How to Defy Death and Live Forever… On Earth. (VIDEO)

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I remember, as a kid, playing “make believe” story scenarios in the front lawn where I lived. With some of the neighborhood kids, we would play out our primal fantasies, often including battles fought with plastic swords and cardboard shields. Each game would inevitably end with a winner and a loser. If the winner was extremely bold, he may shout to the heavens a war cry, “I am undefeatable and rule forever!”

He won the game, thereby ensuring his immortality for all time. (Or at least until the lights came on and we all had to disperse to our homes for baths and bedtimes.)

The idea of living forever is not new to mankind. In a very basic sense, we all fear death. We all know of people who, upon turning 30, or worse, 40, come upon a great struggle with the realization that they have more days behind them than before them. For as we grow and mature, we come to understand there are no “do-overs” and there certainly are no victors who “live forever.”

We all die. For many, this is a frightening concept.

What frightens many of us mortals is not so much the act of death, although this can also be paralyzing, but rather what happens after we have crossed over.

Religion has tried to combat this by proclaiming ideas of the afterlife. Ideas which bring comfort and justice in an uncomfortable and unjust world.

For Christianity and Islam, this idea is called Paradise or Heaven. For Judaism, it is referred to as Ola Ha Ba, or “the world to come.” (In fairness, it is important to point out that Judaism does not focus on the afterlife to the extent of the other two monotheistic faiths. Therefore, I will not mention the Judaic branch of religion further.)

These ideas, especially for Christianity and Islam, are eerily similar.

In Christianity, there are two schools of thoughts. One idea states that upon death, the body is in a state of rest until the coming of Christ, when the “dead in Christ shall rise first.” The other idea asserts that the once the body of a Christian dies, he is then ushered right into the presence of God. For those entering Hell, the punishment is swift, immediate and grotesque.

For those of the Islamic faith, upon death, every soul enters the grave while awaiting the Final Day of Judgment. The difference between the two, those going to Heaven and those bound for Hell, is this: For those Muslims entering Heaven, they experience peace and rest in their grave. For those Muslims entering Hell, their time in the grave is spent tormented and restless.

Two different faiths with the common belief that once life on earth is finished, there is something yet to come; reward or punishment.  No matter the outcome of your soul, you can look forward to some “thing” upon death.

Yet, I wonder if these views are more for our comfort than actual truth? (I am simply posing a question here. Follow the trail.)

It is quite true that the ideas of Heaven and Paradise we hold on to are much different than any words or ideas written in the Bible, or even the Quran. (However, since I know more about the Bible and Christianity, from this point forward, it will focus solely on the Christian view of Heaven.) The idea of angels and clouds and gold for miles around; seeing loved ones; talking with Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Mark and Timothy; living in a constant state of worshipful bliss with no problems, no worries.

Much of what we have come to believe about Heaven are the makings of tradition, customs, ritual and art.

To be sure, we cannot know of the exact certainty of Heaven. Even more, it is extremely presumptuous to state we know all of the intricate details of Heaven. A literal reading of the Bible will grant the Christian some very specific ideas of this heavenly place, but the exactness cannot be known.

In addition, we place our same earthly (mostly Western) desires on this sacred and heavenly place. Growing up in a small, conservative church, I heard, more times than I care to admit, “I just know my Jesus is up there in Heaven building a mansion just for me.”

Really? Jesus, the Son of God, spending his time in Heaven building you a mansion? Really? The Son of God has nothing better to do with his time? No one to contract to do all of this building? Just Jesus, putting in the time and nails, one board at a time… This is hard concept to accept.

Yet, many Christians, pointing to the Gospel of John, chapter 14, will declare this to be truth.

It is important to note that this belief of Jesus building mansions, a belief which rings through much of evangelical Christianity, is based on a private, very intimate conversation Jesus was having with his disciples. Knowing of his impending death, he was telling them that he was going away to the Father. But as a measure of comfort for these men who would be losing their charismatic leader, Jesus intimates that he would be with them and “in them.” How is this possible, for Jesus to be with, and “in,” his disciples? By obeying his teachings, they could ensure he would live on through them.

