I am here sitting in the eye doctors office waiting on my mother to see if she has scardosis (spelling)? In her eyes. She has had a lot of health problems as of late.. I worry a lot about her. She is only 54 years old and seems to have a lot of problems already…

We are at the same doctor’s office that my great grand grand parents went to before they died. I have been thinking a lot about them as of late. They lived long and relatively healthy lives. They both died several years ago in their ninetys. My grandmother was not as lucky,she died at 66 several years ago as well. My maternal grandfather is still alive in a nursing home, he is 82. He is not in the best of shape and has had a host of health problems for about ten years now, but he is still alive,thank God. He is such a good man. I mention all of this I believe out of thought regarding my own mortality.

I am sitting in this doctor’s office where 100 percent of the patients are 70 plus… a couple of them are with their children perhaps who ate over 50 at least. I sit here wondering about the journey they have experienced on this earth. Everyone has a different experience and a story to tell
. I could just imagine the stories they could share
..I have always so much enjoyed hearing stories from older Generations.. I love hearing stories from my grandfather to this day, he has so much to share.
There was a plaque in the form of a clock with an old poem by an unknown author that I always enjoyed and thought about.. I am going to attempt to remember it.. we will see how it goes…

The hands of life are wound but once…. and no man has the power… to tell just when the hands will stop…. at late or early hour…

That is all I can remember for now…there is more of course…. I am now going to go back waiting for my mother at the doctors office …enjoying the tid bits of information that my elders are unknowingly Sharing.. some of them are just so fascinating. I don’t agree with everything they say but fascinating nonetheless..

I have a nexus 1 phone and have found an application for it that will allow me to post to any word press blog that i have. I absolutely love this app. Couple the android application with the voice function of my phone and i have a match made in heaven. I can quickly communicate on my blog via my phone without having to type on the virtual keypad.

The virtual keypad is one of the only things i do not like about my smartphone. I have gotten use to it for the most part but do not prefer it. I like the keypad on my old pre phone much better. There so many apps for my phone and not enough time to enjoy all of them or even test out the many features they have to offer.

My grandfather had always told me to never take one person’s word for the gospel.. always try to get a second opinion from someone else… being an entrepreneur i cannot tell you how important this piece of advice has been in my life. People have different reasons they tell you what they tell you…. you never know what their motive may be. You also can never assume that they understand the questions that your asking them completely. For example, just because you ask and internal medicine doctor about a heart condition you may have does not mean they will give you a good answer or even one that would be appropriate for your situation… another example that is much closer to home, asking a real estate attorney about an intellectual property issue may not necessarily get you a very good answer and vice versa.

The point is you need to know who to direct your question to. It also always helps to ask educated questions. Research the issue or question you’re having and ask the questions that are appropriate to your situation. Asking general questions will get you general answers… being specific and detailed in your questioning will get You much better information.

Noone cares about your question or issue like you do, ask educated questions , do your research and always get a second opinion. Also do not be afraid to appear ignorant in your line of questioning… you’re gathering information specific to your issue… being concerned and wanting to get more information about something will only get you respect. Being passive and “letting things go” will only make it easier for people to walk all over you.

It really sets me off to see men and women of the cloth driving expensive cars driving around to members of their church asking them “not to forget” the church in their wills…. really makes me quite sick honestly……

are the words I use to describe the employee of St. Mary’s Medical Center who “treated” and “diagnosed” my sister for strep throat. As most are aware there is an epidemic of swine flu that has everyone up in arms, paranoid and afraid. Swine flu is not a big deal for those that are healthy or lack underlying conditions… but when combined with someone who has a compromised immune system, it could and does spell serious trouble. I mention this because the incompetent employee would not take the time to test my sister for swine flu, knowing how serious a situation that could arise, when coupled with strep throat or any other illness for that matter. When I was made aware of this, I was livid to say the least…. Did I mention that she works for St. Mary’s? Can you believe employee health would not take the time to perform an act that could save thousands of lives? This may sound a little dramatic, but is it? I think not… all it takes is one person to expose another, so on and so forth. It baffles my mind how someone (especially in the medical field) can demonstrate such apathy towards their chosen profession. God forbid if they leave five or ten minutes late… to test my sister…. This is a big deal to me, I would love to publish details on what happened, but I do not go looking for trouble… She could potentially have been very sick, exposing people that she is working with, as well as patients, whom I assume are very susceptable to the swine flu to begin with. I do not claim to be a medical expert, I simply attempt to demonstrate common sense… however, if there is a reason why testing my sister was reasonably unneccessary, I would love to hear it, it just makes absolutely zero sense to me why this was allowed to commence, or not commence, depending on the light in which you look into the situation.

I’ve often wondered the following: Is it moral to lie in order to preserve a secret, in a situation where refusing to answer cannot preserve the secret? I think there exist a continuum on whether someone is blatantly lying to you or simply withholding information in order to preserve the integrity of a secret they may have or even something that is simply none of your business. There does not exist a finite answer on this subject and each situation has to be carefully analyzed.

One really has to analyze the kind of relationship they have with the person they suspect is lying or withholding information. Are you friends where the information they are “withholding” is simply just not any of your business? Is the information they are withholding contrary to your personal belief system which in turn effects (in their opinion) your relationship with the person. Is this information vital to your personal well being or the well being of people you care about? Are you business partners where the information is vital to the success or failure of your business, which in turn may directly affect your personal endeavors?

