It’s sometime around mid-August 1946.  My mom and dad are married exactly one month.  My father is smitten (he stayed like that for the rest of his life – happily, very happily married 60 years) and well you know what happens.  One thing leads to another and sometime in the middle of August roughly 100 million swimming sperm race each other to see which one can get to my mother’s egg first.

Lucky for me the universal energy or the stars lined up and bingo, I experienced the first impossible thing that was to happen to me.  I happened.  I happened against odds that make winning the lottery or breaking the bank in Vegas look easy.  Easy.  And you know what, we have that in common.  We’ve all been gifted the impossible, life.

Now that you know just how lucky YOU are, what are you going to do about it?  It’s the first of the year and time for some reflection, planning and go get ‘um tiger energy.  What do you wish you’d done last year that you didn’t?  Are you going to do it this year?

Just how much money did you leave on the table last year in your business, because you:

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In a coaching conversation today with Sherry Dushaw of Usborne Books, she tells me she’s had a leadership revelation from the behavior of chickens.  I have had the privilege of working with Sherry for a number of years.  This is one smart, accomplished woman.  I found myself intrigued that she could learn anything from a chicken.  Actually, I wondered if any of us could learn anything from a chicken.  But as usual, mother nature had a lesson for me.

Part of Sherry’s commitment to homeschooling has her teaching a zoology class this year to 4th and 5th graders.  The class is focused on birds, that’s how the chickens figure into the story.  Here’s the leadership part.  When there is danger in the barnyard the chicken has a couple of things she can do to protect her chicks, she can:

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The holidays are upon us and every one of us is going to take time off.  Are you ready?  Not emotionally, but is your business ready to ‘shut down’ for days without you going through huge anxiety about what’s not done…or how to come back?

A little planning goes a long way to keep you sane and keep your business on the right track.  In fact, a little planning goes a long way to facilitate taking the best care of yourself, your family, your business and thoroughly enjoy your year-end holiday.

What does it take exactly?

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