Building alliances

Women Marines reach out to Afghan women and their children

Did you see the story on the women Marines?
They reach out to the women of Afghanistan.
Women Marines do this more capably than men.

Congratulations to the Marines.

This is a stroke of genius.
Mark and I recently met with some extraordinary women.
These mothers lost sons in Iraq and Afghanistan.
They went over there to establish relations.
They communicated with mothers who lost children.
They helped, consoled and shared their grief.
War takes a terrible toll on the innocent.
This is an important way to win hearts and minds.

We need hearts and minds in this war.
In business, much like war, we need hearts and minds.
Building alliances is a big objective for me in 2011.
Put this on your own Master To Do List.

For instance, I plan a new marketing Mastermind group.

These will be clients I can help with their marketing.

And we can help each other grow our businesses.

If you're interested, please contact me.
Ask yourself these questions:
1. Who do I need to create alliances with and why?
2. What can I do for them before I ask them to do for me?
Put this on your Master List and devote time each week to it.
Invite your friends to lunch and tell them what you’re doing.
Ask them for their support and advice.
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Awakening a sleeping giant

Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941: A day that will live in infamy


Are you old enough to remember Pearl Harbor?
Most of us remember the unprovoked attack.
Even those of us not yet born in 1941.
If we’ve read the books. Seen the movies.
The movie “Pearl Harbor” glamorized history.
Romanticized it, too. Movies are designed for that.
To stir our emotions. Even bring a few tears.
But the real 1941 attack awoke a sleeping giant.
Here’s a secret if you want to know about WWII.
Talk to veterans. Listen to their stories.
They are dying at a rate of 1,000 a day.
They will not be with us much longer.
Most are modest. But if you listen, a few will talk.
I tried for years to convince a WWII veteran to talk.
He was wounded at Normandy and at the Bulge.
The memories must have been too painful to recount.
He had a great story to share but kept it to himself.
It is up to us to teach our younger generations.
To teach them the lessons of our wars.
Valley Forge. Gettysburg. Normandy. Iwo Jima.
Korea. Vietnam. Desert Storm. Iraq. Afghanistan.
Teach them about courage. About our values.
About the legacy our forefathers left for us.
Make a commitment to read the books.
“30 Seconds Over Tokyo” or God Is My Co-Pilot”.
“Guadalcanal Diary” or “To Hell and Back”.
They teach important lessons about our people.
We are the best hope the world has ever had.
Freedom. Opportunity. The good life.
We make sacrifices so others can enjoy them.

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Proud to be an American

David Feherty helped open a driving range dedicated to CSM Jonathan Lankford,

who died of heart failure.

Here’s an uplifting story to make you feel good.
David Feherty was an Irish professional golfer.
He came to the U.S. 17 years ago.
Throughout it, he maintained his Irish citizenship
A trip to entertain U.S. troops in Iraq changed that.
“That was the tipping point for me,” he said.
He gave up his Irish citizenship.
“I needed to be an American after I saw what they were doing;
“The United States is the greatest force for good in the world.
“It has been for a very long time,” he said.
Feherty has been to Iraq to entertain the troops twice.
He plans to be in Afghanistan at Thanksgiving,
He helped found the Troops First Foundation.
It will have 10 events for wounded U.S. soldiers this year.
“They are special people,” he said of our military.
“It’s their sacrifice that allows us to be the way we are.
“It’s inspiring to be around people like that.
“It’s been the greatest thing in the world for me.”
Be happy to welcome David Feherty to citizenship.
He reminds us of how special it is to be an American.
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For more on purpose in life, please click here.

Hang onto your sense of humor

Our guys in Iraq keep 'em laughing

Our consulting group met in Philadelphia last week.
All of us advise newspaper publishers and editors.
We talked a lot about what we saw for the future.
We talked about technology and delivery systems.
We talked about integrity, credibility and loyalty.
Let me ask you these three questions:
• Do newspapers and books have a future?
• Does U.S. small business have a future?
• Are we being spent into the poor house?
No matter how you answer, do it with a smile.
Think you have it tough?
What if you were in Iraq? Or Afghanistan?
Our troops in both know it's serious business.
But their sense of humor helps relieve the tension.
Their message: Keep laughing for your sanity's sake.
The news business will survive - in print and online.
Small business will survive. It won't be easy.
But entrepreneurs are tough, adaptable, innovative.
Will we be spent into oblivion? It may happen.
But I'm convinced we are a strong people.
We have the greatest economic system in the world.
We have freedom. Despite Congress and the courts.
It may take decades to recover from this spending.
But we will do it if we keep our sense of humor.
For more humor from a combat zone, email me.
JerryBellune@yahoo.com. You'll get all 15 photos.
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