I mention this after being a victim of the latter…. but it was much more than that and I’m deeply involved with the person on a personal level as well. I was always warned, perhaps rightly so, not to mix friends and business… friends do not make good business partners I was told… Being warned a countless number of times, I have done just that. I do not have any regrets and it has worked out to everyone’s advantage thus far. Each one of us has brought something to the table that the others clearly lack. I was just made aware of some vital information that was unknown to me for over a month. I was led to believe a situation existed that in fact did not exist. I was allowed to worry over things that, if I had known the information, would have freed my mind much easier of the burdens we are facing. Honestly, I can not say that I was lied to, because I was not. Information was withheld from me that I should have been made aware of.

When can you claim to be an honest person if you are withholding information from important people in your life? Is there a continuum of honesty, or is a lie a lie? Is your resistance to telling people what they need to know considered a lie in itself? I continue to remain uncertain about the answers to these questions, there are too many variables to consider. My advice to anyone who may be engaging in this activity to ask yourself: Does this person really need to know, would you tell them the truth if they knew the questions to ask? Think carefully when you speak and when you act, people effect others more than they realize.

As many are aware, one of the companies I am involved in has 4 main members (owners)…including myself.. we often disagree on the strategies we employ or tactics we use to make the almighty dollar. We are currently involved in a few projects that keep us quite busy.. In the not too distant past we disagreed on everything from the mundane day to day operations of the company to big decisions; which understandably could change the direction we intended on taking. We finally agreed to disagree and decided that one person, within a set boundary, would make the small decisions (under 1K) without interference or questioning of the other members. Of course, everything done would be subject to audit, but for the most part, the one person could run the company without having to get permission on everything and be subject to the barrage of disagreements that so often accompanied our past activities and crippled our progress.

Recently we employed one of the two members mutual friends to help us do some work at one of the company’s properties. It was my personal understanding that we would compensate this person for the time he had put into the project, whether he was actually useful or not (which he was, very much so). I was of the opinion that he was performing a service for something that we intended on making money from in the future and he needed to be justly compensated. In addition, this person gives us a discount and other perks at a store that we frequent and spend a substantial amount of money.

My partner disagreed with my feelings on the matter. His position is he was “doing it as a friend” and was also knowingly engaging in a barter transaction between himself and my partner… because our friend had wanted him to do some computer work, for which my partner is quite knowledgeable. He also bought our mutual friend lunch the 2 or three times he was working with us and paid his bar tab of approximately $15-$20 at a bar the three of us frequent. This was a one time event. I would estimate our friend spent aproximately 10-15 hours working with us on a revenue generating activity we as a company are engaged in. I broke it down to look like this: Our friend spent 10 to 15 hours on a project for 2 value meals and a $20 bar tab.. and the hopes that his computer will be repaired.. Does this seem fair to you? It just does not strike me as being a good idea… I feel our friend has gotten the short end of the stick.

I am almost certain he would much rather have gotten paid $8 to $10 an hour and made the decision himself whether he wanted a value meal or attended a night out on the town.. or even had someone else fix his computer…

My question for the masses is: When is bartering a good idea? Also, how far can you stretch the concept of “being a good friend” to help you out…. I feel in this case someone ended up being the loser.. and it wasn’t my partner. Had our friend been doing something for us personally, such as helping us with our home or another personal endeavor, I would not have near as a problem with the circumstances.. but given he was performing a task for a revenue generating entity, I feel he actually expected to get paid.. though he tells my partner that was not the case. Given the brief commentary at the beginning on our decision making policies, is it best for me to let the 2 of them work it out and not interfere or should I step up to the plate for our friend? It is quite unsettling to me and I would love to hear peoples’ opinions on the matter.

Anyone who knows me realizes the importance I place on “getting things done”. Procrastination is the enemy to practicing good business, not to mention personal endeavors. My philosophy is I would much rather make a mistake, learn from it, then move on. It is the in-action sometimes that can lead to bigger problems that if one had taken an action and learned if it was the correct action to take. I was once in a real estate seminar where one of the speakers used this same philosophy. Many people, myself included, suffer from analysis paralysis… an inability to make a decision by analyzing every detail… every “what if” scenerio….

So back to the seminar… The speaker offered $10 to the first person who would come up and snatch it out of his hand…. What do you think happened? Do you think he was bombarded with people going up to the front grabbing the money out of his hand? Quite the opposite actually… until finnally a few people came up, but it was only after one person took the first step or “action” that others followed suit. She was rewarded not only with the $10 but with a free course that he was selling at the seminar.. a course that cost everyone else over $1k.

He did the same thing a second time around later in his presentation, what do you think happened? Do you think he was bombarded with people coming to snatch the money out of his hand? Do you think the audience assumed the same thing would happen the second time around? Well… to my astonishment, the exact same thing happened as the first… people hesitated, and it was not until the lady who recieved the first $10 came and ran for the money that others followed her lead. I am not advocating that people make irrational, careless decisions, that is very far from the truth… but when the risk is low and the reward is great, what holds people back? Are they afraid of the consequences of their actions? Maybe too lazy to do anything about it? Psychology plays a big part in the business world.. people win or loose, many times, based on how they reason and how they interact with others. Some people, when they hear opportunity knocking, grab it and run with it… others may hear the knock, but are unprepared or unwilling to answer the door. Where do you stand? Are you ready to open the door when opportunity knocks?

I did a search for Yanni on youtube and saw some of the faces behind Yanni’s vocals… I have seen some of them but never for one of my favorite songs,  “Aria”.   Very interesting…….   I frequently go to his website, but never have seen these two.  There are only a few things more amazing to me than beautiful women with compelling and powerful voices….. wow.    It is really a talent only a select few have,  I love it.

This is another one of my favorite songs,  I love youtube…

Okay, just one more and I stop, promise…