Thinking Out Loud

Happy Thanksgiving! Having one day a year where you focus on what you are grateful for is good, but for me, living in gratitude daily, is better. Did I inherit gratitude or learn it? I have no desire to engage in that debate. I'm just grateful I'm grateful. I was reflecting this morning on my newfound beliefs, or perhaps my recently discarded beliefs, and I realized that if I had to choose one changed belief that that has most dramatically changed me, it would have to be my belief that people are good. Yep, I no longer believe in Satan or sin. And even though I don't believe the Bible to be any truer than any other book, I do love how the author had his God declare all his creations "Good."  No one is evil. Yes, some people commit horrible, nasty acts, but not because they are evil, but because they are not well. Hurting people hurt others. This realization is far more empowering than believing that some people are simply corrupted. We can help heal hurting...

Today I'm grateful for bikes, burritos, and basketball, and in that order. I took my foldable bike to work today and it made my warehouse runs super more fun. I was seriously able to cut my time finding products in half. And it was SO fun to pedal through the warehouse. I turned heads aplenty. I was bobbing and weaving between the 30-foot high product aisles and dodging forklifts and workers left and right. Such a blast! One of the things I love about myself is that I do things my way. I had so many people just think I was the coolest and honestly, I wasn't trying to be cool, I was just doing what sounded smart and fun. Then, after arriving home, Luke and I mounted my Yamaha Zuma and ran errands. It was my first time pulling out my scooter since October. It was a warm day so the cool air felt epic as we cruised to Smith's and Cal Ranch. We had a blast trying to balance all the groceries and supplies we purchased. We were definitely over the prescribed weight limit of 25...

I subscribe to the Mindfulness Magazine and one thing I'm noticing is that serious meditators all advocate keeping a gratitude journal. I have always expressed my gratitude in my thoughts and prayers, but I've never been consistent about writing them down. I imagine keeping a daily gratitude journal would be an interesting experiment. I'm going to keep a daily record for one week--starting today--Sunday to Sunday.  I'll write my daily post about what I'm grateful for and see what comes of the practice. Today, I'm grateful for my physical health. I have such vigor for life. I love getting outside, walking, running, playing sports, breathing the fresh air, and taking in the beautiful sights. One of my greatest fears has always been becoming paralyzed for I felt I wouldn't be able to "be active" any longer. And while I wouldn't be able to play basketball, run, do yoga or any of those activities in the way that I'm used to doing them, I would...

I'm getting so excited for my upcoming Prosper Show presentation. It's this next week in Las Vegas where I'm scheduled to teach back to back workshops. One is helping retailers create an Amazon Video Strategy and the other one is teaching them how to leverage YouTube to grow their private label brands. So far, I have over 115 people attending the workshops and they are each paying $349 to be there. I am being paid half of the tuition which means I will earn in one day (5.5 hours of teaching) more money than I earned in my entire first year of teaching. Seriously, my contract as a teacher for the 1999 school year at Weber High was for $20,100. I left teaching as a profession after a few years because I didn't want to be financially tight. I wanted to be able to earn more money so I could better provide for my family. Little did I know then that later, teaching and consulting would provide me considerable income. The other day I was hiking a mountain and I had just re...

Tonight we attended the Killers' Concert and there were many lessons I learned: 1) I give because I can and because I want to. On our walk from the Joseph Smith Building to the Vivint Arena we were skipping and a gentleman joined in while singing "We're off to see the Wizard." It was endearing. We asked him what he was up to and he proceeded to admit that he was homeless and living in a tent. He explained that he was actually in need of $28 for an application. I told him that I just so happened to have $30. I pulled out my wallet and gave him $30 plus $5 for good measure. He was positively delighted. I know some wondered why I would give to him and whether it was really legit, but honestly, I don't care what he does with the money for "Ask and ye shall receive." He is my brother and he is not as fortunate as I when it comes to currency. So I shared my surplus. And as we waited for the light to change, I noticed a beggar in a wheel chair. His sign sai...

"There is no way to prosperity. Prosperity is the way." This quote reminds me of one I wrote down in my tribute to President Monson the other day entitled His Light Lives On . "You do not find the happy life, you make it."  I believe in mindset. What we think becomes our reality. If we think we will one day become prosperous, we will find ourselves always chasing it. If we believe we are already prosperous, and we create and hold that prosperous image of ourselves firmly in mind, we will behave in prosperous ways. It's a lot like my post yesterday about relationships . If we think our spouse is selfish or unloving, we will create a pattern of interactions that reflect this belief. We will end up seeing what we believe. I have been guilty of thinking that one day I will be financially independent. When I operate from this mindset, I tend to strive to acquire more. I see myself in the parable Jesus shared of the man who built larger silos to house his grain. H...