Ted Tuesday: Success, Failure and The Drive to Keep Creating with Elizabeth Gilbert

"Know your purpose and it becomes your rock in the good and bad times"

Good Morning Folks,

Elizabeth Gilbert was once an "unpublished diner waitress," devastated by rejection letters. And yet, in the wake of the success of 'Eat, Pray, Love,' she found herself identifying strongly with her former self. With beautiful insight, Gilbert reflects on why success can be as disorienting as failure and offers a simple — though hard — way to carry on, regardless of outcomes.

Her message: "Stay true to yourself. Possess your passion, indulge your passion. Do it for yourself and live with the results whatever they may be."

Please enjoy her TED Talk about finding your way back home again when you feel like you run out of your creative juice.  

She’s funny. She’s passionate. She talks about rediscovering “whatever in this world you love more than yourself”. And with over 15 million YouTube and Ted views between her talks, she's proven to be well worth a listen.


With assistance and graphics from Chris Donner and great thanks to Ted and to you for watching.

Have a fabulous, productive day filled with love and inspiration.  

Cheers!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE. 

Inspire ME Friday: Why You Love Your Job (even if you don't know it)

Relaxing on the beach this weekend --remember... "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver." So don't forget to pack the sunscreen along with the kids Geiger counter!

Good Morning Folks,

What can we be thankful for when it comes to the workplace this summer?

• We can be thankful for the Internet and the knowledge of the universe it can provide when it comes to work research. 

• We can be thankful for all the technologies like conference calls, Blue Jeans and Skype that allow us to stay off airplanes for business travel. And be thankful for good earphones that block out the crazy guy in the cube next door while we can listen to our favorite music.

• We can be thankful that business casual is now more the norm than the exception.

• If we have a good boss who supports us and mentors us, we should be very thankful. Having a good boss is always the number one factor in job satisfaction.

• If we enjoy our colleagues at work and learn from them and can't wait to be around them, we should be really thankful. 

• If we derive a real sense of worth and purpose from our work, and we get paid for it too, that's as good as it gets. Be thankful.

• If we have a job with health care benefits, where free coffee with real cream is provided and the possibility of a promotion exists, be thankful.

• And most of all, be thankful if your organization has an IT person who can fix whatever damage we do on a daily basis.

To be a part of a team and organization where you can learn and grow from your co workers, team members, direct reports and leadership is surely something to be thankful for.

And I'm thankful for those who regardless of tenure, experience or position, have the ability to recognize and encourage opportunities to learn from others at all levels along with customers and the competition. 

Not every has that ability or the self confidence to accept and celebrate learning from others.

Remember.... "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one. 

This year, we can all be thankful for the love or our family and friends, our health and if we have meaningful work too, what a bonus. So put the smartphones down, this weekend, even if for a minute, and enjoy it. 

Thanks to Richard A. Moran (CEO, Corporate Director, Venture Capitalist, Author, Vintner) for inspiring this post and to you for listening. 

ENJOY THE WEEKEND! 

DO SOMETHING FUN! 

BE HAPPY ! 

HAVE A GREAT One!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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 "The greatest source of happiness is the ability 

to be grateful at all times." ~~Zig Ziglar

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Ted Tuesday: Elizabeth Gilbert (part two) -- "Your Elusive Creative Genius"

Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses — and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It's a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.

Good Morning Folks,

"Eat, Pray, Love" Author Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses -- and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It's a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.

Her talk is titled “Your Elusive Creative Genius”. This talk was given right after she found tremendous success with Eat, Pray, Love. She was feeling a lot of anxiety over the fact that she might never see that type of success again in her lifetime.

She talks about how this pressure to continuously perform can sometimes get the most of people (especially those in the creative fields). She compares this way of thinking to the ancient times in Rome and in Greece when people believed creativity came from the gods or spirits who would visit whenever they wanted. Humans were only vessels for the creativity. This way of thinking took the pressure off of the writers because whether their work was good or bad (or simply non-existent), they were not to be blamed.  I had never thought of creativity like that before – It was just such a strange concept to me!

Of course nowadays, we don’t think like that. People owned their creativity and if we were caught talking to the invisible creative gods in the corner, we would probably get some weird looks.

But it got me thinking (as most Ted Talks do) – even if I don’t believe in these spirits, I do believe that we need to be open to creativity. I think it’s so important to keep our eyes open and be accustomed to finding inspiration from the smallest and most mundane things. I love working on this blog because it has opened my eyes to so many great ideas and it keeps my mind open and curious.

So, while I do think Elizabeth’s idea is a bit of a wacky one, I’m glad I watched her talk.  

Please enjoy eminent writer Elizabeth Gilbert's passionately talk about about not giving up, about pursuing what you love, about no longer thinking in terms of successes & failures, but in outcomes. This talk gives us enormous hope and that's life-affirming. Highly recommended. and… eye-opening.  



With help from Cecillia's "My Marketing Diary" and thanks to Ted, I thank you for watching.

Have a fabulous, sunny, productive day filled with love and inspiration.  

Hugs all around.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

Learn more about what DIFFERENTIATES FSO here

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE. 