But I digress. I am in danger of heading down a rabbit trail. Back to this idea of the mansion.

It is important to ask the question, “What does this Western idea of a mansion really symbolize?” Wealth, power, capitalism, elitism, separatism. It seems more of the same lifestyle we experience here on earth, except that Heaven will be much more just, much more socialist and much more separate; a place where everyone will have a mansion which will inevitably separate all the residents with walls.

So Heaven will be like an episode of Orange County Housewives?

Again, I digress.

It is safe to say that even if one believes in Heaven, one cannot, with certainty, state what exists in Heaven. Even more, the ideas we keep of Heaven must not be the same ideas Jesus spoke of when he talked about the Kingdom of Heaven.

So this idea of Heaven is murky, at best. Non-existent, at worst.

So I come back to the questions about the afterlife: What if there was no afterlife? No Heaven, no Hell? What if this world was all we had?

We cannot fully know about yesterdays just as we cannot full know about our tomorrows. All we have is today. And by truly living today, we can literally and figuratively defy death and live forever.

In my morning reading, I came across this statement Dankwart Rustow made about Charles DeGaulle, the former French general and President: “DeGaulle’s mission is to leave a scar on history, to shape his destiny, and thus defy death.”

How does one defy death? How does one truly live forever?

By living fully today.

By giving oneself fully to a great cause. By building something great, be it a business or a family. By teaching. By investing in someone else with no hope of receiving anything in return. By upsetting the pattern of your day to help someone stranded on the side of the road. By adopting a child in need of a family. By consistently and faithfully volunteering your services to the poor and needy. By rescuing the battered single mother and her children. By volunteering at a local hospice and caring for the sick and the dying. By loving those who have been marginalized by society.

For the Christian reader, this is exactly what Jesus meant when he spoke of bringing the kingdom of God to earth “as it is in Heaven.”

By giving everything one has today for the cause of others, one lives on forever… defying death, defying the grave.

It cannot be said, “There is, in fact, a Heaven.” I cannot be said, “There is not, in fact, a Heaven.” The answer to this mystery will come to all of us in due time.

What we do have, with certainty, is today. And today we can make a difference that will ring through eternity.

In the words of John Lenon:

Imagine there’s no heaven

It’s easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only sky

Imagine all the people living for today…

Defy death. Live forever. Life for today.

Moneyball: 10 Leadership Lessons (VIDEO)

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Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt, is the greatest movie of 2011 and one of the greatest leadership movies of our time.

The movie is honest and jarring. Most of all, it makes you think.

We all have a past. We all have regrets. We all believe in something that seems to be madness to the rest of the world.

Here are my 10 Leadership Lessons from the movie Moneyball:

