Of Mice and Men.....

The One thing I can't stand is a broken commitment. I can put up with lots of people...liars, cheaters, incompetence, etc. But, when someone looks me in the eye and shakes my hand, I consider that a commitment, and a contract.
Remember the movie Jerry McGuire? Remember when Jerry was trying to sign the #1 draft pick (The Cush played by Jerry O'Connell.) Beau Bridges says "I don't do contracts Jerry, but I give you my word and its as good as oak." Then they shake hands. All the while, Bob Sugar was signing them, and they were lying through their teeth.
These type of people don't just exist in the movies, they dwell in real life. I consider myself a great student of people, but recently, I was fooled! Someone shook my hand and promised an investment, resources, and lots of money. Then, after several weeks of jumping through hoops, .....poof! they changed their mind. Here's my take on this:
This happens to everyone. It could be a business deal, a marriage, a relationship, a parent that breaks their deal with their child, etc. Its better I find out early the type of person I'm dealing with, than come to realize it when its far too late. The more I get to know this person, the less I want to know. This person is a rat, but I'm glad I found out while he was just a mouse. So what do I do?
I can't spend any time thinking about this person, or feeling cheated. I have to move on, and focus all my energy on the next deal. Lessons learned: I can only be the type of person that I want to be, and I can't believe anyone else to have my high ideals and lofty values. The problem with Boy scouts is that they are disappearing fast.
Luckily, another door opened up right away, and its bigger and better than the last one. The more time I waste (including writing this blog about it) the less time I have to focus on the next venture.........Time waits for no man.

No Accidental Tourists

I spent a good part of this year jogging, and getting up to respectable mileage in the hopes that I could run the NYC marathon (which was yesterday.) In the end I was not selected to run (120,000 applicants for 38,000 spots.) But I learned alot about life :
1) No one ever accidentally ran the marathon. One doesn't decide the morning or the night before the marathon to run 26 miles. Its not an impulse decision that can have completion as a result. You must train with deliberate purpose.
2) Along the same line of thought, no one ever accidentally succeeds in life. If someone by luck wins the lottery, there's a chance they will end up broke within 5 years of winning. Its happened to a lot of lottery winners. You can't just accidentally build an empire, or accidentally find love and a great marriage, or accidentally raise great kids, or accidentally start a business that grows leaps and bounds. You must purposefully acheive these things in life.
3) No one accidentally becomes a billionaire....And ....no one does it by themselves. No single person became a billionaire by themselves. There's usually hundreds if not thousands of people working for the same purpose......But one person gets the title. But its takes many to help him or her get that title.
4) I was shocked recently to learn that a lot of successful people do not affiliate with their friends from their past. Now I know why. Your friends from your past will often say "help me out." Everyone will be looking for a little help when you make it big. No one will regard your success as only yours, they will say they helped you along the way. Whether they did or didn't doesn't matter, you will need a new set of people to hang out with.

I often think of myself as a poor kid from Astoria, Queens. Thats not how I think of myself anymore. These days I see myself as an up and coming New Yorker. Its sounds better, and it feels better, and perception will always be realty.
Change how you see yourself if you really want change in your life.