I was riding the bike trails with my neighbor, Mike, at Fort Yargo State Park on a beautiful November afternoon in 2008. I hate to admit it, but Mike must have been in a lot better shape than I was, because after only five minutes of riding with him in the lead, I noticed that […]
Archive | Inspiration
Are You Trying to Go Out of Business?
It really isn’t what you say, but how you say it, isn’t it? I just received a letter from the Post Office notifying me that it is time to pay my annual bulk rate mailing dues. I was expecting the letter but what I wasn’t expecting was the verbiage it contained: Dear Charles Marshall, Your […]
Some Kidding Aside – What success isn’t
Several years ago, I sat at a table surrounded by teens and young adults as we all stuffed envelopes for one of my direct-mail campaigns. Since nobody seemed to be interacting much, I thought I’d get the ball rolling. “So, what do you guys want to do when you get out of school?” I asked. […]
What your customer is thinking but won’t tell you
Almost every weekend I hand my credit card to some rental car company for the privilege of using one of their cars for a day or two. A couple of months ago, I showed up at a rental car location to pick up a car I had reserved. When I arrived, it turned out that […]
Some Kidding Aside – Five things about purpose that your personal success coach might not tell you
The beginning of the year is a great time to evaluate your purpose. Here are a few things about purpose that you don’t normally hear: 1] There is no such destination called “purpose.” If success is defined as the process of fulfilling your potential, then as you grow, your direction in life will change as […]
Some Kidding Aside – Motivational blog -Taking initiative and taking control
There are two types of people in the world–those who take initiative and those that don’t. Usually, those that don’t will do what they’re told to do, nothing more, nothing less. They show up and perform adequately. They punch the clock, watch the clock, and then punch out again. If, however, you are a person […]
Some Kidding Aside – Get a vision, make a plan, take a step
What is your vision for your company, career, and relationships for this coming year? Do you have a clear idea of what you want? It’s hard, if not downright impossible, to get to your destination unless you have an idea of where it is. The difference between a dream and a goal is a written […]
Some Kidding Aside – When a person chooses poorly, they are, in effect, choosing the bad consequences that come bundled with their decision
Quite often the easiest choice is the decision that is based on an emotional bias, rather than intellectual reasoning. Take a moment and think about all the bad decisions you have made in your life. Think about the wrong turns, the bad relationships, the money mismanaged and misspent. Is it not true that the great […]
Some Kidding Aside – While it might be true that you cannot change those circumstances, you can choose your attitude…
You say if you really had your choice, you would be wealthy, happy, and fulfilled, and yet you are not. Therefore, you reason, you could not possibly have chosen your present situation. Certainly, there are many things that people cannot, and do not, choose. The loss of a loved one, a debilitating disease, a sudden […]
Some Kidding Aside – There is no “happily ever after”, real life always continues and the story never ends
We all get one life and this is it. There is no “happily ever after.” Real life always continues and the story never ends. There never is a place in any life where all struggle stops and happiness is a perpetual state. Sometimes there are seasons of respite from struggle, but those are usually all […]