Many, many people have no clue whatsoever what they to do with their lives. I see it often and I have been there…done that. But…let me tell you about a friend of mine…I’ll call him…”Jerry”. Jerry was adrift in life. He ricochets from disaster to disaster without any clear purpose or seemingly any feel for where he would like to go. He was truly a bumber-car in a carnival kind of guy. Truly directionless. Sad. He had accumulated several DUIs and is not even allowed to drive a car today. I asked him what he wants out of life or what he would like to do with his life and he just shrugs his shoulders, grunts and muttered some half-hearted vague response. I felt completely helpless in trying to get my friend motivated or inspired.

The psychologist William Marsten polled over 3,000 people with the question; “What do you have to live for?” Only 6 percent responded that they had a major definite purpose for their life…94 PERCENT did not!! I was shocked! But, it does go a long way in explaining why so many people underachieve and waste so much of their potential.

If you feel that passion has deserted you, perhaps your desires have gone underground. Maybe you have given up on your dreams through fear or because you’ve listened to others telling you you can’t do it. You may have even tried and failed and mistook that as a sign that you aren’t supposed to have whatever it is. To get out of the hole you’re in…keep asking yourself these questions; “What do you want to be? What do you want to have? What do you want to do?” ~ Mack Newton

Desire and passion comes from inside you… for you and belong to you alone. No one can want anything for you and you can’t want anything for anyone else. It just deoesn’t work. You may want your partner to be more sensitive, or be a better listener, or to lose weight…yet…unless your spouse wants the same thing for themselves…it’s just not going to happen.

Without question, you can support others in their own goals and desires. You can encourage them onward and upward. You can inspire them. In fact, one of the definitions of love is being willing to help your partner grow in the direction of their dreams. But…as I said you can’t establish the desire or the dreams for them…and, wanting it for them can’t and won’t make it happen. Remember… as I said earlier, no one can project their desires onto you. No matter how badly your father or your spouse wants you to be a doctor, or whatever, the universe will not respond to this desire if it is not in your heart, as well. ~ Mack Newton

Many people only have a vague idea of what it is they want.  They may want what others have, or what they see in a magazine, or a different job, or whatever the latest trent declares is desirable.

     The conversation goes like this:  Do you know what you want?  Sure. I know what I want. What is it exactly?  Well…it’s kind of hard to describe.

This much is clear…they don’t have a clue.  Desire is a singular hunger, a passionate yearning that pierces the heart and thrills the mind.  If you can’t describe in one clear-cut, succinct sentence exactly what you want…it’s nothing but a vague wish.  Desire is the first step to opening your mind to new ideas and new possibilities.  Passion excites you and stimulates your vision to be clear and precise and that compells you to launch yourself headllong into the direction of your dreams…straight into a rich, full and extraordinary life.

For most of my adult life, I had no clear-cut goals whatsoever and I was adrift on an ocean without sail or oar.  Now…I know what I want and have become an obsessive goal-setter for over 22 years…my life doesn’t even resemble anything that I could have previously imagined.  My personal relationships, my financial accomplishments all outdistance even my most outrageous dreams.  All because of goal-setting and nothing more.  Once you decide what you want, you’ll have something you didn’t have before…a visible aiming point.  You now know where you want to be and goal-setting will get you there.  ~  Mack Newton

Getting to that special genius inside of you and bringing it into the light of day sometimes requires that you think and do things differently. Since we know that more of the same simply brings you more of the same…especially when it comes to thinking…you have to break out of old habit patterns of thinking and begin to think differently in order to bring out the absolute best in youself. Whether you want to change your field of study, start a new business venture, make new friends, get to a level of fitness and health that you’ve never experienced before or learn to play a musical instrument…your new thinking leads to action and once you take action…it gains momentum. The world loves a man or a woman in motion. Once you’re in motion, new opportunities, possibilities and the will to get it done will flow into your life.

To do things differently means to consider unconventional, counterintuitive or even illogical perpectives. Look for the simple…elegant solution. When you hit a wall, don’t try to climb over it…look for a door…it’s there somewhere. That’s doing it differently.

Your own mind and the minds of those around you are an inexhaustible source of inspiration. The world is a dynamic, fascinating place. To learn to think and act differently is to interact with that world in a spirit of exploration and adventure. ~ Mack Newton

Sometimes you are absolutely certain that you need to change. You feel it in every cell of your being, but you have no idea what you should do.  If you find yourself in this situation, sometimes even random enthusiastic activity will pay off.   Try ‘something’. ..try ‘everything’…until something works.  We all know that Thomas Edison experimented and failed over 5,000 times in his quest to invent the incandescant light bulb.  He always felt that he didn’t fail at all, he simply identified 5,000 ways in which it did not work.  He made sure he never made the same experiment twice…he made sure that he always did something different each time. 

