Today is my birthday — always an opportunity for reflection, but especially this time. For several weeks now, I’ve been thinking about what I’ve learned during the past five decades that really matters. Here’s a first pass:

1. We are new here. Today is a chance to begin again, find your gifts, share them or reinvent ourselves with the way you would want others to describe you.
2. Wisdom comes from constantly learning. Let others to describe you like an inquisitive child that hangs on every word, is like sponge and constantly asks questions.
3. Everything can change in 100 days; write down today what you wish to change. Never, never, never quit – nothing should be sacred to change other than your life’s mission or business vision.
4. Be bold, invent, and imagine what is possible. Never stop innovating but keep it simple, no one has extra time (most don’t live my point #2!)
5. Professional success starts with answering “Why” you do what you do. The rest — “What” & “How” — becomes easy to answer, and that simple recipe equals marketing & sales success
6. Remember that in business “Profit” is the proof you are creating value for others.
7. The entire hubbub regarding “Social” can be dumb-down to asking yourself (or your company) if are you a creator of stories that others care to listen to, and then share with others. The rest is just choosing which “Channel” you pick to tell your stories and which “Medium” you use for others to Read, Listen & Watch. If it’s good stuff (and I have ONE button to click to share) you WILL BE SOCIAL.
8. Remember to be truthful, humble and be transparent in all conversations. As I cross over 50 this particularly important as it’s tough enough remembering details as the hard drive fills. I can assure you trying to remember things you are not passionate about creates confusion, ambiguity and less than genuine conversations and relationships.
9. We will never be finished — The mission is the journey, the job is discovery. We are here to serve others, keep finding new people to serve, learn from them, apply what you learn, REPEAT!

Watch this Video, take 30 minutes and change lives!

Make a difference, visit kony2012.com today

Too often we get to smart for our own good.  I helped iDonate.com relaunch a very sophisticated SaaS solution for Nonprofits to get more gifts, namely noncash, text and in-kind gifts.  Now we need to share the story broadly in the simplest of terms, so here goes…

A Fish Story

While I don’t like everything coming out of Warren Buffet’s mouth these days, this one is a great! We hire the congress and it is an honor NOT a career. In three days, most people in The United States of America can get this message with your help.

*Congressional Reform Act of 2011*

1. No Tenure / No Pension.

A Congressman/woman collects a salary while in office and receives no
pay when they’re out of office.

2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social
Security.

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the
Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into
the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the
American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all
Americans do.

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.
Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

5. Congress loses their current health care system and
participates in the same health care system as the American people.

6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the
American people.

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen/women are void
effective 1/1/12. The American people did not make this
contract with Congressmen/women.

Congressmen/women made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in
Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers
envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their
term(s), then go home and back to work.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will
only take three days for most people (in the U.S.) to receive
the message. Don’t you think it’s time?

THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!

If you agree with the above, Like it or Tweet it Please.

I have many friends in the agency business, getting paid for fun, funny, different, provocative, innovative and memorable ideas is what keeps creatives energized. This is such great idea, congrats…

That moment of confusion.
Forgetting your password can be a frustrating, confusing moment — an emotion that Alzheimer’s sufferers deal with day in and day out. For national Alzheimer’s month in November, agency Grupo Gallegos came up with an interesting way to raise money for client the Alzheimer’s Association. Partnering with Univision.com, the agency added a few lines to every “forgot your password?” reminder the Web site sent to its members, reminding them that that moment of self-doubt is a constant reality for those afflicted with the disease.

This scene should get you thinking about the things that matter…

There is no greater purpose than making the world a better place because you existed. Everyone of us has a story to tell and gift to share, find them in yourself and other. Share them with the world.

Thank you Joshua Weigel for giving us this short film to remind us all of this important life lesson.

Sometimes they come in little fruits! 

I met Charles Lee (@mymberry) through my friend Chris Drake (@firehost).  In doing so I met an inspiration man, entrepreneur and story in perseverance and faith.  Below is a short bio on Charles Lee and mBerry as well as a video that promotes his partnership with Chef Homaro Cantu (@Homarocantu).  Chef Cantu is a molecular gastronomist and owner of Chicago restaurants Moto and iNG.  Full Story here.

Live is a miracle, taste some of it here…

Excerpt from W.P. Carey School of Business @ ASU…  The first time Charles Lee popped a miracle berry tablet into his mouth and then bit into a lemon, he was stunned. The lemon tasted naturally sweet.  “I don’t know if it even sunk in,” says Lee, a 2009 ASU finance graduate. “It was a shock. I wasn’t sure it was the same lemon I’d tried before.”

It was, thanks to the fruit that is taking the world by storm. Miracle berries, which resemble elongated cranberries, temporarily alter the taste buds so that sour and bitter foods taste sweet. The berry has become a novelty at parties, where guests eat the fruit and then sample a variety of foods (such as Brussels sprouts, vinegar, pickles, tequila, beer and citrus) for an experience that fools the tongue into perceiving sweetness.  The sensation lasts an hour or so.  After reading a New York Times article about the berry in May 2008, Lee was intrigued. He was ready to graduate with an eye on entering law school but lacked the money for tuition. Maybe the miracle berry could prove a fi nancial miracle for him.  Lee is a self-proclaimed food lover and believes that the pleasures of food are best shared with friends and family. He envisioned enjoying the miracle berry not only by himself but with a foodcurious community.

Having taken a rigorous course in supply chain management and with his background in fi nance, Lee began to explore the possibility of importing the miracle berry—“Its actual name,” he says, “just like apple or peach.” The fruit is grown only in the world’s moist, tropical climates. Florida had a few farms cultivating the berry trees but with each berry priced at about $3, acquiring the fruit in bulk was prohibitive.Fresh berries had to be shipped overnight, further boosting the cost, and the wait for shipment was as long as two months, given its sudden popularity.Lee discovered that a Taiwanese company was processing the berry as a freeze-dried tablet. “That made the berry shelf-stable and convenient,” he says, as
well as affordable.  In July 2008, Lee founded mberry, a company that imports miracle berry in both its fresh and tablet forms. Lee immediately had orders from distributors around the world.

And now, the miracle story continues…

This video is just the beginning to make iDonate a household word in Nonprofit circles.  Please also click on the link to see how we will incorporate this with “Food for the Hungry” to Get More Gifts that will change lives!  (Food for the Hungry example… Click Here)