When you come through a tough situation, it makes you feel stronger and bolsters your self-esteem and self-confidence. It is not fun when you are in the midst of the struggle but when you come out the other side, it is like you are better for having gone through it.

As a parent we all wish we could keep our children from ever having to experience the struggle part, but we can’t.  It is like watching a baby bird break out of its shell. If you feel sorry for it and help break open the shell, while your intentions are good, many times the little bird will not live. See, they need to go through the hatch process and fight to get out because it makes them stronger and ready to face the world. If you help them, they miss what they need to learn.

Three decades ago, I went through a financial situation that I thought would never end. I had purchased some fast-food restaurants and got deep into financial trouble. It took me eight years to pay the money back and put the difficult season behind me. Looking back, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, but it made me a better man, father, husband, hotel broker and Christian. It took almost losing everything to really appreciate God’s favor when you see it. If I had not gone through that time, I wouldn’t have learned many of the things God needed me to learn. One thing is to never take life for granted and two, put God first place in all you do.

When you come through a tough period, it may sound strange, but you are proud of yourself. To many this may not sound like a big deal, but it is a big deal. It gives you a new identity and purpose in life. You will find that the first person you need to respect, is yourself. It has been said that the greatness of a house starts with the first cornerstone. Well, when you go through a struggle and come out the other side, you have laid the important cornerstone for your life. Self-respect.

When you look at the world today and see the chaos, most of these people never got to the point where they had self-respect. They don’t know how it feels to be proud of themself and to live upright. It angers them to see other people who have self-respect, and it causes them to try and take that away. These people are really lost and lonely because they have built a fake house with no foundation.

If you are going through a situation, the best advice is to simply keep going until you come out the other side. If you have recently gone through a situation, never lose the feeling of gratitude and gratefulness. They will keep you humble which is one of the most endearing personality traits a person can have. KT

Have you ever noticed that you plan more work for tomorrow than you do for today? The reason is simple, you like the idea of doing something more than doing it. I have these planner pads I use and have been doing so for 31 years. With the desk version calendar, you get these little cards you carry in your pocket to organize your day in priority order. It is a great system if you follow it and not so great of you don’t. More times than I can count, I have simply transferred the list over to tomorrow’s card because I tell myself, I will surely get it done then.

The point is that if one day’s list becomes the next day’s list and then the next day’s after that, you may need to sit down and re-focus your priority. I have also had days when I get everything done on that list and it is amazing how much better I feel when I go home.

103 years ago, a Harvard trained management consultant named Ivy lee walked into the chairman of Bethlehem Steel’s office and told him he could help him run his business more efficiently. The chairman said, “young man, I think I know how to run my business.” Ivy said, “I will give you a management idea, you try in and in three months if it has helped you, send me a check for whatever you think the idea was worth.” The Chairman agreed and Ivy took out a blank pocket card and ask the chairman to write down all the things he most wanted to accomplish with his business. The chairman sat back and wrote down a list. Ivy then told the chairman to put a number of importance by each item and agree to stay on that one item until he completed it. Only then could he move to item number two.

Ivy Lee left the office and the chairman tried it and liked it so much, he calls all his management team to his office and gave them all a stack of cards to use for the same purpose. He told them I will come to you without notice and ask to see your cards and that day’s list. Don’t let me catch you without your list.

The idea turned Bethlehem Steel into one of the largest steel producers in the world. Three months later Ivy Lee opened his mail and saw a check for twenty-five thousand dollars ($451,000 in today’s dollars) from Bethlehem Steel Corporation with a note of gratitude from the chairman.

A simple priority list for each day is probably the simplest and most often overlooked management technique in business. Try it because you would be surprised how much more you can get done in a day. KT

There are many situations in life where the idea of something is greater than how it actually is. It could be what you wear, what you drive, what you eat, where you live or even what you do. We all have these images of what we will feel when something happens and more times than not, we couldn’t be more wrong.

I remember a suit I bought a few years back and thought it would look good. I got it home and wore it to a conference and I felt like a goober walking around in that suit. As I have written about several times, I love those old Jeep Grand Wagoneer’s. Every time I bought and sold one, I told myself I would never buy another one. I have owned three of them. ha. You have this image of wearing an old hat with a flannel shirt, driving an old vintage SUV with wood grain down the side and it would be so cool. Well, its not. They leak like a faucet, drive like a big lawn mower, sound like an angry weed eater and they break down all the time. Case in point, the idea of the Wagoneer is much better than actually owning one.