Many modern developments have occurred as a result of rapid-fire, high-volume experimentation.   Newsweek magazine reported that at DuPont, it takes up to 250 new ideas to  generate just one marketable new product.  Rubbermaid producess 400 to 500 new products per year to maintain their product’s dominance in the marketplace.  In my opinion success is basically a matter of probability has much as anything else.  The more things you try…the more likely you are to have eventual success.  ~  Mack Newton

In the interest of constantly embracing change…a powerful technique I use frequently use  consists of sitting quietly with pen and paper and writing your major problems, challenges or goals down  in the form of a question to yourself.  The question might be:  “How can I use my time more efficiently?” or “How can I be a better parent?” or “What can I do to get healthy?”  Write 20 answers to that question.  You MUST write 20, but they don’t all have to be serious or logical.  Write EVERY solution you can think of, whether it be whimsical, reasonable, or even just plain crazy.  Once you’ve done this exercise, it’s important to take at least one of the answers you generated and implement it immediately.  ~  Mack Newton

I embrace change.  I love change. Instead of the universally held opinion that things will be worse off as a result of the change.  I feel that everything will be better…sooner or later.   I even borrow ideas for change from other fields to adapt to my needs to make change a constant in my life.  I remember reading that the cubist art of Picasso inspired WWI military designers to create better camouflage patterns for tanks and eventually for uniforms.

Keep in mind that you don’t always have to make big changes to have a big impact.  Sometimes change is best implemented in small increments.  Small change doesn’t intimidate people as much as trying to make big changes.  I always feel that if it’s something small…I can do it…it’s not really a big deal.  In addition…small change…critically placed…can create enormous results.

Consider this:  What happens to water at 211 degrees fahrenheit?  Not much, really  It gets hot and may have a few pinpoint bubbles, but for the most part, it just sits there in the pot.  Now…just add just one more degree of  heat and the same water begins to boil at 212 degrees.  This is an increase in heat of less than one-half of one percent, but look at the change it generates.  The resulting steam can heat large buildings and power huge engines. It can power machines that can move mountains  and build highways…all the result of a degree of change.  ~  Mack Newton

I’ve always been different.  When I was younger, sometimes that fact that I was different made me feel uncomfortable and ill at ease. Not anymore.  I revel in being different…I love the fact that I think differently than most…that I see the world from a different slant…it makes me who I am. 

Dr. David Weeks, a clinical neuro-psychologist at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital in Scotland did a ten-year scientific study of more than 1,000 of the ‘most different’ amoung us, those we call eccentrics.

“A lot of people,” Weeks said, “assume that eccentricity is a mild form of madness.  We found that not to be the case at all.”  He found eccentrics to be very creative and curious, with a a vivid visual imagination, extremely high intelligence, and a mischievous sense of humor.   They are often happier, healthier, live longer, are more optimistic and less stressed than card-carrying conformists.  “  “Eccentrics know they’re different and they couldn’t be more pleased,” says Weeks.  “They glory in their difference.  They go to great lengths to maintain that difference.”   I, personally, couldn’t agree more.

Historical eccentrics include Ben Franklin, Emily Dickinson and Alexander Graham Bell.  “Eccentrics have thrown off the constraints of normal life,” says Weeks, “The rest of us are vaguely unsettled by that degree of freedom.”

I’m not saying you have to become eccentric in order to do things differently…not at all… but what is fascinating about Dr. Weeks’ study is that those among us who do think most differently seem to be the happiest and healthiest.  ~  Mack Newton

Imagination and humor are two of the most important elements of human development. The healthiest and happiest people possess both these traits in abundance.

Dr. Norman cousins in his book Anatomy of an Illness describes how laughter helped him recover from ankylosing spondylitis, a painful and crippling collagen disease that attacks the connective tissues of the body. He began with the premise that if negative emotions were detrimental to your health, then positive emotions should improve health. Confined to bed and barely able to move, he watched old Marx Brothers movies and had nurses read him funny stories. He found that just ten minutes of solid belly laughter brought relief and he was able to sleep without pain. Eventually he completely overcame the disease.

When I returned from Vietnam, I was a very, very serious person, almost fatalistic. I couldn’t even laugh at any of the jokes my instructor made. I eventually realized that Taekwon-Do practice is part of a total approach to life and a way to deal with many different issues. A punch or a kick may not solve my problem, but laughter can.

Laughter is the best medicine. Medical studies show that laughter boosts endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, and suppresses levels of epinephrine, the stress hormone. “Laughter is an antidote to apprehension and panic,” says Dr. Cousins. Laughter is the body’s own natural pain reliever and tranquilizer – without side effects. Laughter has even been shown to increase disease-fighting proteins as well as the T-cells which strengthen the immune system.

