Once again, things seem to pop up when I need to see them, think about them, reflect on them, get inspired, etc. This one came up from The Mindfulness Meditation Institute (@TrainingMindful) “Shoutout to everyone who…” We are all battling in life, probably on a few different fronts and probably more than one at a time. It’s one of the things that h…

Found something that truly hit the target with 100% accuracy for me (and probably almost everyone else too), From Strong Minded (@strongminded101): “True strength is staying calm, in a world that tests your patience.” I think anytime we venture out of our place of residence, we get tested. Many times it happens even at home, but that’s the way life…

Had a fired up day today and I wanted to share a bit about it in this episode. First of all, I had a great conversation with a friend who’s looking to help others through the problems he has had in life. That conversation I hope to have coming out on Sunday - in a new idea, “Sunday conversations with Coach John”. (We’ll see how it goes). Then after…

Had a busy day yesterday where I went to a funeral for the mom of a longtime friend of mine. We have been friends for roughly 53 years and her mom was in her early 90’s when she passed away. The church was crowded of course with the impact her mom made on so many people. I also got to spend some time with my parents before the service at their hous…

Found another great reminder for me to share with you - this one coming from Emily Paschall (@EmilyAPaschall) and she brings us a great quote from Todd Whitaker. The quote is “I don’t know if being positive solves problems, but I do know being negative doesn’t.” The problem is there - no matter what we think. To get through it or to solve it, it do…

Found this great reminder from TeacherGoals (@teachergoals) and it really is an important message for each and every one of us. “I don’t care who’s doing better than me. I am doing better than I was last year. It’s me vs. me.” In today’s age of people blaming others for how they are doing in life, it really comes down to remembering that we in fact…

Connecting with a quote I shared from a previous show. I found it from Devin Scillian’s (@DevinScillian) goodbye message when he announced he was retiring from our NBC affiliate here in the Detroit area, WDIV and he shared a quote from his friend Tom Sorrels when talking about him trying to decide about retiring. Tom said, “It’s later than you thin…

Another great reminder came my way today from a wonderful difference maker, Coach Ray Ostrowski (@CoachRayO3313) who is a former student that I got to know while working during a few of my 34 years in teaching and now he is an awesome teacher & coach himself. He’s not only helping his students and players, but plenty of people like me. Part of what…

Found a great reminder, and again, it was right when I needed it. I didn’t scroll too far when I saw this from Andrew Taylor (@andrewtaylor09) where he reminded me (and all of us) that “All you can control in life is your effort and your attitude. Effort is how hard you try. Attitude is how you respond.” This is attributed to many people, but he ma…

Coming at you today like a soup recipe, putting a few different ingredients in the meal for today. First coming from the book “Areté” written by Brian Johnson, and a section all about the etymology energy really means? It’s tied into work + love. I took the approach here with the help of a basketball coach, Joe Mazzulla explained why he doesn’t fee…

Found 3 distinct things that were posted this morning from Coach Ray Ostrowski (@CoachRayO3313), Mark Hickie (@MPHickie), and Jon Gordon (@JonGordon11) which all three of them reminded me about embracing challenges that come up (which they do every day), along with looking for the lessons to learn from them. Look to set ego aside when looking to do…

Found a great post from a high school classmate that really hit home - and it brings home some important reminders about life. Here is the poem from Sophia Andreeva - Don't leave anything for later. Later, the coffee gets cold. Later, you lose interest. Later, the day turns into night. Later, people grow up. Later, people grow old. Later, life goes…

Every time I read a passage from the book “Areté” written by Brian Johnson, I find some tremendous value from each lesson. This one is something that I wanted to make sure I shared with you. It’s titled “Saws vs. Chainsaws - It all always starts with energy.” He’s referring back to Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits” masterful book and it’s lesson #7, Sharp…

I’m a student again.. in fact, every day of my life I’m still a student where I’m getting the opportunity to learn, be inspired and walk away better than before I saw this post from Coach Ray Ostrowski (@CoachRayO3313). The struggle is real!! Love the line: “If you want to get better it’s absolutely essential.” Just knowing that each and every day,…

From my morning readings today, namely John Maxwell’s “Daily Reader” I found a fabulous reminder that ties in a lot for me. It not only reminds me (and I’m sharing this to remind you as well) about having the willingness to take great risks towards the things I want to do and not play it so safe so often. It also reminds me more to write things dow…

Saw this powerful reminder about how bad days don’t last and since we all have them at one time or another, I thought it would be a good reminder for all of us. I know I’ve been focusing on when they do sneak up on me, for me to not hang out with them for very long. I’ve been working hard on my reaction to “not great moments” and hopefully having t…