Inspire ME Friday: The List of "10"

"Remember that friends are what really matter"

Good Morning Folks,

As another week ends, let us think about this list of 10, as we go about our coming days.

1. Challenge Fear
2. Be Bold
3. Have Gratitude
4. Take Action
5. Have Faith
6. Embrace Setbacks
7. Look Inside
8. Learn From Suffering
9. Don't Be Concerned With What Others Think Of You
10. Do What You Love

With the market on our side we have recognized the opportunity for limitless growth. And it wouldn't be possible without your support. And for that I am eternally grateful.

Have a safe, HAPPY and healthy weekend as I look forward to seeing all of you soon.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“The happiest people don't have the best of everything. 

They make the most of everything."
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Inspire ME Friday: Just "3" Things...

"FSO did not get to this place by luck. With the market on our side, we have limitless growth potential."

Good Morning Folks,

Folks, there's is so much awesome "stuff" happening in our great company. We have awesome leaders; awesome people; and a market that is so in love with us so competitors can't keep up. I have huge aspirations for the future of FSO.

It looks like our Inspire ME Friday series has struck a chord with a lot of you. Thanks to those who have been writing back personal messages. 

So here's a bonus for today!

==>Three things in life that, once gone, never come back 
-1. Time 2. Words 3. Opportunity

==>Three things in life that can destroy a person 
- 1. Anger 2. Pride 3. Unforgiveness

==>Three things in life that you should never lose
- 1. Hope 2. Peace 3. Honesty

==>Three things in life that are most valuable 
- 1. Love 2. Family & Friends 3. Kindness

==>Three things in life that are never certain 
- 1. Fortune 2. Success 3. Dreams

==> Three things that make a person 
- 1. Commitment 2. Sincerity 3. Hard work 

Thank you again for your amazing energy that is fueling the FSO fire across the country. FSO did not get to this place by luck. With the market on our side, we have limitless growth potential.

Have a safe, HAPPY and healthy weekend as I look forward to seeing all of you soon.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“The difference between success and failure is just getting it right more than getting it wrong"
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Inspire ME Friday: Happiness Is A Happy Boss

"Regardless of what it says on your job description, your real job is to make your boss successful. There are no exceptions to this rule. None."

Good Morning Folks,

Geoffrey James' "Sales Source" *(@Sales_Source) (formerly "Sales Machine" on CBS) is the world's most-visited sales-oriented blog. 

Geoff's recent INC column, "8 Core Beliefs of Extraordinary Bosses," drew a flood of responses. 

But there's one thing he didn't mention: An extraordinary boss communicates his expectations clearly to his team. That way, everyone understands what it will take to make your company succeed.

With that in mind: If you are the boss, you'll want to share this column with your team, because it will make your job a heck of a lot easier. And if by chance you're not the boss, memorize this column-because it contains the key to long-term success

==> 8 Ways To Keep Your Boss Happy By Geoffrey James

Here are the rules for keeping your boss happy:

1. Be true to your word.
Your boss wants to trust you. Really. Therefore, whenever you accept an assignment, follow through religiously, even fanatically. Do what you say you're going to do. Never overcommit, and avoid hedging your bets with vague statements like "I'll try" and "maybe." Instead, make your word carry real weight.

2. No surprises, ever.
The secret fear of every boss is that employees are screwing up but are not saying anything about it. So even if you're afraid some bad news might upset your boss, make sure he's informed. Note: If your boss consistently "shoots the messenger," you can ignore this rule-because his behavior shows he doesn't really want to be in the know.

3. Be prepared on the details.
Your boss wants to believe you're competent and on top of things. That's why she sometimes picks an aspect of your job and begins randomly asking penetrating questions. Therefore, whenever you're meeting with the boss, have the details ready so you can answer these queries with grace and aplomb.

4. Take your job seriously.
Bosses appreciate individuals who truly care about what they do and willing to take the time to achieve a deep understanding of their craft. Bosses need people who have unique expertise. You don't have to be a pro at everything, but you should definitely have a specific area of knowledge that your boss values.

5. Have your boss's back.
When you see your boss about to make a foolish decision, it's your responsibility to attempt to convince him to make a different one. Make your best case, and express yourself clearly. However, once the decision is actually made, do your best to make it work-regardless of whether you think it was the right one.

6. Provide solutions, not complaints.
Complainers are the bane of your boss's existence. Nothing is more irritating or more boring than listening to somebody kvetch about things that they're not willing to change.  So never bring up a problem unless you've got a solution to propose-or are willing to take the advice the boss gives you.

7. Communicate in plain language.
Bosses are busy people and have neither the time nor the inclination to wade through piles of biz-blab, jargon and weasel words. When dealing with your boss, speak and write in short sentences, use the fewest words possible to make a point, and make that point clear and easily understandable.

8. Know your real job.
Regardless of what it says on your job description, your real job is to make your boss successful. There are no exceptions to this rule. None.

And, by the way: Your boss's real job is to make you more successful. The reversal of these priorities is the source of almost all organizational problems.

Have a safe, happy and healthy weekend as I look forward to seeing all of you soon.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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“Being able to be truly happy at work is one of the keys to being happy in life”
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