It’s too bad more people don’t take advantage of this natural healer, because when you are happy and you are feeling good about yourself, you touch everybody around you with your presence. Sometimes when I see somebody in pain, I make a joke because I know if I can get them to laugh at me or themselves, it will help their pain.

I have taught children for over 35 years and I can tell you something about kids. No matter what their problem or issue, they will laugh at anything without shame. They intuitively know how to have a hearty belly laugh. Sometimes they laugh so hard they roll on the floor. Children seem to come into this world with an insatiable thirst for joy and fun and laughter. As grownups, we often forget our ability to laugh uproariously and spontaneously.

To laugh is a choice, even in dire circumstances. Let’s say you’re broke and just smashed up your car and you’re going through a messy divorce and your roof leaks.

One person will be miserable and stay miserable. Another person will be miserable for a few days and then decide it’s time to lighten up and find something to laugh about. The second person will be unhappy for a much shorter time, as well as being less likely to suffer the negative effects of stress on his body. The famed psychiatrist Victor Frankl said laughter saved his sanity amid the horrors of a World War II Nazi concentration camp. Each day he and a fellow prisoner would invent and tell each other an amusing anecdote. There are enough serious and difficult things in the world that we don’t need to look for them. We need to look for the things that make us laugh. A tremendous aid to your sense of humor is imagination. We’re not going to feel better by imagining dire circumstances and disastrous results, we’re going to get better when we laugh.

If you want to double or triple your existing knowledge, boost your sense of humor, and acquire a more creative approach to your life, you need to develop your imagination.

Imagination is essential to development and learning. Einstein’s ability to imagine helped him to become a giant among other intellectuals. Imagination is also important for a good memory. Every time you create a picture in your mind, you stimulate your ability to learn and remember.

You can stimulate your imagination in many ways. Use visualization to imagine anything you want – whether it’s to travel to another land, a new body, a business goal, a new relationship. As we’ve discussed before, the more complete and frequent your mental image, the more likely you are to achieve it. Everything starts as a dream and an image in the mind, from Einstein to the Wright Brothers.

You can also stimulate your imagination by writing in a journal, listening to a good story, or reading a children’s book.

Your imagination and your sense of humor go hand-in-hand. Humor is not in the situation—it’s in the eye of the beholder. “From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere,” points out Dr. Seuss, whose imagination has kept kids in stitches for generations. Look for laughter in your life. Dare to imagine.

Mack Newton

We need leadership today more than ever before in America.  We need more courageous leadership from parents in the home…more honest and focused leadership from business…and, more principled and moral leadership from government.  The great Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes once said: “there are three types of people, there are people who make things happen, there are people who watch what’s happening and there are people who don’t have the slightest idea what’s happening.” I agree.  In America today, we need more of the people who make things happen.  These are the people who are going to take us into the future, and, by that I mean people who have vision and the courage to take the risks that lead to solutions to serious problems that face us as a nation today.  This type of leader is the most important type of leadership that we need in America today.  This type of leader is called a transactional leader.  This is the person who gets things done.  This doesn’t mean that they do it all themselves…it means that they get things done with and through others.  That is the TRUE measure of leadership.  People who are able to get extraordinary performances from ordinary people.  They are able to uplift and inspire by words and deeds and get others to share their vision and perform at levels far beyond anything they’ve ever done before.  These are the kind of leaders we need more of today.

A question I’m frequently asked is; “Are leaders born or made?” I’m sure there are many varying opinions on this, but I am of the opinion that leaders are made, not born.  Clearly, some people feel a strong urging to lead and they seek the people and the knowledge that enable them to fulfill that calling.  Talking with great leaders, you find two things are clear.  One, they trained with great leaders and learned from them, and secondly, they all considered themselves to be great followers.  All great leaders were first great followers.  The reason for this is simple.  We all have a tendency to become like the people we most admire.  The more time we spend either with or reading about the people we most admire, the more we become like them.  It’s almost like you begin to absorb the qualities and characteristics of these leaders and soon you begin to talk and act and behave like them.  As you sustain these qualities and develop the behaviors of a leader, over a period of time, you become a leader yourself.

Every person has inside of them a desire to be committed to something bigger than themselves.  Most however never act on that desire for something.  Leaders, however can visualize that something.  They can see it clearly and that vision motivates them into action.  Leaders are intensely ‘action’ oriented.  They get a concept, get a mission and then they literally launch themselves headlong into it.  The vision, the passion all serve to give the leader a feeling of destiny and purpose.  They see themselves as a force of nature that can’t be stopped.  That vision also creates passion in the leader that sustains them whenever they run into opposition and obstacles.  They also use the passion to generate followers. I think this is one the definitions of true leadership.  The ability to get followers… the ‘others’… I referred to that leaders use to get things done.

If you feel these qualities in yourself or you would like to develop these qualities in yourself…by all means act on it.  Your country needs you.  The world needs you.  Now… more than at any other time in human history

Mack Newton