The BALD TRUTH-Ignorance

Ignorance

The most painful experience I have ever had was caused by ignorance. Before you all jump on the “band wagon” and start saying how mean I am to say someone is ignorant, let’s just take a second to define “Ignorance”.
According to the always correct internet site Wikipedia…

Ok back to my story…

I have always had an approach in my life that I can and will take care of myself. I accept responsibility for my own well-being. In fact back in the 80’s while working in my first career in the restaurant business I experienced some major losses and financial struggles. So bad that I had my car repossessed, lost my apartment and my job and was crashing on a friend’s floor.
It was my ignorance that had gotten me there. I was uninformed or didn’t know the real consequences of not keeping up with my bills. I got to partying all the time, and neglected my responsibilities. This created a problem for me. Or problems… I was homeless, horseless and hopeless.

Ignorance isn’t just not having the facts; it is also taking actions on the wrong facts. Making decisions based on your own lack of information and being wrong. Because of this many make value judgments based on a lack of knowledge and assumptions, this can lead to anger, disappointment and even to hate.

Now hate is a strong word too. Hate can consume you and control you to the point of stealing all your time and energy away from you. It can and will suck the life out of you and with energy focused on the wrong things ultimately make you totally unproductive. This is what happened to me. I fell into a cycle of unproductivity and self-doubt that only a swift kick in the seat or smack upside the head was going to cure. Well that combo kick/smack came in the form of a man I will be forever grateful.

He probably doesn’t know this, nor have I ever told him but Dave Gilbert gave me hope in 1984. That’s right, hope. He believed in me and showed me. He saw something in me that had been push down so deep that I was spiraling out of control. He gave me a chance, hope for the future. He asked me to come work for him in the biggest, baddest nightclub in Houston, TX. He got me working, riding and living again. within a month I was back on track and even bought something to always remind myself that I can and will survive. See I had fallen into an unhealthy place physically and emotionally but he pulled me back up. For that I am grateful and forever in his debt.

Lastly, When you act and react without full info (ignorance) be prepared for the consequences. However, have hope that around the corner is that one person who has his or her hand out to help you out that will get you out of the hole you are in. Hope is the answer to ignorance. Folks have hope and give hope. Be a hope maker!

Until next time. That is the BALD TRUTH! Now Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get To Work

The Bald Truth-Speaking to the Masses

2012 is the year of the speaker. That's right people who can share a message and get their point across clearly and effectively are going to be the ones who change the world.

This year is the year of the speaker. With the up coming State of the Union address this evening we will see many of this country's families and political pundits watching and listening close to what the president says. Love him or hate him is not the point as we are all allowed our opinions. The point is can he clearly and succinctly share his message and motivate those watching to follow?

This is how leaders get things done. Getting a clear message across and motivating those listening. So this year, ask yourself this... Am I clear in my message, can I get my goals and objectives across to those I lead in a manner that they understand and get around. If you are not getting the results you want, take a look at what you want. Have you set specific goals and direction for yourself and those you lead?

If you want to learn more about leading and sharing your vision and goals with your team it is time to contact Coach Rick. Try a one hour complementary coaching session and get your game and message, back on track. for your session call 817-748-7425


Now... Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get to Work!

That is THE BALD TRUTH

Watch Rick communicate here: http://youtu.be/9-ydyvyTjig

New Years Resolutions-Why they Don't work, or...

Every year we hear why New Years resolutions don't work. They are too vauge, there is no real commitment, they are just dreams, we don't write them down. Blah Blah Blah...

Every year it's the same drivel from the same talking heads. Well I'm here to say that New Years resolutions CAN WORK. The key is do YOU work? Do you work at them to make them attainable? The key is setting realistic, specific and attainable resolutions. This is what I call the Coach Rick SMARTWAY resolution plan. Or for my coaching clients SMARTWAY Goals.

Did you take time to establish exactly what you wanted to accomplish in a SMARTWAY fashion? If not... WHY NOT? Why haven't you? If the answer is, "hey Coach Rick, just what are SMARTWAY goals and how do I set them?" It is time to learn how.

