazing wife with me. We spent a few days in the Puglia region and a few days in Rome. Even though I am blessed enough to travel to Italy every 6-8 weeks, it never seems to get old. Something about Italy stays with me even when I am far away. I talk about the Dolce Vita but now I can share some photos with you that show you some of the amazing places we visited and some of the people that took us there. Hopefully you can live the Dolce Vita with me for a few moments...

Polignano

Matera

Me with Gelato of course

Alberobello (last time I was here I was 5 years old)

Polignano coast
Colosseum

I was in Italy because of some precious relationships I have been able to build. I believe relationships are the most important thing we have in this life. I believe relationships are what make us rich. The more people of integrity we can surround ourselves with, the more full our lives become. I have been blessed to know many Italians in my life that have made me a better person and continue to teach me each day. The people we spent time with on this trip have blessed my life more than I can tell. I am so happy that my wife was able to experience this for herself this time. When I go to Italy it is not just a trip to Italy...it is a unique opportunity to live and grow in ways that only the person who experiences it can know. My mission is to surround myself with the best people I can....and that means you too ;)

Auguri Guglielmo!!!

John Williams, Guglielmo Borgia, Antonio Mola

Success is a choice

Success is ours…if we want it. I just finished typing an email to my team in preparation for a life-changing event we will attend this week in Utah. I have made my way up here to Salt Lake City, Utah a few days early for various meetings before the event. As I was typing the email a quote popped into my head that I hear often and that has a moving effect on me each time I hear it. This is a quote by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe who lived in the last half of the 1700s and into the 1800s. You may recognize his name from the film, The Secret. He was obviously aware of the Law of Attraction and it’s effects on our lives and teaches it well in this one quote alone.

"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back-- Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."

My heart skips a beat when I hear that and resumes beating at a much faster rate…ah adrenaline! If you have read a previous post of mine then you know I believe emotion is what moves us. I am filled with some emotion when I hear this that confirms to me that we can in fact accomplish anything we set out to accomplish. The Law of Attraction translated simply promises that we can have or be anything we hold in our mind and pursue…not because we have everything available to us, but rather that as Goethe states, “Providence moves too.”

So is the ability to succeed determined by your current skill level, beauty, economic situation, race or any other factor? No, it is in fact not an ability at all…IT IS A CHOICE! The moment one definitely commits to oneself is the moment when lives change.

Read the quote again and if you want to change your life then take Goethe’s advice and “Begin it now”.

Invest in people

"Invest in people and human potential."

This is a phrase that I love. I realize more and more each day the power that comes with each relationship we create. I love my business for many reasons but the main reason is because I get to surround myself with so many wonderful people. Regardless of whether somebody gets involved with me or not, I love meeting people and learning from them. Everyone has so much to offer. Today I met with many different people and every one of them inspired me in some way.

I started off my day meeting with a woman that had two children and decided to join the army just to pay the bills and get herself out of a bad situation. A "girly girl in the army" as she put it. I listened to her story and realized she'd been through experiences that I couldn't dream of.

I was there with another woman that has a passion for health and educating people on the importance of health and nutrition. She has a history that I never knew about. As she told her story I realized how incredible it was for her to be there with me. She has so much to offer the world...in fact her reason for building her Nu Skin business is so that she can self fund a children's foundation.

I met with a wonderful man that has been a human resources director for the last 15 years. He talked to me about his desire to own his own life and not let an employer own him. This man has a huge heart and a great sense of humor.

I met several first generation immigrants from several countries such as Philippines, Guatemala and Colombia. The sacrifices they have made to build a better life in America, I can't even imagine. These people inspired me to do more and be more.

I met a man today that didn't look like the typical person I usually talk to. I was wrong to judge a book by its cover. He turned out to be an a great family man with a great business mind. That conversation reminded me that everyone has something to give and teach.

These are just a few of the people I was able to meet today....but ALL have the one thing in common, which is they all have so much to offer the world. We invest in people and human potential because that is the kind of investment that pays us the most and the kind that keeps giving back to the world.

