Some of the best commercials are the ones that run during the Super Bowl. In fact, there are even TV shows that feature just those commercials. Pretty cool to see something that corporations pay millions for millions to see once. You know that you got to get it right the first time, and I’m sure there are more than a few ad houses that stay up the night before the Super Bowl wondering whether or not their “concept” will even fly.

It’s in Miami again, Super Bowl 2010, and it reminds me of a story when I was dating my wife. She lived in Brazil and I was in Dallas/Fort Worth, but every chance I got to see her I was on a plane down to Sao Paulo. I worked for American Airlines at the time and flying as a stand by could be a challenge. For the most part, I was an ace at lining up the flights to get me home and not get stuck in some strange city.

But I arrived in Miami on Sunday morning, the Sunday of the Super Bowl. And as I started to check the flights back to Dallas/Fort Worth, I quickly noticed they were all full – some oversold. What I did next you can only do if you’re an airline employee and have access to a terminal to check the passenger loads on flights. I saw that everything out of Miami northbound was full, so I had to get to Dallas/Fort Worth by going south.

Now, American has a ton of flights going south out of Miami. You may have heard recently that they are the airline with the most flights out of the USA to Haiti. So I started checking and remembered that flights out of Miami to San Juan not only were very frequent, that is, leaving every hour or so, but they were large aircraft. So I next checked the loads out of San Juan non-stop to Dallas/Fort Worth, and it was fine. I hopped on that next southbound flight to San Juan and got home late in the day in Dallas.

Miami was packed and all flights full because they were hosting the Super Bowl. If you are a sports fan of any measure you know that the Super Bowl is the biggest contest of footballdom. Millions watch it, but not only that, those who do are usually fanatical and in a frenzied fun state hoping their team will pull out a win.

Advertisers are keen on this “state” we get in. I first hear about this from Tony Robbins who says you can only make major changes in life by getting into a “state” of change. Tony believes that when you are learning and the event is like a rock concert, you retain it for a long, long time. You probably already know where I’m going with this, no?

During the Super Bowl we are excited and anxious. We are very happy, cheering. Show us an ad, and the impression it leaves is worth noting. Ad houses know this prime time is when viewers retain the information most. I bet you can describe at least five Bud commercials without much effort. Sure, they’re funny. But so was Joe Isuzu and not many remember him.

The takeaway from my post today is you have to learn what state “you” need to get in that allows you to remember and recall most. For many it may be a quiet place where you can concentrate. But I want you to try listening to something motivational you’ve been wanting to hear – the next time you go jogging. Make it fun and really get into the audio. Chances are you will really recall what you hear, to the point of wanting to tell someone about something you picked up this time around.

Keep focused on at least an hour of motivational and self improvement in the morning before you begin your day. If you need to, awaken a little earlier. I’m talking about every day for the rest of your life. People wake up the same time, but we all go to bed at different times. You’ll add years onto your mental “school” and shield yourself against the crap out there by doing your own hour of power each day.

And finally, pray for those folks in Haiti. Over 4000 Americans are still missing. That’s a lot more than died in the twin towers. Where are they? Incredible. Keep supporting if you can, too.

OK, talk soon. Share your thoughts and until next time, be good.

It was a fun Sunday. Lots of football. We even broke out the organic corn chips (Costco) and Malbec (Whole Foods). Dennis had a supply of these incredible almonds from Starbucks. But even as we were set to watch a good challenge, someone was going to lose.

Can all disease be cured? Wow, Dave… you jump around subjects, no? Ha, well…there are those that think all disease can be cured by both mental and diet. Likewise, there are those in the school of thought that football is all a mental game. Forget that there are the dynamics of genetics for diseases, and the whole physicality behind playing football.

If it can’t be cured, using mental powers can come awfully close. With football, it’s almost the same. If your head is in the right place, everything falls into place. Granted, both teams have to be physically identical.

So did the losers of the championship games we watched yesterday the victims of bad thinking?

Yes. And NFL teams spend time conditioning the mind as well as the body. But that’s the fun of the whole thing. Dennis said that soon those players on the screen would be droids. Then it would boil down to strategy. Or would thought play a huge part in it as it does today.

In other words, even droid operators have a mind which can be swayed by thinking.

