I know one thing for sure; all the complaining in the world will not change a thing. You need to make the commitment to yourself and become passionate about your goals. What you give your time and energy to will grow flourish and prosper in your life. What you deny your time and energy, will wither, die and leave your life.

Control what you can control, and use the power of YOU to be who you deserve to be and where you deserve to be on purpose! I was asked awhile back how 2010 was treating me; the appropriate question should be, how am I treating 2010? How are you treating 2010?

So, whatcha gonna do???

Ray Saint

I am back from my sabbatical and full of life’s energy. Recently I was giving a presentation to an organization and I was asked, ” How is 2010 treating you so far?”

For those of you that realize you are your greatest asset, I believe the proper question should be, “How are YOU treating 2010? Hmm….

It’s great to be back and I will talk to all of you soon………

Ray

I love to listen to people and hear their stories. No matter what state you are from, many of the stories are universal in theme. We all have ups and downs, highs and lows, and middle of the road days.

I believe that the key to reacting to any given day is to find at least one good thing in it before the day is done. It really is about what you want to focus on.

I went into the three day weekend with the goal of selling each day, at least one more book than the day before. I reached, and exceeded my goal each day, but not without a little extra effort. On day two, I had to stay an extra hour to reach my goal.

Many times, it is a matter of attitude and willingness to do what it takes to reach your goals. With a down economy, jobless rates rising, as well as everyday issues that need to be dealt with, you must stay focused on the result you want and you will end up where you want to be more often than not.

Talk soon…….

Excellence, success, and happiness never takes a vacation. Where is it that you are working to be on purpose? Just a little food for thought, I hope your hungry!

Create a great day for yourself….

Ray

When you are 23 years old and going to college, you have a couple very precious gifts at the same time that will rarely happen at the same time as you get older. These gifts are, time and individual freedom. After college (and during school) you will possibly have a job, relationship, and other situations where others have their hands on your time.

It is important to consider taking advantage of opportunities in your life as they come your way, even if it is outside your comfort zone- healthy risks if you will.  All decisions you make and don’t make, have a value to you so enjoy the process…..

No matter your lot in life, you are your greatest asset so always remember, it is great to be you!

Talk again soon………

What is your world? It is the environment in which you function such as work, family and friends, or anyone you come in contact with. “Your” world is one that you have control over and you can create what actions and results occur in it.

I challenge you to step back and take a look at what you are doing to create the best possible “your” world that you can each and everyday, so you can live the life you deserve and not except what the rest of the world decides to throw at you because of the actions of others.

After all, you are your greatest asset, and hopefully you believe that it is great to be you! Take control…………….

I just returned from the 9th Annual Martial Arts Industry Associations “Super Show” in Las Vegas. This show is the largest show in the United States that brings martial artists from all over the world together in one convention to share business practices, training methods, and the opportunity for suppliers to showcase their products. This years event was the largest turnout ever with over 2,500 attendees! I was there with a booth selling my book, “It’s Great to Be YOU!” 

Although my book is not a martial arts book per say, it parallels the philosophy of martial arts which is to build strong individuals no matter their vocation in life. We had a very successful show with many school owners from as far away as Australia purchasing the book as a possible required reading for their students who test for black belt and above. I also made some very good contacts with the largest supplier in the world for martial arts supplies, Century Martial Arts Supply. I also met with the largest professional organization (MAIA) in the country that helps schools through educational programming and consulting to bring their school to the next level. They publish the martial arts Success magazine which goes to all their members monthly. It is my hope that we can work together to get the book into more people’s hands throughout the martial arts community, and spread the news that “It’s Great to Be You!

With all this excitement, let’s not forget that we are celebrating the 4th of July which is the day we celebrate our independence as a country. The United States of America is a free country, and of course, we all know that freedom is not FREE. Many americans have died to preserve the freedoms we all enjoy today so the 4th of July  is always a special day that I remind myself to be thankful for my freedom and remember those that have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Let’s talk about freedom on a personal level. Many people do not feel free for different reasons. They are financially strapped and feel their life is on loan to the bank, or working in a job that they do not like and feel trapped. Most people in these situations have put themselves there through their own actions. The good news is that they can get themselves out of these situations through their own actions! 

If you are not where you want to be in your life, and living the life you deserve, then now is the best time to exercise your freedom and take control of your life. You need to develop a plan to reach your new goals and stay committed to them. Each and everyday you must remind yourself of the personal freedom you want to achieve. Will it be easy? probably not. Can it be done? Of course it can.

Much change, is uncontrollable by you. Understanding this, will help you not waste your time stressing and worrying about something that you cannot control. Rather, you will use your time adapting and growing with whatever changes are occurring in your life. In the military and even martial arts world, it has been said that “a warrior adapts to the battlefield.” So it is with us, we must adapt to the battlefield (life) every day so we can remain in control of not only the situations in our lives, but the outcomes as well!

It is not so much managing change as it is managing ourselves around and within change. Win the day….

First, I stopped at a favorite fast food pizza joint to grab a quick bite while under a tight travel schedule. The man (probably in his upper 20’s) asked “can I take your order?” As I started to tell him what I wanted, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket as it beeped with a text message coming in. I continued to give him my order while he proceeded to text the person back on his phone!! I had to repeat my order to him as he did not hear what I said the first time. When he was done texting (talking) to the person on the phone, he put his phone away and thought he would “make time” to focus on me, the customer that apparently was not as important as the person who was texting him at that moment. I did get my order, without a smile or thank you, and left. One could argue that in today’s society, it could have been me, the customer talking on my cell phone while giving my order, much to the employee’s frustration. Good argument, however, I was the customer not him. No matter how you slice it (pardon the pun), it was bad customer service and it was wrong. Training or re-training in customer service needs to be done here before customers are lost forever….

Good service. A couple days later, while 10 hours from home, my truck experienced a problem with the steering. Upon bringing it to a dealer, it was found that the pressure hose for the power steering had blown off and all my power steering fluid had leaked out. As I entered the service department at the Ford dealership, the service manager (Chuck) greeted me with the smile of a long time friend. In short, they checked 5 parts stores before finding the part, they got my truck in right away and within 1 hour I was on my way. The next day after arriving home, I received a phone call from them, following up on the service to see if everything went well on the way home. I remember as I was leaving, Chuck said that if I was ever back in the area that I should stop in and say hi! No matter how you slice it (pun intended) that was excellent customer service. 

Service will always sell, good or bad. When you provide either of them, it is never just the immediate customer that is affected. It becomes your calling card or culture and that dictates your future successes or failures. Be successful on purpose!