- May 15, 2018 -

Last week a box was delivered to my office.

A big box.

Larger than a case of wine but smaller than a golf bag. Meh, not super interested at this point. Lol

And I noticed that Cheryl's name was on it. So...nice guy that I am and just because I was in an ornery mood, the big box was handed back to the FedEx guys with a new delivery address 🙂

Wasn't long before I got "the" phone call: "This huge box was just delivered to us. Is it something you ordered? I have no idea who the sender is!"

She [...]

- May 14, 2018 -

Believe it or not, I'm actually a really shy, pretty private person by nature.

Loud but shy. Lol

I'm not a social media poster. When I do have the time, I enjoy seeing what others are up to...and that's about it.

But I just gotta share this...

You already know that music is a big part of my life. Trumpets and jazz...it doesn't get much better.

What you might not know is that both Cheryl and I were music majors in college for the first two years.

...I loved to perform but couldn't pass theory to save my life.

...Cheryl knew the theory [...]

- May 10, 2018 -

I am certainly not an expert in genetics.

But it would go against the laws of nature for me to have been born with blonde hair since both my parents and all four grandparents had dark hair...

...at least not without raising some eyebrows!

And I'm most definitely not an expert in the laws of physics. Newton's third law of motion says that "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction."

But if I was a physics teacher, I'd teach my own version of Isaac's law (ladies, I apologize...guys, you're welcome.)

Art's Third Law of Emotion: For every male [...]

- May 8, 2018 -

Everyone loves a good underdog story.

A David and Goliath story...

You know, where a young shepherd boy defeats a giant Philistine warrior with just a sling shot and a few stones.

It's the stuff of Hollywood movies...think Karate Kid, Hoosiers and epic WWII film Dunkirk.

But every so often, the small business guy has the chutzpah to take on a corporate Goliath and comes out on top.

You might not know this bit of fascinating trivia but...

In 1997, Reed Hastings returned Apollo 13 to Blockbuster and was hit with a $40 late fee.

"I had a big late fee for 'Apollo [...]

- May 3, 2018 -

A topic that comes up time and again with colleagues and clients is time...

...as in never having enough of it.

I'll bet my favorite putter that it's a problem of yours, too.

So as my business coach is fond of saying, "We're going to have a little intervention."

Here's the deal:

You've got the same 24 that I do.

I'm running multiple businesses...

...and managing a physical office staff as well as a virtual team,

...while racking up on average 700 miles a month, driving to and from appointments.

If you have kids, that's [...]

- May 2, 2018 -

When you're in your 20's...you eat, drink, and smoke what you want and don't really think about your mortality.

In the words of Rod Stewart and Bob Dylan (depending on your music preferences) you're "Forever Young."

And then middle age sets in and everything changes 🙂

You can't consume the amounts of food you once could...without consequences.

You throw your back out and can't figure out what the hell could have done it.

Your doctor starts harping on blood pressure, cholesterol, colonoscopies, skin exams, rectal exams, PSA tests!!

(And women? What you have to go through sounds like Medieval torture!)

Is nothing sacred [...]

- May 1, 2018 -

Imagine putting Donald Trump and Kevin O'Leary in a room together.

"You're fired!"

"You can't fire me...because you're dead to me!"

Two ego-driven personalities going head to head.

O'Leary, the Shark Tank producer-appointed villain encouraged to be a little more evil in the early seasons, once told a crying female contestant, "Money doesn't care. Your tears don't add any value."

Trump, portrayed on The Apprentice as smart, decisive, blunt, rich - really rich - and never wrong, most probably benefited from the franchise becoming the launchpad for his presidential campaign.

Both shows were/are hits. Rating bonanzas that became national phenomenons.

While I've enjoyed [...]

- April 30, 2018 -

Now it seems like a lifetime ago.

When I was active in the network marketing and MLM arena, I never missed the monthly pep rally.

Top sellers were recognized...usually the same as the month before.

Another “rags to riches” story was told...always ending with “And YOU can, too!”

I knew I was good at sales. So what was the problem?

There was no logical reason why I couldn’t build a massive downline like so-and-so.

I worked just as hard as the top earners did.

So I'd vow to myself:

I … MUST … SHOW … THE … PLAN … TO … MORE … PEOPLE

I [...]

- April 26, 2018 -

I can't help but enjoy passing on a bizarre restaurant story.

It was way past noon the other day, and the thought of heading back to the office to my "same old, same old" bag lunch was not very appealing.

So I stopped at a local Subway shop to grab a sandwich.

I'm eating my turkey with provolone while catching up on my emails...and the restaurant phone rings.

Normally, it wouldn't even phase me...but the one-sided conversation (I'm assuming the manager took the call) caught my attention.

Keep in mind, this is one-sided - but it's not difficult to fill in [...]

- April 25, 2018 -

I've talked before about my affinity for the show Mad Men...in my opinion the last great drama of TV's golden age.

Alpha male Don Draper struggles to stay on top in the high-pressure world of Madison Avenue advertising agencies during the '60's.

Mad Men was about nostalgia...like Big Bands and jazz.

It was a throwback to the era of three martini lunches. Not sure if I could even function anymore after three martinis. Lol

It was about sales.

And when I think of sales...I think of David Ogilvy (dubbed the "Father of Advertising") who in my mind was the quintessential Mad [...]