In a business world devoid of egos, profits would rise, salaries would increase, and unemployment would plummet. In all seriousness: A number of the planet’s problems would be solved.

– Bo Peabody
   entrepreneur
   founder of Tripod/ sold to Lycos
   from Lucky or Smart? Secrets to an Entrepreneurial Life

My kind of book. Inspiring. Authentic. Short (less than 70 pages of content).

“… formula for creating business luck… Lucky things happen to entrepreneurs who start fundamentally innovative, morally compelling, and philosophically positive companies.”

Not everyone wants to be/ can be/ will be an entrepreneur. But on a personal level, being…

• fundamentally innovative
• morally compelling
• philosophically positive…

I like that.

(ego by justsell.com)

Every time I get on a plane, I visit my mortality.

I wonder the night before an early flight if this’ll be the last time I say goodbye to my kids or The Spaniard.

I wonder if my final words will be remembered or how my children will grow into adults without me should something happen.

I tend not to think about it when I get into the car though. Yet someone is over 25 times more likely die in a car accident than in a plane accident. Equally interesting to me is that (if I’m reading the chart correctly) I’m almost 10 times more likely to perish as a pedestrian than in a plane.

But for the most part, I’m sure to get on a plane with no grudges or anger and with my last words being "I love you." Not so though as I hop into the car or head out for a walk.

It makes me think of the conclusion of a recent sermon I heard…

"Are you ready for your surprise ending?"

I’d like to be. You?

(more stats from the National Safety Council)

3 more hours of work by The Spaniard.

Amazes me. Pretty cool having someone in your house who can do this.

(site coming soon — of course, soon is relative)

"O negative can be used by babies…"

Those words inspired the world’s first virtual blood drive… but a drive with twist.

It’s for those who sell (isn’t that almost everyone?).

If you can be a part of it, please join in (and/ or spread the word).

It begins next week — the start of a season where supply is typically down and demand rises.

Please visit www.salesblood.org to learn more about the event and how a bit more customer care can go a very long way (and did).

(if you’re not in sales, could you start something similar in your profession? no barriers, no bureaucracy… just action)

We took the boys out to breakfast this morning and boxed up what remained.

"Enough to feed another 2-3 people," we thought.

"It’s a business thing," I said. "If they gave us only what we could eat it may appear as though they’re not providing ‘a good deal’."

The discussion led to "the charitable cut."

Can you imagine…

"Tonight’s special is a 12-ounce NY strip served with garlicky smashed potatoes and green beans at $22.95. The strip is also offered as a charitable cut… an 8-ounce strip served with the same sides at the same price but $6 goes to the local homeless shelter and you don’t have to carry anything home."

(use this link for more charitable offerings)

It wasn’t until 1863 that Thanksgiving in the US was a national holiday.

And it wasn’t until 1939 that we had two in one year.

The reason? It was all about sales.

(use this link to learn the story of Roosevelt’s challenge in 1939 and about the woman who encouraged Lincoln to set the holiday in the first place)

(for those in sales and business development, use this link to get some insight on thanking your prospects and customers — and justsell.com’s quick guide to gratitude)

A friend of mine sent me this picture from his cell phone with the note, "Your kinda place…"

It’s apparently a thriving coffee shop across from a Starbucks in California.

Given the number of my love posts recently, I asked my buddy if he’d sent it to me because he’d been reading my blog (hoping maybe ; ).

"No," he told me. "It’s a place I’ve been going to while out here (on business), and thought of you every time."

He reminded me of something I sometimes do when ordering a sandwich. Describing what I’d like, I’ll conclude by saying (very matter of factly) something like, "onions, mustard, and a little love." It usually generates a smile and I like to think a bit more attention and care in the making of my sandwich. All should already exist but more times than not, don’t.

I share this for three reasons.

1 – a tip on getting a better sandwich (and buying experience) occasionally

2 – to inspire a "with love" service target for any of us who serve others (that’s all of us, of course)

3 – as a reminder of how our words and actions can stay with others even when we don’t know it

I was lucky on this one — a pleasant surprise.

I’d prefer not get any stills inspired by those ugly things I’ve planted.

from Meet the Press…

MR. RUSSERT:  But those are words that will appeal to people.  But when you go behind them, for example, what is the Democratic position on Iraq?  Should we withdraw troops now?  What do the Democrats stand for?

DR. DEAN:  Tim, first of all, we don’t control the House, the Senate or the White House.  We have plenty of time to show Americans what our agenda is and we will long before the ’06 elections.

MR. RUSSERT:  But there’s no Democratic plan on Social Security.  There’s no Democratic plan on the deficit problem.  There’s no specifics.  They say, "Well, we want a strong Social Security.  We want to reduce the deficit.  We want health care for everyone," but there’s no plan how to pay for it.

DR. DEAN:  Right now it’s not our job to give out specifics.  We have no control in the House.  We have no control in the Senate.  It’s our job is to stop this administration, this corrupt and incompetent administration, from doing more damage to America.  And that’s what we’re going to do.  We’re doing our best."

I typically vote for Republican candidates.

Last week, for the first time, I voted for a Democrat (in the Virginia gubernatorial election). Unfortunately, it wasn’t because I was excited about the candidate. I simply felt he was the best of the choices given what I watched and listened to during their debate (did they have more than one?). To me, he seemed to give the most straightforward answers of the two and sounded better prepared operationally.

When I caught Dean talking this morning with Russert on Meet the Press (a show I’ve watched maybe three times in my life) I thought "Hmmm. Now that I might be turning into a Democrat (wink), why don’t I give him a listen?" That’s when I heard, right or wrong, that the Democratic Party’s job is not to give out specifics and to focus on taking down the other team rather than improving our world.

Bad sound bite? Maybe. But I never did hear anything compelling (or specific).

Russert quoted Dean’s former campaign manager (Joe Trippi) during the discussion as saying, "Obviously, the results from the election night are great for us Democrats. But given the GOP’s problems, the tightness of the results suggests that people aren’t happy with either party right now."

I agree.

I want to be excited about someone. I want truth.

(I want Santos and Vinick to be real.)

“Is it hard to drive?” my 11-year-old asked on the way into school last week.

“Not really. Driving itself is pretty easy. What’s hard is watching and being aware of everyone else or all the things that might happen if someone else or you don’t pay attention – even for a second.”

5 minutes after dropping her off…

A scary reminder of our interdependence (yours and mine).

There are probably 20 great analogies here (okay maybe 4)… let’s start by just watching each other’s back.

…inside the deck there are 4 groups of cards. Each group is called a suit. One suit is named diamonds, one is named hearts, one is named clubs, and one is named spades.

Quiz #1: Okay, now what are these?

“A 5 of heart sticks and a 3 of lumps.”

Good start.