  1. Leadership is lonely. Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), the general manager of the Oakland A’s, never socializes with his players, even refusing to ride the team plane. Why? He knows he may need to cut any member of the team. Cutting a player is tough. Cutting a friend is darn near impossible.
  2. There is an exact art to firing someone. In one scene, Billy Beane explains the technique to firing someone. It must be swift, simple and succinct. Beane likens the act of firing to an execution. “Would you rather have one round to the head or five to the heart and bleed to death slowly?”
  3. The importance of standing your ground. When a decision is made, a leader must stand behind their decision 100 percent. No explanation is needed or necessary. Explanation is a sign of weak leadership.
  4. The first guy through the wall always gets bloody. It is tough to be a change agent.
  5. Re-inventing the wheel is an arduous task, nearly impossible. People will buck you, people will slander you, people may even lose faith in you. However, when one believes in the change, they must stand their ground.
  6. Take a chance on the underdog. After losing a great player, Beane decides to reinvent the wheel, bringing in a Yale economist, Peter Brand (Jonah Hill), and choosing players based on numbers and statistical facts. Three of the players he chooses are either “has beens,” lack the confidence to play at professional level or have defects which make them unattractive to other MLB teams. Beane takes a chance on these young players and ends up winning 20 straight games, a league record.
  7. Firing cannot always be an option. Sometimes a leader must simply force the hand of a subordinate. In the movie, Beane’s manager (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is at odds with Beane and the team he has been given to shape and mold. As a result, he defies every decision recommended by Beane, playing his own roster. At the point in the movie where the viewer is almost screaming, “Why don’t you just fire the manager?!,” Beane makes an unprecedented move and trades three players, including an all-star. This move forces the coach to play the team according to Beane’s unconventional, statistical method. Instead of firing the manager after several confrontations, Beane simply forces his hand.
  8. It is necessary to end well. Beane’s greatest fear is the fear of not winning the final game, a feat his team has failed to do time and again. Beane makes a point: “It does not matter how many games a team wins during the season. If the final game is lost, the entire season is lost.” What a great lesson for life. Finish well.
  9. Adapt or die. In the conference room with his scouts, Beane is struggling to make the point that it is time to think differently in order to win. This is a tough concept for his scouts who have been carrying out “business as usual” for many years. Yet, as Beane shows, when the tried and true method quits working, it is time to find a new method. Furthermore, the movie reveals several flashbacks to Billy’s former life including his ill-fated decision to play professional baseball instead of accepting a full-ride scholarship to Stanford University. Yet, when this did not work out he had to adapt. A great quote is stated at this point in the movie: “You make a decision on what you see, and things don’t pan out. You move on. That’s baseball. Many are called, few are chosen.”
  10. Sometimes following your heart means foregoing the victory. In the end, Beane turns down a twelve million dollar a year contract to pay the Boston Red Sox to remain with his scrappy Oakland A’s. Two years later, the Red Sox wins the pennant. Two years later, Beane still cannot win the final game. Life is not always filled with happy endings.

While I anticipated a great movie, I never expected the lessons I received from Moneyball. I hope business schools everywhere will make movie this recommended viewing for MBA candidates.

For now, I think I will screen the movie… again.

Nameless and Comfortable

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Self-preservation is the enemy of a sacrificial life.

Furthermore, self-preservation is the enemy to a life of impact.

What do I mean by this?

A life of impact inherently equals a life of self-sacrifice. One who desires to make a great impact cannot live life for their personal desires. The greater the desired impact, the greater the call to self-sacrifice. Any pursuit of comfort and preservation of “self” will inevitably stand in the way of sacrifice and impact.

When one spends their life in pursuit of the things that will bring comfort and pleasure – fancy houses, beautiful cars, lustful desires, financial security – their focus will necessarily turn to attaining and retaining these items of comfort.

They will never live the life of a reformer. They will never bring about great change.

They simply cannot.

Tonight, in my continued reading of The Great Transformation by Karen Armstrong, we have reached 8th Century BCE, in the Ganges region of north India. This time period can be referred to as the Indian Axial Age. (For those not familiar with this book, The Great Transformation is an in-depth study into the histories of the religions of the Middle East, China, India and Greece – how beliefs grew, transformed, became religions and then traveled to other parts of the region).

In tonight’s reading, we come to see the contrast between the Indian “family man” and the Indian “renouncer.” The family man, even in 8th century India, was a pretty basic family man. He was married with children and had become “the mainstay of society.” On becoming married, the family man received the rights to have the sacred fire in his home and to perform the daily rites. This was a respectable standing in 8th century India.

Yet, respectable is very often forgettable.

The renouncer, however, was altogether different. While his life would embody the meaning of self-sacrifice, it was he who left a lasting impact on Indian society and the Hindi religion.

Armstrong writes about three different groups of people in this time period: the family man, the hermit and the renouncer.

The family man we have already spoken of.

The 8th century Indian hermit, like the renouncer, renounced society and lived on the margins, deep in the forests. However, the hermit could live in a community, raise a family, could east the flesh of animals – so long as the animal had been killed by another predator – create a household and typically left their hair long and unkempt.

These were the 8th century hippies. They renounced society while still trying to maintain societal practices – family, sex, marriage.