Found a great post that actually looked like an old newspaper article. It came from liminal (@Liminal1988) and it reminds us to “Focus on making progress, not perfection.” It helps us to see the importance of having patience in our lives - which seems hard to do just about every day. Our growth as a human being is a journey and that journey goes th…

In my regular podcast listening mode, I came across a recent show from Ben Newman (@ContinuedFight) and it was a hard hitting, eye-opening and a powerful motivator to get the word out about an important cause that connects with so many people. I am suggesting you check this one out as soon as you can and then share it with others too. It’s all abou…

More great info that I found from Psyche Wizard (@PsycheWizard) and a followup connection to Mindset Mantra (@mind_metamorph) and it’s all about something that we can do for ourselves. It’s all about self-discipline and how it can solve a BIG CHUNK of our problems that we have. Most people always look for a quick fix on things in life. This is one …

Found a great & simple reminder from Mind Essentials (@Mind_Essentials) where three sentences empower us to think and act differently. “Don’t complicate life. We won’t be here forever. Your time is too valuable to waste on nonsense.” This one hit hard today as I saw a post from a former student of mine who just lost her husband. Her and her family …

Over a period of about 4.5 hours yesterday I got four different signs / reminders about doing things in life and not holding back from giving it my all-out effort. John O’Leary’s recent podcasts (listen to them here: Episodes 712 & 713) and our monthly online meeting with our Live Inspired group was yesterday. He, his staff and his guest all connec…

Found another great little item that I picked up to share with you & I found some tremendous value with this one. From Lorraine Woodrow (@Woodrow Lorraine) this truth came out that I think we all need to connect with a little better. It’s so easy to judge others, but when I do it (which sadly happens way too often), I end up causing myself more tro…

It’s football season of course & whether you are a fan or not, there are still tons of lessons you can learn from this and sports in general. This lesson comes from The Winning Difference (@thewinningdiff1) and it comes from Coach Kirby Smart from the University of Georgia where he’s reminding us not to be a blamer. Coach mentions, “Don’t be a blam…

Found a very simple and short thought here posted from Reads with Ravi (@readswithravi) along with the quote being from Rumi. “The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” There is total truth in this short sentence. In today’s world it seems there is not any time where we do not have noise and distractions. It takes a focused decision to make s…

Love this message today & it comes from Mark Hickie (@MPHickie) where part of it reminds us that: “ … The words are simple. You are enough. There is no perfection. You were made to be you, as you are, on purpose. It is no mistake that you are this person, in this place, at this time. You are enough & your enough is what changes the world.” He goes …

Found an amazing reminder for all of us and it’s connected with something that hopefully we see everyday. It’s taking advice from a tree and this great reminder comes to us from Gratitude HQ (@gratefuledu64) and they introduce these thoughts with this one: “We draw wisdom from all different sources — but maybe we should look more closely at nature …

More learning as I always remember that success leaves clues. This guy is one who shares these clues every single day in many different ways. Ben Newman has his Burn Podcast - this episode was pure gold. This episode titled “A Strong Lesson in Taking Ownership”, has so many nuggets in it, I’ve already listened to it twice. I will listen to it again…

I found a good game plan that all of us can follow for sure and it comes from Reads with Ravi (@readswithravi) and it’s all about being Consistent!! The powerful message that all of us can connect to - “Consistency is incredibly valuable. Consistency is a superpower. Excellence breeds excellence.” This helps to remind me to keep working hard in doi…

In part 2 - here is a great reminder about “stacking bricks” or adding them to our foundation of our lives - where we focus more on the relationships of our past to help us to become better for today and in our future. The life lessons we learn and the people we learn them with are such an important part of our lives. Keep stacking bricks and addin…

High School reunions don’t come around all the time - and certainly each of them really only come around once. That’s the case with my 40th reunion that happened this past weekend. This is part 1 - some reflections in the middle of it, mainly coming from me taking some time to drive around my old neighborhood a bit and having a TON of great memorie…

Found a post from Jon Gordon (@jongordon11) that reminded me about how important the little things in life are AND the fact that they do lead to bigger things that others will see! It’s worth it to keep investing in ourselves, keep working hard so that the little things we do in our lives will lead to us being difference makers for others. Thanks f…

We all go through many changes throughout our life & some of them can of course be scary. When I find things like this one, from Mark Hickie (@MPHickie), it reminds me about the importance of connecting with others to help us get through the challenges we all face. Mark reminds us that “Growth throughout the chapters in our life implies the reality…

Simple message today. Not easy to do I guess since I’m still working on this today and all throughout my life. From, Self-Care Canvas (@selfcarecanvas) brings us this powerful thought (for me it actually is more like a punch in the gut). “If you’re serious about changing your life, you’ll find a way. If not, you'll find an excuse.” I’m being honest…