I was counseling with a young man one time who wanted to open a store that sold saltwater exotic live fish. He was all pumped up about how great it was going to be. I took out a piece of paper and told him we would just do a chart with income and expenses to see how profitable it would be. You guessed it. By the time we got all the way through the spreadsheet and he realized how many fish he would have to sell every day to make it, the answer was clear. Don’t do it.

There have been many people destroy their lives because of an image or idea of some change they wanted, but never gave careful thought about what it would actually be like. As with many things in life, especially if you have people depending on you, be careful when you want to pursue a new idea or image. It usually takes much longer, and costs much more than you expect it will. KT

There are several consumer products that have stood the test of time. Some that come to mind are Duct Tape, Rubik’s Cube and WD-40. Duct tape was originally invented for the Military to use to keep moisture out of ammunition cases. It has been adapted for just about everything from fixing the helm on a prom dress to holding the side mirror on car. Side note, my father in-law actually used it to tape the side mirror on his fishing car. Ha

Let’s talk about WD-40. It was invented in 1953 by a little company named Rocket Chemical Company. When I say small, I mean small. They had three employees. By 1960 the company doubled in size to seven employees and they were selling 45 cases per day from the trunks of their cars. They changed the company name to WD-40 Company and today it is publicly traded and worth four billion dollars.

Below are the most unusual uses for WD-40 but the most amazing use is on fishing bait and lures. It has been said by many fishermen that spraying a little bit on bait and or lures attracts the biggest fish. The other unusual uses are as follows. Enjoy. KT

Use No. 1: Spray it on fish bait or lures as “a great pike attractor.”

Use No. 2: Coat wire tomato cages with it to keep insects away.

Use No. 3: It stops metal tent poles from squeaking in the wind.

Use No. 4: It removes crayon from turtle shells.

Use No. 5: It works like magic on tangled horse manes and tails.

Use No. 6: Remove gunk from the base of the toilet bowl.

Use No. 7: It’s a great lubricant for prosthetic limbs.

Use No. 8: It shines the leaves of artificial plants.

Use No. 9: There are arthritis sufferers who swear by spraying it on stiff limbs. (The company, on the other hand, advises against it.)

Use No. 10: It’s excellent for removing candle soot.

Use No. 11: Great for getting chewing gum out of your kids’ hair.

Use No. 12: It’s rumored to keep the Statue of Liberty rust-free.

Use No. 13: Takes the sting out of fire ant bites.

Use No. 14: It keeps mirrors and windows from fogging up, whether in the car or the bathroom.

Use No. 15: It repels pigeons from balcony railings.

Use No. 16: Paired with a long-handled lighter, it makes a great mini flame-thrower. (Proceed at your own risk.)

Use No. 17: It keeps snow from sticking to shovels.

Use No. 18: It eliminates static on volume-control and tuning knobs.

Use No. 19: It cleans dog poop off tennis shoes.

Use No. 20: It camouflages scratches in cultured marble.

Use No. 21: It removes duct tape.

Some people when they are born, come out with a personality that is larger than life. They just have this thing about them that is contagious, and people listen when they talk. It can’t be taught but it can be learned. It is not about who is the loudest in the room. It is a person’s quiet confidence and mannerisms that draw people to them.

I played football with this guy in high school and he was our quarterback. He was the smallest guy on the team, yet he played far beyond what his stature would indicate was possible. It was his personality. He just believed in himself and what he was doing more than the rest of us. On another note we had this camping friend growing up named Bobby. He was a large powerful man, but his personality is what captured you. He could win over the crowd without even trying. Lastly, I know two young women (sisters actually) that both have this gift of quiet confidence that causes people to pay attention when they talk. They are larger than life.

I have friends today that are like that. Some are in my business and one is in my Sunday school class at church. All these people just seem larger than life and leave a deep impression wherever they go.

Like I noted earlier, it can’t be taught but it can be learned. It starts with a person’s self-esteem and self-esteem starts with making the decision to step into who you were really meant to be. Many people live their whole life never really being who they are meant to be. For some it is caused by fear, anxiety, inferiority etc., but for many people, it is just a decision away. This might sound strange but take one day, only one day and make the decision that in every conversation and interaction that day you will be who you want to be in your heart. Ask yourself at the end of that day if you want to do that for a second day or go back to how you were the day before. My guess is that if you act like this several days in a row, it just may be the shift you have been looking for. It can be learned but only through repetition can it began to change how you look at yourself and the world around you. KT