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time bound
Written
Aligned
Yours

Each of my one on one clients have the chance to learn the Coach Rick SMARTWAY goal process. And until January 15, 2012 so can you. If you call I will provide you with an hour to learn SMARTWAY goal setting. No charge. Free, zippo, zlich, nothing. The only thing you have to invest is one hour and the energy to dial the phone.

So what is stopping you now? Nothing.

Call Coach Rick at 817-748-7425 to get your SMARTWAY goal tools today.

Be the best YOU can be

Coach Rick

Ship Shipmate Self

.Ship... Shipmate... Self... A Navy Chief friend of mine offered these three words pertaining to priorities. WOW!!! Very profound and it speaks volumes about the priorities of an organization and how they should be. In this example, it's obviously a Naval vessel that is the subject, though this same methodology can be applied to other organizations and parts of our lives. Here are a few examples:

God, Country, Corps... (Sound familiar Jarheads?)
God, Family, Work
Mission, Team, Self

I'm sure you could think of a few more. The bottom line here is that in most cases, the preservation of the organization and the welfare of others needs to be a higher priority than self-satisfaction. It's not just about you and your agenda. To truly be effective, all leaders must know this and live by it!


Listen, Learn and Live.


Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get To Work!

Coach Rick
www.coachrick.net

Reposted with permission from Bryant Halstead

Are you HAPPY?

Are you Happy?

Today I saw one of the best pictures that described happiness.

The thought process goes like this. Ask yourself: Am I Happy? If the answer is yes, then the answer is simple, Keep doing what you are doing. If the answer is NO, ask yourself “Do I want to be happy?” If the answer is YES then change what you are doing. If the answer is NO, keep doing what you are doing. The choice is yours.

I understand and believe that happiness is a choice. Each morning we have a choice in which way we approach the day. Happy or pissed off. Your choice. Do you wake up and grunt, groan and moan that you would rather be back in the bed. Or do you wake up, embrace what is in front of you, the day that is yours to use and look at the opportunities it will provide. It doesn't matter what opportunities you face, it is how you deal with them that really determines your outcome. Are you choosing to make the best of it or are you going to find the whine in it? Your call.

Waking up with the thought that I want to be happy will get you start looking at what do I have to do to be happy. You see the moment you ask how can I be happy or say I want to be happy you begin to find happiness. So, to make the day, your day, it is critical to look for the positive. The good in the time you have. This month I have had the chance to meet one of the bravest men I think I have ever met.

Let’s call him Bill, and we will call him that because, well, that’s his name. Bill has lived a very full life, he has lived, traveled, experienced so much and has been in love and loved by a wonderful woman. Let’s call her Mary. Yes, that’s her name too… They have felt what I can see is true, deep real love for one another for over 30 years. This is a real accomplishment in this day and age of disposable relationships. Commitment. They lived and loved and even fought and got mad too. The point is they chose to be happy.

Well, growing older has it’s challenges as many of us know. Bill, over the years has seen his body break down some. Over time his kidneys lost some of their function and had to start dialysis. No big deal, he and Mary handled it. They still did things, laughed, loved and lived a full life. She drove; he was the copilot, three times a week to dialysis. Recently Bill was served up what must be one of the toughest diagnoses a person could have. Cancer. Damn! Options are limited. Chemo, surgery, radiation, but only if they can find the source. One kicker, if you choose to treat the cancer, you cannot do your dialysis. Without Dialysis... Life expectancy is 4 weeks.

WOW! Talk about decisions. They really don’t come much tougher than this in my book. BTW The cancer was stage 4 and left untreated would take him in 6-8 weeks.

Talk about lose/lose. Bill chose to turn it into a win/win. This is what I mean by choosing to be happy. Bill chose to hang in there, not treat the cancer with chemo and finally stop dialysis. During this time he had a loving family all around him, continued to tell jokes, make everyone else smile with his strength and humor. He put his family at ease; put his family ahead of his needs. He was and is more concerned about Mary and the family than himself. This is choosing to be happy. He spread joy, peace, laughter and happiness to all that came by to visit and talk with him. Heck he was even telling jokes and making others laugh at every chance.