Again… so many things out there to pick up to add value to your life and what you want to do - here is another example. Found this recently from The Winning Difference (@thewinningdiff1) " Everything you do is going to impact your future. So eliminate as many things that don't matter and focus on the things that really do. And, make those matter al…

Found a post here that connected to a total of four people with the same message.. all about being humble! Kurt Warner (@kurt13warner) posted this powerful clip from Inky Johnson (@inkyjohnson) and a few thoughts on the importance of humility in our lives. It’s all about being coachable. Realizing you don’t know everything and that you stay hungry …

Such a simple & totally true message for all of us to remember to just keep going!! Psyche Wizard (@PsycheWizard) shares this, “No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying.” - Tony Robbins. Just keep trying!! Don’t quit! Don’t stop! Keep asking for help when we need it. Keep wo…

Going back to the author of one of my favorite books of all time, “The Coffee Bean” - Damon West (@damonwest7) who reminds us to “Let your actions and attitude enhance the next room you walk into and watch the ripple effect of your choices.” A great reminder for me that my actions and attitude are two things that I have direct control over. This is…

I never cease to be amazed at how some things come at me that tie in together. I first got a message from my friend Denyse (part of our Difference Maker group) that when she got up this morning and opened up her Spotify - a podcast of mine from May 6 popped up. She doesn’t know how or why that one was the one that came up. But she listened to it an…

Found a bigtime reflective thought here from TeacherGoals (@teachergoals) which reminds us that maybe we are so tired not because we are doing too many things, but maybe we are not doing the thing(s) that light a spark inside of us?? It’s one of those things I think that brings us more energy when we are using our time to go after things that inspi…

A gem of a thought here from Success Minded (@_SuccessMinded_) where they remind us that “The secret to success is believing in yourself.” This is a great reminder for all of us I hope, but I know it is a BIG reminder for me. I’ve been focusing on this one a lot lately. Not just focusing, but intentionally focusing in on improving my belief in myse…

Bigtime emotional connection to this post I saw from RelationshipED (@RelationshipEd_) and it’s all about being a safe person. The quote comes from Morgan Richard Olivier. It reminds me of the simple lesson that we all are carrying worries, burdens, hurt, broken hearts, loneliness, pain, etc., and that we need to be better for other people!! We nee…

Found a fantastic reminder today from Gratitude HQ (@gratefuledu64) where they remind us to “be that one” for others. A great list here to remind us that one person can indeed make a difference for others and more importantly four ourselves. Love the connection that “one idea can shape the future.” The other one off the list, “one candle can wipe o…

Picked up another great reflection and I found a new connection for awesome info. Christine Bemis (@ChristineBemis2) along with this: #goodforthesoulmorningwalk, shared this very profound statement to remind us the types of people we need to surround ourselves with. Inspired, excited and grateful are three awesome types for sure. Also, don’t forget…

Coach Ray Ostrowski (@CoachRayO3313) came through with some powerful teaching & coaching with this one. “Don’t worry about the mistakes of yesterday and the worries of tomorrow. TODAY is the day that matters!” He put a whole quote together on his quote board dealing with this gem. It all deals with yesterday, today and tomorrow. Once again I got a …

Found a big-time truth for this one. All from Liminal (@Liminal1988) “Things You Probably Won’t Regret.” Reading through this list, a rather “simple” list of life things, got me doing some deep reflecting for sure. I would be very interested to get some feedback on this episode as it really moved me to keep trying to live my best life. I hope you f…

Found another great post (again, good stuff is out there that can help us throughout life.. just need to find those things) from Mark Hickie (@MPHickie) “A message for today … Things don’t always go perfectly according to plan so don’t judge yourself when things fall short. If you feel like giving up, embrace the power of ‘ONE MORE’. Commit to tryi…

From a powerful & thought provoking post in our Mental Toughness Group with Ben Newman, there was a recent post that got me thinking. Truth is, so many of these posts get me reflecting on something for me to get better at in my life and the people in this group, not only are looking to get better in their lives, but they are also looking to help ot…

I found another wonderful reminder and something that I know I’m trying to work towards in my life. This is brought to you from Gratitude HQ (@gratefuledu64): “One of the happiest moments in life is when you find the courage to let go of what you cannot change.” So many distractions today and every day, all around us. Whenever we can figure out how…

This is a very motivating type of show for a Monday, since it involves me connecting with others that just are looking to make a difference with others. Coach AJ - Mental Fitness (@coachajkings) He’s all about “Building Great Leaders and Better People with actionable ideas on Resilience, Mindset, and Leadership” Find more at http://thegrowthcompass…

I wanted to share one of my readings from the morning, in fact yesterday morning, from John Maxwell’s “Daily Reader”. I have it on my Kindle App on my phone which makes it easy to check out every single morning. This one dealt with what are the non-negotiables that we have in our life & are we willing to not cave in on them throughout each day. It’…