And if this is such a big part of winning and losing, don’t you think it should be studied in your life, for your benefit? I thought as much for me, and am going through a program by Bob Proctor called the Success Puzzle. Six CD’s and a workbook mainly about what you spend your time thinking about.

I’m just starting it, so I’ll let you know how it goes. Right now I am reviewing my worthy ideal. Pretty cool name, right? Worthy ideal.

OK, let me know what you think about the importance the mind plays in our lives. Talk soon. Dave

OK, it’s past mid-January as I write this, but whenever you’re reading it, whatever time of year, if you feel you’re a little out of control, maybe life got in the way, or you’re not too good at the to-do list, then there’s hope.

I know how hard it is with kids, pets, work, home, spouses – not it that order, hehe – but it can become a challenge.  And because others have gone down this path before us, there is a lot to learn from seeing how they managed, or didn’t.

Here’s a great article to check out, by Mark Foo, on eight simple steps to setting your priorities.  Let me know what you think.

If you don’t know that quote, it’s from the amazing Bob Proctor who says that if we want things to happen in our lives, we have to write it down in the present tense. For example, I am so happy and grateful now that we have our winter retreat in Maui.

You probably should be much more specific than that but you get the idea.

Truthfully, I’ve done this in some form at one time or another. The first time I put what I wanted to paper was back in 1995 after I read Unleash the Power Within by Tony Robbins. The results? It was like a cascade of good things that followed – from living in an apartment to growing a tiny company past the million dollar mark. So I know it works.

You’ve probably done the same thing or are considering it. But your thoughts are keeping you from doing anything about it. I almost wrote “life” but I know that life is all about what we think and what we do. What is crazy is that we don’t do this more often, or ever.

The biggest challenge is belief.

First, in order to make a list like this you have to believe that you have enough time to do it. That when you sit down and start putting that pencil to the notepad, that you’re not taking away from productive time. I am told almost daily by people who feel guilty that they can’t squeak out an hour each day to keep their mind at optimum power. The thought is that they should be doing something else, more productive, and that people will look at them and think they’re wasting their time.

I guess the real issue is – who are you doing this for?

Stop right now and take your hand and pound it on your chest and say, “I’m doing this for me!”

Become selfish about this because to do otherwise is failure. You might take more time watching TV with your loved ones than you do at working on yourself. Think about it.

This day is not over yet. You still have time to write down what you want. Maybe you find it hard to know exactly what you want. Dreams you once had seem real impossible now. But remember those are thoughts you need to end.

When you write down what you want, it becomes clearer. Use a pencil. It doesn’t have to be permanent. You’re growing and this list will change. You want it to change. Take at least 30 minutes to work on getting clear about what you want. And don’t feel guilty about it. Yes, there are needs and wants. This is about what you want to make you become all you can be.

Are you with me?

Believe it or not, some people never attend funerals.  In fact, one person I know vows the only funeral they will ever attend – you guessed it – will be their own.  And I think when you go, it’s a great opportunity for life lessons.  When you consider what is happening, it’s time to think of changes in your life.

Don’t blow this off.  We all have to go sometime.  And it’s nice to have the insurance and know your loved ones are cared for.  But I’m talking about preparing in another way.

Lately I’ve seen a few sites where friends have written a bucket list of things they would like to accomplish in their lifetime.  I believe this is really cool and that there is a special connection when we write something down.  Magic stuff happens and for some reason there is more power in it, and the chances of it happening go up exponentially.

So I’m thinking even while at a recent funeral, what is left that I REALLY want to accomplish, and if someone were to look at my plans right now would they agree that I’m going to accomplish it?

How about you?

What is that one thing you really want to accomplish before you have to leave this dusty ball of clay?

And then you know the next question: What is your strategy this year to make it happen?  Have you done anything this year toward reaching your goal?  Honestly?

After you read this, grab a scrap of paper and write down one thing you can do that will move you toward your goal.

Remember that bits of paper and even funerals never got anything done.  It takes action to make things happen.  Don’t delay.  Take massive action now!

It is SO refreshing to hear some of these life principles again as I begin this new year by revisiting what got me into coaching.  There is absolutely so much information on how to awesome this year and this decade that you cannot use the excuse that there isn’t a good system or a map to get you there.  Ya just can’t!  But you have to been keen on who to listen to and what to do with what you hear or read.

