Never lose hope

We once offered our readers a lifetime newspaper subscription.
I don’t recall the price.

It was something like $250.
Our first taker was a reader in her 80s.
Now that’s what you might call optimism.

Our friend Ron Isbell calls it hope.
Ron owns and operates three N.C. newspapers.
He has been having a battle with cancer.
He’s undergone several surgeries for tumors.
Some were on his spine, a high risk spot to operate.
Ron is sharing this experience with his readers.
Here’s the opening sentence in last week’s column:
"Nothing shows hope like buying green bananas."
Those who have battled cancer know what he means.
If you have a loved one with cancer, you know, too.
The rest of us can only imagine what it’s like.

Buying green means you'll be around when they ripen.

Cancer is not the death warrant it once was.
Many survive it and go on with their lives.
I’m praying Ron’s one who survives.
Life is filled with tests of character.
Cancer is only one of them.

I've had a cardiac condition for many years.
I like to joke that it proves I have a heart.
That’s not a claim all newspaper editors can make.
There will be much rejoicing if I make it to heaven.
They don’t get many newspaper editors up there.

What fuels my hope is my long bucket list.
Countries to visit. People to meet. Books to write.
CDs and DVDs. Newsletters and columns.
I hope you have a long bucket list, too.
It will fuel your hopes and drive your success.
It will help you realize your life’s great purpose.

For more on your purpose I recommend a little book.
It’s called "Your Life’s Great Purpose".
For a copy email me at JerryBellune.com

Dealing with burnout

Our editor has taken one vacation in four years.
It was his option but not a smart one.
The pressure was truly weighing him down.
Now he’s on sabbatical and his mood is improved.

Lee Milteer calls this burnout.
It comes in degrees of intensity.
We need to develop “the skill of awareness.”
This means we are aware it’s happening to us.
The more we deny our feelings, the worse it gets.
We must “own” negative feelings to deal with them.
We become caught up in them and lose awareness.
That’s when we need a friend to help us.

My wife is my sharpest critic and best friend.
She steps in when burnout is happening in me.
She pulls me back to reality. We all need a wife.

Lee advises us to create an outlet.
She can reset her stress level by playing hooky.
She loves movies, popcorn and a drink.
Sitting in the dark, reality is suspended temporarily.
Let your kid come out to play. Take a break.
Relax. Cut yourself some slack.
Movies. Walks. A cup of coffee with a friend.
Whatever resets your mood and attitude.
You’ll come back refreshed, balanced and in charge.

Lee admits preaching this stuff is easier than doing it.
So quit trying to be perfect. Settle for excellence.
Go to the movies. Watch a ball game. See a friend.
If it gets too intense, take a sabbatical.
For Lee’s eLetter, go to leemilteeroffice@gmail.com

All of us pay a price for leadership.
It’s a heavy responsibility.
For more on dealing with it read:
“Lead People, Manage Things”.
Check it out at JerryBellune.com
It will turn around your life and your thinking.

The success formula

This may come as a surprise.
Our nation’s capital is the top U.S. literate city.
And this is for the second year in row.
That’s surprising in a city with third rate schools.
It must be because of all the government lawyers.

The researchers overlooked Congress.
None of them seem to read the laws they pass.
They pass too many laws - and exempt themselves.
Barry Goldwater had it right.
For each new law, they should have to rescind one.
Researchers said newspaper readers were a factor.
D.C. newspapers must have a lot of readers.

Reading is critical to success.
We become what we read and think about.
Our friend Don Roy says it is one of the top three.
The two others are:

• A commitment to pay the price for success.
That means studying what successful people do.
It means learning to act as they have.
Role models are all around us.

• The gumption to get off you butt and act.
You can think and study for years.
But without action, you will gain no ground.
Figure out where you want to go and take off.
There’s more to success than these three,
But they will get you going.
Read. Commit. Act.

As you lounge in front of the TV, Don is reading.
That’s why he’s in the Guinness World Records.
Don has a purpose in life. You do, too.

For more on finding your purpose, read my book.
Email me for a copy of “Your Life’s Great Purpose”.

Anticipation

Do you have a Radar O'Reilly Award?

In upscale magazines, Seabourne cruise lines runs an intriguing ad.

Its headline: "Seabourn believes clairvoyance is a job requirement"

The ad advances the idea that Seabourn will anticipate your every want and need on the "World's Best Small Ship Cruise Line".

It reminded me of an important concept in a book about Disney World.

If you have not, please read Tom Connellan's "Inside the Magic Kingdom: Seven Keys to Disney's Success".

It is full of great strategies from Disney's people.

One of the ideas is to create a Radar O'Reilly Award at your business.

Radar, you may remember, was either clairvoyant or had the most sensitive ears in Korea. He heard the medical helicopters coming long before anyone else.

The award would go to someone on your team who anticipates your clients' needs and wants before even they know or ask for them.

For other great Success Strategies, "Killer Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs" has the top, field-tested concepts of 22 business owners, coaches and consultants.

It's available at JerryBellune.com

Sharpen your ax

Do you occasionally feel overwhelmed?
Sure. Most of us feel that way sometimes, too.
Let me share a great story and solution with you.
Years ago, a logger challenged an older logger.
The challenge:

Who could cut down a tree the fastest.
Those were the days before power equipment.

The two selected nearly identical trees.
They went to work, chopping and chopping.
The young logger was heartened by what he saw.
The older logger appeared to be taking breaks.
The younger logger took no breaks.
He was going to beat his older companion.
But the older logger’s tree fell first.

“How did you do that?” the young logger asked.
“I saw you taking lots of breaks.”
The older logger had a secret, he said.
Each time he stopped, he sharpened his ax.

Each of us needs time to sharpen our ax.
One way to do that is to divide your waking hours.
You might use the 30-10-20 principle.
Devote 30 minutes to a top priority project.
Turn off your cell phone. Close your office door.
Hit it hard and without interruption for 30 minutes.
Then take a 10 minute break. Coffee, A walk.
Anything that will give you a break.
That’s ax sharpening time. Make the most of it.

Then take 20 minutes to answer email and calls.
Or to meet with a colleague to discuss business.
Or to attend a very important meeting.
Just make sure it’s a 20-minute meeting.
I once took all the chairs out of our conference room.
Hour-long meetings were accomplished in 20 minutes.
There’s nothing quite like standing to get the job done.

Now repeat the cycle - 30, 10 and 20 minutes.
You’ll cut deeper and faster with a sharper ax.
Next week we’ll talk about the Power of Less.

Want a copy of my book “Your life’s Great Purpose”?
Email me at this address for a copy.