The point is while we can’t really control what happens, (Bill sure couldn't’t, in fact he had what I call a pretty crappy situation.) we can chose how we react to what happens. Choose to be happy. Bill has!

Now make the choice, Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get To Work!

Living Life in the Present

I’ve discovered that I have greater success with living life in the present moment when I remove judgment from what I’m experiencing. Rather than making an event a bad or a good experience, I find myself being in the “isness” of the moment; that is, what I’m feeling is much more helpful than why it isn’t what I think it should be. This is called allowing rather than resisting what is. Even if I wish to change the moment, it’s far more useful to allow it without any judgment and then notice everything I can about it.

The more I stay out of my good-thought/bad-thought routine, the more I’m able to just be with it. I love to observe the instant without any judgment. Birds simply allow whatever comes their way, no matter if the wind picks up or the rain comes, and I work at being like one of those fabulous creatures. The way I do so is to ask myself this question: “What’s happening right here and right now, independent of my opinion about it?” Then I notice all that I can take in—the sky, the wind, the sounds, the light, the insects, the temperature, the people, the judgments…everything. I stay free of opinions and just let myself be. In these moments, I don’t need an excuse or an explanation for anything.

I try to keep in mind that whenever I react against any form that life takes in the present moment, I’m treating the now as some kind of impediment or even as my enemy.
Be without judgment and you’ll never feel the need for some tiresome excuse to use up your precious seconds, such as “I’m too old” or “It will take a long time” or “It will be too difficult.” Instead, you’ll be in the now, welcoming your constant present-moment companion, your Source of being, which knows nothing of excuses and doesn’t know how to be anyplace but here, now. As one of my spiritual predecessors, Dale Carnegie, once wrote: “One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon—instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.”

Become one in the present moment with all of the roses that show up in your life. Stay present: every second, every minute, and every hour. Every day of your life is full of present moments of infinite value. You won’t find God yesterday or tomorrow—your Source is always only here, now.

Reposted from a Positive Thoughts email.

Enjoy and Live well

Coach Rick

Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get To Work!

That's why they call it illegal!

Are we legalizing illegality?


Almost daily I hear something about illegal activity. Illegal immigrants, illegal drugs, illegal business practices, all kinds of illegal activities and the list goes on and on. I don’t know but when I was growing up if it was illegal, it was wrong. Plain and simple, wrong. No don’t get me wrong, I have done my fair share of this wrong, some of them I’m sure even “Illegal”. But what does the word really mean nowadays?


Let’s take a look at Webster’s definition: Not according to, or authorized by, law; contrary to, or in violation of, human law; unlawful; illicit; hence, immoral; as,
An illegal act; illegal trade; illegal love.


Illegal is simply a violation of human law, immoral and or illicit or in other words wrong! I guess my question is why are we trying to legalize illegal activities but still calling them illegal? Case in point we are trying to protect the rights of “Illegal” aliens. WHY? They have circumvented the legal process to arrive here in the good ol’ US of A. If I circumvent a legal process are my rights going to allow me to continue to violate the process. I HOPE NOT! That is why we have put into place specific rule, guidelines and regulations.


So why do some think that the rules don’t apply? Why do they continue to do whatever they please regardless of the agreements they have in place then cry “oh woe is me”. When did we become a nation of spineless weak leaders? The rules seem to only apply to those that abide by them and agree to abide by them. Anyone else gets a pass. I think it is time for people and leaders to stand up and do what they say. Be congruent with your words and actions. If you call it illegal, then don’t do it. If you say you will do it, then do it!


It is time for each of us to do what it takes to make this the society we know it is. Stand up for your rights, give our word and keep our word. Today what can you do to make a change.


I say… Roll Up Your Sleeves and Get to Work



Coach Rick