Whenever I find myself off balance, I have to go back to my fundamentals- jazz and books. Reading was strongly emphasized by my elders as a youth; I wasn’t ready to receive this knowledge until years later. As embarrassing as it sounds today, I never read a book for leisure until my senior year of high school. after reading The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley, I began to religiously cheat on my first love – music.
Over the years, I developed the habit of reading 1 hour daily for education or leisure. Through the power of words I have journeyed to exotic places I have never physically visited. I had the luxury to be taught in a one-on-one class by some of the greatest minds ever to exist: Imhotep, Socrates, Sun Tzu, machivelli, The Dogon, Henry Hazlitt… In addition, I witnessed first hand the numerous abominations committed upon the oppressed and voiceless people all over the world.
Filed under: Personal Growth, Productivity by Talani
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If you had 60 seconds with Bill Gates could you leave a positive impression?
During my years in Sports and Entertainment, I witnessed many careers take flight based on brief unexpected encounters with movers and shakers. Also known as The Elevator Pitch. These pivotal moments could propel you from obscurity to a major player, instantly.
For a simplified understanding, I equate this event to a man approaching a woman. As all men should know, you can’t sway sleeping beauty just because you have the courage to advance. If you walk up to a lady with the combination of nouns, verbs and adjectives, you will soon be waving the white flag. To give yourself a chance, you have to compound your approach with finesse or passion.
Filed under: Productivity, Strategy by Talani
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beach
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Benjamin Taylor of the THIRD PIG blog. (Benjamin is also the President of Brick Financial Management, LLC)
“Everybody Ought to be Rich” was an article published in August 1929, just before the beginning of the Great Depression in the Ladies’ Home Journal by John Jakob Raskob. Raskob, a wealthy financier at the time, believed in the stock market as a viable means of wealth creation for everyone. However, the article is often seen as an example of irrational exuberance due primarily to the unfortunate timing of its publication.
This does not mean that Rasko was wrong in his declaration. The truth of the matter is that everyone ought to be rich, but not everyone will be rich. Becoming rich requires a level of persistence that few people seem to possess. Becoming rich, as Raskob implies, is not a matter of business genius but a matter of disciplined saving in performing asset classes, namely the stocks of high quality companies.
Filed under: Finances, Guest Posts by Talani
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Dr. Muhammad Yunus, NYC
Do you know the difference between a CELEBRITY and a HERO? Well, we recognize a celebrity as someone who is well-known, someone who commands a high degree of public attention. But a HERO, on the other hand, is a person whom we admire for their courage and noble qualities. These individuals have risked and sacrificed everything for the benefit of others. One such modern hero is Dr. Muhammad Yunus.
Filed under: Business, Interviews by Talani
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Visualization exercise
Often people attempt to achieve goals without having a specific plan of attack. For example, if you catch a taxi it would be impossible to reach your destination without sharing the city and street. As detailed as you are giving directions to others, you have to be as thorough with yourself. Before you design your ideal life, increase your effectiveness by first visualizing your ideal day.
The power of writing our goals and dreams helps manifest them into reality expeditiously. Here’s a productive visualization exercise, I call “24″
Filed under: Personal Growth, Productivity by Talani
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