The best analogy I know for this is thinking of the information that you’re tapping into as a supermarket.  You go in and see thousands of items on the shelves.  There are sections you didn’t know existed.  And it may take you hours to go through the store, but don’t just shop near the front – dive in and take a look at everything.

Of course you’re going to use a shopping cart; you want to be able to take some away – get what you need.  And that’s the next part about this analogy.  You’re certainly not going to go into the store and take everything in it.  Your cart won’t hold it and you’ll never be able to use it all, anyway.

It’s the same with self-improvement.  You just can’t listen to everything and read everything – but you can check it out.  Go through books, listen to audios, Google the person, see if there are some videos you can see on YouTube to get an idea of how this person really is.  Maybe you don’t want to take them home with you!  So like a supermarket  – take what you need and leave the rest on the shelf.

That’s one way to guard your mind and lay down a strategy of acheiving your goals this year; find the teachers that you feel good about.  That’s super important.  You know who they are when you start listening to them.  Your values align with theirs.  And you get a good feeling about them and what they teach.

Happiness should be almost at the top of your list for this decade.  Strive for it.  It can come by simply being grateful for what you have and what you can do with what you have.

Circumstances and other humans can get you off track easily, if you let them.  What ever you focus on, you attract.  So focus on what you want.  If you are in less than desirable circumstances, focus on where you want to be.  And make the area where you work reflect that feeling.

If people are dragging you down and off-track, don’t listen to them.  Spend more time listening to people who are like you want to be, and less time listening to people who zap your energy, or throw you off course.  Protect what you hear.  Protect what you read.  Protect what you do.

I made a decision this year to stop listening to talk radio.  Even though I was a huge fan, worked as a talk show host in the Dallas/Fort Worth market for over 15 years, I don’t believe dwelling on what they say is where I want to be thinking this year.  I’m looking for what inspires and makes me better, and listening to talk radio is debatable, I know, but there are only 24 hours in my day.  That’s just a choice – if you’re a diehard fan, maybe you can’t do without.

Protect what you want to become.  Don’t wait.  Do it for you!

I am really committed this year to give everything I’ve got to be all that I can be.  And as much as that sounds like an Air Force commercial, it’s true.  Things have fallen into place that will make this an exciting decade.

I have started teaching online and at first was having an issue with my PC.  Here’s the deal – the teaching sites I use require that you use a headset.  I’ve tried it both with a headset and without, and the headset really makes a big difference.  These sites don’t have the technology that Skype uses in their software, which I find SO amazing that you can carry out a conversation without a headset, and even walk around the room, and people on the other side of the world can hear you crystal clear.  And yes, I could teach on Skype, which has a nifty interface with PayPal where at the click of a button you can start the clock and charge per hour/minute/etc.

So I’m looking for this USB headset I bought a few years ago at Best Buy that worked so well and makes me sound like the guy that does the promos for the movies.  I couldn’t find it anywhere.  Rachel and I zoomed off to Best Buy to buy a new set.  Microsoft has this Windows Live Messenger headset that I knew I wouldn’t have to install all the software that comes with it.  Should work as a nice USB headset.

It didn’t.

When I did install all the assorted software, that makes it work well with Live Messenger, it did work, but…for some reason on my PC there was this big delay in the audio.

Now, when I recorded my last lessons for www.NetDominate.com with a USB headset, it worked well.  No delay.  But I was running Windows Vista, and granted my PC is a few years old, no USB 2.0, nothing fancy, and it worked great.

On this recent attempt, I was running Windows 7 Beta.  My son gets these beta copies and off we go.  Like anyone, I Googled why a USB mic would be delayed in Windows 7.  And there are so many reasons, but I felt mine was because of my old PC and a new OS.  Old sound card.

While getting the real Windows 7, I went through the whole list of backing up my software and files, and installing everything fresh.  I love that it happened at the end of the year.  I love new beginnings.  I love new days, Mondays, new slates.

When looking for software, I found my CD of The Secret.  I started listening to it, again.  Wow.  I thought back on things and realized that the Law of Attraction is real and that it happens whether we think it does or not.

But I know everyone doesn’t buy into The Secret, and I want to know what you think about it.  Do you believe everything, or do you pick and choose the things that you believe work for you?  And has The Secret helped you in any way?  If so, how?