Go out and meet someone new and listen to their story. They have something to give.

Sacrifice for futures and success

On this Memorial Day, I sit here and think about those that have sacrificed much for people like me and you. Not only the incredible men and women in war that have sacrificed their lives in order for us to enjoy our freedoms, but also the easier to forget and often overlooked ancestors that sacrificed more than we can imagine to give us what we now have.

What is your background and where do you really come from? My ancestors come from Scotland and Ireland. As peasants and farmers they made their way to the United States many many years ago in hopes of a better future, not only for them but for future generations. They came here and made their way out west and always kept their faith in their beliefs. I can't imagine what they must have gone through in order to leave their homes and come to a new world just to face opposition and trials. I often think about how they must have had rock solid belief in what they had chosen to do, in order to see it through.

How often do we second guess ourselves and our decisions? It is easy to hear and let the "noise" in which we allow to distract us. I know my ancestors had a lot of opposition and distractions come their way...but they kept moving in the direction where they knew they would find happiness.

Now hundreds of years later the sacrifices of my peasant ancestors have led to generations of doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, committed mothers, fathers and children that recognize that sacrifice and work hard on a daily basis to give back and influence others for good.

How does this story relate to me and my life? I wake up each day with the knowledge of my responsibility to do good and influence people's lives for good. My opinion is that success can only be achieved through sacrifice. The more one sacrifices in the pursuit of a worthy goal, the higher the reward. There will be obstacles and some may feel too big to overcome, but the law of sacrifice does not change. Work towards your goal and you will achieve it in the end.

Sometime you may feel like the people headed out west in pursuit of the happiness they dreamt of, but just know that no matter how hard the road is, your sacrifice will provide generations of future successes and freedoms.

So on this Memorial Day I say thank you to those ancestors, men and women that have died and sacrificed for me and you.

This is just one blessing and success story that is because of sacrifices made by pathfinders (leaders) long ago. This is my family!

NEVER STOP BELIEVING

I have been having an incredible time recently in my business meeting wonderful, talented people. In between meetings I feel an incredible energy that confirms to me each day that I am on the right path. Sometimes I don't believe that it is real. Over four years ago Network marketing used to be something I laughed at and literally said "NO WAY" to. Now it gives me the opportunity to live out dreams I have always had and forces me to surround myself by incredible people and examples of true success.

Below I am posting a video that I watch often. This video is entitled 'Never Stop Believing'. I first stumbled onto this video while on a business trip in Bogota, Colombia. I was asked to speak at a large event that a great leader and his team put on. It was a life changing trip for me. Many things happened that trip that allowed me to learn some valuable lessons, which in the end only made me stronger. At the end of my presentation to a crowd of the most inspiring group of people I have yet presented to, I featured this video and asked the audience what they were willing to do or go through, in order to achieve their dreams and goals. So I ask you the same question....WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO OR GO THROUGH TO ACHIEVE YOUR DREAMS AND GOALS?

There was something I had realized there in that tough week....and it hit me like a ton of bricks. It was so clear to me that emotions,when strong enough, change us. So I finished my presentation time there by saying: "EMOTIONS CHANGE US...AND THROUGH EMOTION WE CAN AND WILL CHANGE THE WORLD."

Watch this video and pay attention to your emotions. Think of something you want and go get it no matter how hard the road!

Allow me to introduce myself...

It is great to finally have a blog of my own. I feel like Julie from Julie & Julia, wondering if anyone will end up reading my words. I am excited for this opportunity to express myself and to share my knowledge and experiences about my life and my profession.

I am an international entrepreneur, but what does that mean? My goal over the next days, weeks, months and years will be to share my thoughts on what that means and how it became a reality for me. My goal will also be to help you make that a reality in your life...only if you really want it of course.

Stay tuned for more and thanks for reading.

Oh yeah and... I love meeting people so please feel free to contact me.