Bill Wilson did not have an easy childhood. His parents divorced when he was eleven, and afterward went their separate ways—leaving their children behind. Fortunately, Bill’s grandparents took him and his little sister in, giving them the love and support they hadn’t received from their parents. As a young man, Bill was drafted into the …
A Rough Start In 1896, when he was six years old, Harland’s father died unexpectedly from a sudden illness. His mother was left no recourse but to go work long shifts in a local factory in order to provide for Harland and his two younger siblings. Despite his youth, Harland quickly fell into the role …
Anna Mary was well versed in life’s hardships. Born in 1860 as the third of ten children, she left home at the age of twelve to work on a neighboring farm as a hired girl. She labored for her wealthier neighbors for fifteen years before meeting and marrying the love of her life, Thomas. The …
One Simple Strategy of the Highly Successful Highly successful people are creators. Now before you protest, “I’m not a creative person!” let me explain. To be creative doesn’t mean you have to be skilled with a paintbrush, play an instrument, or have an eye for interior design. Creative instinct takes many forms. Whether they create …
How the Greats Master the Art of Conversation: We have conversations with other people every day. Depending on the day and our line of work, we might speak with dozens of people throughout the day. But out of all those appointments, meetings, phone calls, and hallway greetings, we might have just one or two really genuine, one-on-one conversations that last more than a few minutes. Those are our chances to really influence others.
...I love to walk. When the weather is nice, I walk for miles around my neighborhood. When the weather is not so nice, I do the same inside my gym. Whether I’m listening to a podcast, dictating an article, or having a phone meeting, my brain is always engaged and the wheels are turning with …
I, like many people, believe in the priceless value of maintaining good health and physical strength through exercise. Throughout my life I have reaped many benefits from staying active and engaging in strength-training exercises. But no matter how faithful I am to an exercise regime, the inevitable reality is that my strength will eventually …
I have long believed in the wisdom of learning from highly successful, world-class leaders and achievers. If you really want to achieve greater success, why not study and learn from those who’ve gone before? Why not look at their habits and glean insight from their experiences? One such world-class achiever is internet entrepreneur Jeff Walker. …
Home from school at last, the five-year-old boy ran up the stairs, bursting at the seams with excitement, anxious to tell his daddy what had happened in class today. “Guess what, Daddy? I got to be the Class Leader today!” Turning to greet his son, the father caught the contagious excitement of his preschooler and …
I recently read an excellent blog post by bestselling author and speaker Jon Acuff. Jon made a rather surprising list of all the good things that happen to you when you compare your success to someone else’s. That’s right—good things. Just wait until you see the list! Here it is—I just added a couple things …
Have you ever had one of those workdays (or maybe one of those work weeks) where you simply cannot focus on the task at hand? You re-read the same paragraph three times but can’t remember what it’s about. You sit at your computer for an hour and only get five sentences typed out. You zone …
I have long been a believer in the incredible power of habits, and firmly believe there’s nothing else in your life that will influence your success more than your habits. Whether by intentional choice or subconscious pattern, habits almost completely dictate your daily routine, and it is your daily routine that grows to become your …
I readily admit… I am not the most patient man in the world. I’m just not programmed to wait or sit still. I don’t even like to sit still for long in my favorite coffee shop or the comfort of my own home. My wife, friends, and colleagues can all attest to my tendency to …
This week’s article is a guest post by Emily Sirkel, my writing partner and the COO of the Dan Nielsen Company. The late Zig Ziglar once said, “You never know when one kind act, or one word of encouragement, can change a life forever.” What beautiful truth is wrapped up in that …
Having just survived another hectic holiday season, I have been thinking about the commercial nature of Christmas—or really every holiday. Of course it’s understandable and inevitable, after all, businesses need to make a profit. But it’s amazing how ingrained that kind of materialism has become in our culture. It’s not just little kids who are …
Regardless of who you are, where you are, what you are or what you may become, this principle is indisputable, universal and eternal: you become what you think about! Absolutely, categorically, without question or exception, you become what you think about! During this holiday season, and throughout all of 2015 and beyond, why …
I have written about it several times over the years, but it’s a topic I keep coming back to because I believe in it so strongly. This time of year, especially with Thanksgiving just gone by, I am reminded more than ever how very important it is to be grateful. The incredible positive effects …
This week I celebrate my birthday. No, I won’t tell you which one. Let’s just say I stopped counting a long time ago! While occasionally a creaky knee or glance in the mirror reminds me of my age, most of the time I feel decades younger than I really am. You could say I’m young …
This morning when you got out of bed, did you ask yourself, “What really matters today? On this day, the only day I have for sure, what really matters?” That is one of the most crucial questions—maybe the most crucial and impactful question—you could ask yourself each and every day as you get out …
Most of us have dozens of conversations every day. Conversations with coworkers or customers, classmates at school, colleagues over lunch, friends on the golf course, our family around the dinner table, a casual acquaintance at the gym, or even the occasional stranger in line at the coffee shop. Ranging from mundane to fascinating and everything …