The renouncer was altogether in different class. These were the Hindu monks of the 8th century.

Here is a taste of the renouncer lifestyle:

  • The renouncer rejected society for the remainder of his life.
  • The renouncer internalized his religion in an age of ritual and customs.
  • The renouncer had “no family, no sex, no fire, no ritual and no possessions.”
  • The renouncer had no home. He was “deliberately homeless.” As a matter of fact, he only permitted himself to remain in one place for a maximum of two nights. Then he was back on the move.
  • The renouncer begged for his food.
  • The renouncer shaved his head.
  • The renouncer “had to practice iron self-discipline, and control his speech and senses.”
  • The renouncer treated all animals alike, “whether they cause him harm or treat him with kindness.”
  • The renouncer must be silent.

This is not the lifestyle most people aspire to, yet it is the lifestyle which would bring about the greatest impact in the Hindi religion. Of the renouncers, Armstrong states: the renouncers “became central to India’s spiritual quest. Henceforth the renouncer, not the householder, would become the agent of religious change.”

“People admired renouncers and saw them as spiritual heroes, bravely pioneering a new spiritual path,” Armstrong states. “The renouncer had declared his independence of the village, lived in a world of his own making, submitted to no rituals, performed none of the ordinary social duties, and embraced a radical freedom.”

It was the renouncer of comfort and self-preservation who would make the greatest impact on the Hindi religion and culture. The rest of society simply faded into the expanse of history.

Nameless and comfortable.

Excerpt from Radical Compassion: Clyde

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I am reading an incredible book by Jesuit priest Gary Smith. Smith lives with the poorest of the poor in the most broken areas of Portland, Oregon. In his book, Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor, Smith recounts anecdotes from the different men and women he serves in Portland.

In reading these anecdotes – some which are humorous, some sad, some profound, all enlightening – we find we can learn a great deal from the poor and marginalized in our society.

Today the excerpt is from Clyde, “a potbellied gnome of a man with a balding head and round, round face.” Clyde wore a cowboy hat, knew Scripture as well as any theologian and like to preach to Gary – a Jesuit priest – how might be able to receive the Holy Ghost.

In one discourse, Clyde answers the question of whether it is easy to heal in the name of the Holy Ghost. “Well, of course it is, if you got the Holy Ghost. But you got to realize that man can’t heal a fly, only God. You need to lock yourself in a closet for forty days if you want to get the Holy Ghost. And then after that kind of prayer, if you see some woman lying down dying of stomach cancer, you got to look down on her and say, ‘Woman, get yourself up and go get yourself a hot dog and eat it!”

I placed a smiley face in the margin of the page after reading that paragraph. That is an honest prayer from a man who has no need to impress.

But here is the prayer that stopped me dead in my tracks tonight. It is Clyde praying for the wife of a man who was plagued with asthma and traveling to Phoenix to seek help.

“Lord, I know you love this woman and that you want her to be with you. But remember that this man loves her, too, and he needs her and she needs him and they need to be together. So give them some more time, even as you are healing her from her illness. Let them love each other as you love them.”

This is prayer from man who declared he did not have the Holy Ghost because he was a “backslider.”

My opinion? This is the kind of prayer God listens to; prayer from the heart of the broken. Even more, this is the kind of prayer that can turn a skeptic into a believer.

Question for My Fellow Christians on the Issue of Marriage.

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Question posted this evening by a Twitter friend: If marriage is sacred/religious then why don’t people go to their pastor for a divorce rather than a lawyer?

In an age where churches across America seem more intent to discuss (preach against) gay marriage, this is a viable question for Christians across the globe.

“Why is this a viable question for Christians?” you may ask.

Because when Christians stand up across America (and the world) and state that marriage is a spiritual union given by God between a man and a woman, yet use the law of the land – as opposed to the law of God – to dissolve said marriages at the same alarming rate as non-Christians, we have lost the right to speak on marriage as a sacred covenant.

It seems to me that Christians, who come before God seeking a blessing on marriage, must also approach God for the dissolution of said marriage. It just makes sense.

Yet, one look on the biblical view of divorce (Malachi 2:16) and the words of Jesus on the subject (Matthew 19:1-11) show us why Christians ignore God when seeking divorce.

Now, back to the question.

Why do Christian divorce seekers go to the lawyers before their pastors?

Because a great lawyer will give them what they want (separation/independence) while a great pastor will give them what they need (unity/accountability). Another symptom of Westernized Christian thinking: “My Christianity is good for me when it is good for me.

Something we must think about before defending our “sacred” institution of marriage.

Let’s get this right before telling others what they should/should not have.

Mpho Tutu: Faith Lived Out

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An excerpt from Mpho Tutu’s 2010 interview with the Huffington Post:

Q: What are you earliest memories of learning about faith and God?

A: I can remember getting into my teenage years and being in a boarding school where I had friends who were Muslim, Hindu, Jewish and from other Christian denominations–and really starting to probe what my faith meant at that time and in that context.

Growing up in southern Africa, the language of faith–you breathe it in with the air. There isn’t the kind of talk about faith and about God, but it’s very much more the lived experience. I didn’t learn about Christianity from the text books; the pattern of faith was that the door was always open for whoever wanted to come by–and they always seemed to show up around meal time.

It wasn’t, “This is who God is and this is what God says and this is what you’re supposed to know about God.” We learned about faith from the way my parents lived.

The Mission of Every Teacher

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For teachers everywhere: Our primary mission is to prepare our students for the tough world that awaits them after graduation.

Period. End of story.

While this primary duty of ours entails many different aspects – lessons planning, goal setting, disciplining, testing, grading, parent conferences, education, certifications, training, IEPS, etc. – training our students for their unknown journey into the world is our mission.

And because the world is tough, we must be disciplined in our methods of teaching and reaching kids.

We do not coddle them. We do not speak down to them. We do not make excuses for them. We do not neglect them. We do not lessen the load for them. We do not allow them any room to slack off.

We teach them.

And this very word “teach” entails so much. Motivating. Prodding. Challenging. Persisting. Pressing. Pressuring. Acting. Encouraging. Disciplining. Loving. Listening. Planning. Simplifying. Carrying. Advising. Strategizing.

All of this falls under the umbrella called “teaching.”

We never let up. We never give in. We never cave to the natural human desire to “be liked.” We continue moving forward. We fight the laziness in our students; we awaken and keep alive the talents and gifts every one of our students bring to the table. We never give up.

Last weekend, I watched Education Nation’s Live Teacher Town Hall which took place in Atlanta, GA. While the entire town hall was insightful, even helpful, the most dynamic part of the afternoon came when Ron Clark took the stage. (If you do not know who Ron Clark is, you can educate yourself here or here or follow him on Twitter.)

Ron Clark is an educator’s educator. He takes no prisoners. He has a passion to change lives through teaching. And he believes in setting the bar high.

The 3 most important points Ron Clark made:

  1. Find the smartest kid in the classroom and teach to them. The others will rise to the challenge.
  2. Set the bar extremely high for every student. Every student wants to be challenged. Again, every student will rise to the challenge.
  3. Teach by any means necessary. While so many schools and educators are moving towards technology based classrooms – which is a sign of progress – these innovations will never replace the most basic form of transmitting information from one human being to another: teaching. Therefore, it is imperative to teach the lesson in ways to make the students understand. Walk on desks. Stand on your head. Dress in costume. Do whatever it takes to help the students learn the material

Ron Clark believes as I believe; great teaching is an art form. It is hard. It is difficult. It is mind-numbing. It is exhausting.

But when we see a kid who leaves our classrooms and is extremely prepared for the next stage of his journey, we know we have done our jobs.

Life is tough. It can even be cruel. Are your students prepared?

 

The Dalai Lama on the Use of Time

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Every one of us is getting older, which is a natural process. Time is constantly moving on, second by second. Nothing can stop it, but what we can do is use our time properly; that is in our hands. Whether we believe in a spiritual tradition or not, we need to use our time meaningfully. If over days, weeks, months and years, we have used our time in a meaningful way – when our last day comes, we’ll be happy, we’ll have no regrets.

 - His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama

The Descendants (VIDEO)

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I am no authority on movies. I am certainly no authority on family.

But this is a great movie every family should see.

A journey through pain, truth, loss, confrontation, humiliation, disappointment, redemption, forgiveness and restoration.

Beautiful.

 

The Waiter is the Enemy!

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That’s right. You heard me correctly. Your waiter is indeed the enemy.

You may not have heard, but there is an international conspiracy taking place. Even as I am writing this, waiters all over the world are scheming to take over the world. Table by table, condiment by condiment, napkin by napkin, spoon by spoon. Soon the world will be theirs.

This scheme has been in play for many years, but only recently has the master plan been unhatched; set on display for the entire world to see.

Movement of the International Progressive Server. Or as some of you know them, the MOTIPS.

Their slogan? Waiters of the World Unite!

That’s right for all of you slow ones out there, there is a conspiracy that must be taken down immediately. MOTIPS must not be allowed to survive.

Be afraid, dear consumer. Be very afraid.

Fortunately, there are some of you out there who already know about this dark conspiracy. You are no fool. You are no idiot. You saw this conspiracy beginning to take shape years ago. You will not be conquered.

I salute you.

You, the Consumer Who Treats the Waiter Like Crap.

That’s right. There is a growing number of people like you. Smart people. Courageous people. People who will not be fooled by the charms and service of the waiter. You have formed your militant organization and slowly you are enlisting all the help you can get. The ever-growing organization with their elite soldiers: the International Department of Independent Oversized Tools. IDIOTS, for short.

You and your fellow IDIOTS are doing a great and necessary work in rooting out the conspiracy of the MOTIPS. You are to be lauded for your feats of courage.

You are not shy. You are not going to stand by and watch this travesty. Your are IDIOTS and IDIOTS act!

And may I say, you IDIOTS are doing fine job tearing down the morale of waiters everywhere.

Just yesterday, Continue reading →

Karen Armstrong on Compassion

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My work has continually brought me back to the notion of compassion. Whichever religious tradition I study, I find at the heart of it is the idea of feeling with the other, experiencing with the other, compassion. And every single one of the major world religions has developed its own version of the Golden Rule. Don’t do to others what you would not like them to do to you.

….We’ve got to do better than this. Compassion doesn’t mean feeling sorry for people. It doesn’t mean pity.

It means putting yourself in the position of the other, learning about the other. Learning what’s motivating the other, learning about their grievances.

Karen Armstrong, Author

Christ or Pain? Our Motives for Conversion

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Is one’s conversion to Christianity  - or any religion, for this matter – a conversion based on fear, necessity or desire? What are the motives for one’s conversion? Historically why have people converted? Why did I convert?

These are important questions for people of all faiths to examine. Because one’s faith and religious beliefs are the foundation for all other beliefs a person carries, it is fundamentally important to examine the terms on which this belief/faith/conversion began.

I am reading a very exciting book entitled, A Battle for God, by religious historian Karen Armstrong. Early on in the book, Armstrong examines the conversion of the Jews from Iberia in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The Spanish Inquisition of 1480, which helped to cause the spread of Christianity in Europe, was the reclamation of the Muslim territories on the Iberian Peninsula (modern day Spain). Before this time, under Muslim rule, the three major world religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – were able to coexist together in relative peace for over 600 years.

While the Jewish people in much of the rest of Europe where subjected to persecution and pogroms, the Jews in Iberia experienced a renaissance of sorts – spiritual and cultural. However, as the Christian armies conquered their way through the Peninsula, reclaiming the land from Islam and bringing anti-Semitism with them, many Jewish communities were attacked by these Christian invaders and forced, upon the threat of death, to become Christians.

They were not given a choice. They were not asked. There was no altar call, no lady sweetly and sorrowfully singing “I Surrender All.” No, this was not a force to be reckoned with.

Convert or die.

The Jews who voluntarily converted to Christianity became known as conversos, or, as we say today, converts. Some of these conversos picked up another nickname by the Christian invaders: Marranos, meaning “pig.” You can imagine the weight of this insult on the Jews as the Jewish religion strictly prohibits the eating of pork.

Yet, even these conversions from the Inquisition were not good enough for the Christians.

In the 15th century, as these new Jewish Christians became upwardly mobile and wealthy (Jews always seemed to be able to make lemonade from the many lemons they have been handed) many of the Old Christians began to resent them. The solution? These Old Christians would incite riots against these “Marranos,” killing them and driving them from their towns.

Well, as the old saying goes, “You can take the Jew out of the Jewish, but you cannot take the Jewish of out of the Jew.”

To the chagrin of the Spanish Inquisitors, many of the “New Christian Marranos” secretly returned to their Jewish faith. This led to the Inquisitors of the Inquisition beginning a hunt for those conversos secretly living as Jews, torturing them and finding out the names of other secret “Judaizers.”

After all was said and done, over 13,000 Jewish converts by the Christian invaders were killed in the course of twelve years.

It gets worse. Continue reading →

Junior Seau: 1969 – 2012 (VIDEO)

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While it would disingenuous for me to write a long journal on Junior Seau, the former San Diego charger player found dead today in his home – I did not know him nor did I follow his career – I have been struck by the outpouring of San Diego’s love for him.

Junior Seau made a difference. He used all of the gifts given to him. He made a lasting impact in his community. He never forgot his roots. He loved his family. The people of San Diego loved him.

What more could be said?

RIP Seau.

Noah Porter on Leadership

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 Rely on your own strength of body and soul.

Take for your star self-reliance, faith, honesty and industry.

Don’t take too much advice — keep at the helm and steer your own ship, and remember that the great art of commanding is to take a fair share of the work.

Fire above the mark you intend to hit.

Energy, invincible determination with the right motive, are the levers that move the world.

 - Noah Porter, Academic, Philosopher, Author, President of Yale College (1871-1886)



Tom Ford: Undeterred Leadership (VIDEO)

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Successful leaders know exactly what they want. Successful leaders are sometimes a little “off,” a little different. Successful leaders have, at times, potentially been bullied. These people think different and therefore are treated differently.

When I use the word “successful,” I am not referring to the corporate manager who manages a set of systems and regulations or the musician who makes music that sounds like everyone else or the writer who writes in the prose of many. I am referring to the leaders in their field. Think Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Madonna, David Neeleman, Albert Einstein, Anna Wintour, Jim Henson. The list goes on. These are people who revolutionized their respective industries. People like fashion designer, Tom Ford.

Tom Ford is the “dresser to the stars”. He has dressed everyone from Gwyneth Paltrow to Beyonce, and many more recognizable modern names.

And Tom is a little different.

He admits that from a very early age, he was different. He did not act like everyone. He did not dress like everyone. And people noticed. Ford even admits to being bullied in his younger years. I guess any 2nd grader who decides to wear an overcoat and carry a briefcase should expect a little ribbing from time to time.

Did he care? Not at all. Did this deter him? Not in the least.

This is a guy who dropped out of a Bard School and New York University within the span of a couple of years, lied in subsequent job interviews in order to land desirous positions and called famed American designer Cathy Hardwick for 1 month straight before landing an interview and, subsequently, the job. He was different. He knew what he wanted.

Of the artist Madonna, Ford states: “If there’s anyone who knows who they are, it’s Madonna. She knows what she wants.”

Point of this post? Successful leaders, the kind of people who want to change the world and leave an indelible imprint, first know who they are and what they want to accomplish. Then they go after it no matter who or what stands in their way.

Simply put, they are undeterred.

Ahhh… Thankful for the Democrats, FDR and the FDIC

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When asked why I am a Democrat, I state four letters… F.D.I.C.

Today in our History class in the (special education) academy I teach at – remember, I said, “special education” – we began the daunting task of uncovering the great mysteries and paradoxes of the Great Depression.

The lesson today dealt with some of the causes/effects of the Great Depression, including the infamous Bank Runs – where U.S. citizens in the 1930′s ran to their banks to withdraw all of their money out of fear the banks would fail. This was kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more people who ran to the bank to withdraw their money, the more likely the bank was to fail… and most often did.

Before discussing Bank Runs, we talked about speculation and buying on margin. Speculation, of course, being the practice of playing the stock market without a full knowledge of the outcome. Buying on margin being the ridiculous practice of purchasing stocks with borrowed money. (Even if your stock fails, you are still responsible for the loan.)

The most telling part of the lecture came when I explained to the students how the Great Depression Circle worked. After the stock market crashed in 1929 causing the 11-year Great Depression, many people rushed to their banks to withdraw their hard-earned money. This seems logical, eh? However, when they arrived at their banks, a vast majority of the people would never be able to recover much, if any, of their monies. Why? The banks had gambled the money of the people on the stock market!!

When I stated this, the class became alive with screams and yells of “How stupid is THAT?!!!” Remember, these are supposedly, “special education” students. ADD, Autism and Aspergers… and this nonsense made sense to them.

It was at this moment that I was able to calm the special education masses with the tale of the F.D.I.C. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Yes, the F.D.I.C. The Federal Deposit IN CHARGE.

I shared with the class that this great reform came as a result of the Bank Act of 1933. The newly formed F.D.I.C. would ensure all  money placed in F.D.I.C. insured banks would remain insured up to a certain amount… then, $2,500; now, $250,000.

And the genius that signed this bill into law? Franklin Delano Roosevelt. A Democrat.

So obvious, even a child labeled “special ed” can see it.

Gov. Chris Christie Weighs In (No pun intended) VIDEO

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Last Saturday evening I had never laughed so hard while watching C-SPAN. Come to think if it, rarely do I laugh while watching C-SPAN. But on this night President Obama was in rare form comedically, and late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel not only walked up to the line, he crossed it several times.

No one was spared from the relentless jokes. Chuck Todd, The cast of GLEE, Allen West, Kim Kardashian, Rick Santorum, Lindsey Lohan, President Obama, Newt Gingrich, Donald Trump and, of course, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. All were victims. Christie got it the worst.

For those who may not know, Gov. Christie is a very, very (very) large man. Some estimates put him at nearly 300 pounds. If he is not 300 pounds, he is getting close.

So, when Jimmy Kimmel began making jokes about the President’s weight – or lack of it – we knew who would be next. And Kimmel did not disappoint. After pointing out First Lady Michelle Obama’s ambitious plan to make America healthy, Kimmel pointed to the large governor and said, “Look, it’s Chris Christie. Get him!” to which the audience roared.

It was a funny moment.

And you know what? Even Christie understood that. As you can see in the video below, Christie laughed at himself.

Even more, in a press conference today in New Jersey, Christie admitted he has no problem laughing at himself! In summary, he said that anybody who is overweight – as he is – is going to be the butt of jokes, fair or unfair. That’s the way it is.

I liked Chris Christie before Saturday. I like him a whole lot more today.

Donald Trump could learn a thing or two from Gov. Christie. And so could you.

Laugh more… at you.

Nelson Mandela on Leadership

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It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur.

You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership.

- Nelson Mandela

Life Is Full of Exits

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Life is full of exits.

I heard that quote in Johnny Depp’s recent movie, Rum Diary. Simplistic yet true.

Life is also about perspective.

What one person views as trash, another person views as treasure. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. A closed door means there is an open door along the way.

Recently, I experienced an “exit” of my own. After 3 years of investing many days and hours into my “dream job,” it came to an end much quicker than it began. No explanation, no reason. Just an end. Everything I had been working to build, every relationship, every network… gone. In a matter of seconds.

The first week was really, really tough. The next week a little better. By the third week, I was able to turn the page on that chapter and begin the process of moving on. Just as we prepare for our entrances, we must also prepare for our exits.

Here are some lessons I am learning during this time of transition: Continue reading →