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“The only way to be happy, is to give happy.”

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  • A Hero’s Freedoms and Freedom’s Heroes

    BirdAuthor Paul Johnson wrote, “How do we recognize the heroes and heroines of today?

    First, by absolute independence of mind, which springs from the ability to think everything through for yourself, and to treat whatever is the current consensus on any issue with skepticism. 

    Second, having made up your mind independently, to act – resolutely and consistently. 

    Third, to ignore or reject everything the media throws at you, provided you remain convinced you are doing right.

    Finally, to act with personal courage at all times, regardless of consequences to yourself.”

    Freedom means different things to different people. Just hearing the word can evoke images of Americana, political rallies, partisanship, hotly debated issues, and harsh feelings. It can also call up warm stirrings of apple pie and Fourth of July celebrations.  But I believe the concept of freedom is well embodied in Paul Johnson’s quote above. For what is freedom if it is not felt at the individual level? And in exercising those four traits any individual would be living at a very high level of freedom indeed. But even more than how freedom is received, those four traits of a hero may be a huge key to how freedom is preserved. I would suggest that free societies can only result from, and be maintained by, such people.

    Not everyone, though, will be such a person. From Sturgeon’s Law (as recently written about in Orrin Woodward and Oliver DeMille’s latest best seller Leadershift), we know not to expect more than maybe 10%. As Peter Shift said in a recent radio interview with Oliver DeMille, “that may even be very optimistic.” But we don’t need everyone.  We only need some . . .

    Some who will think independently and decide on real issues for themselves.

    Some who will act resolutely and consistently with those thoughts.

    Some who will ignore and reject the “official story” and the programming of the agenda-laden media.

    And finally, some who will act with personal courage regardless of the cost.

    Freedom allows this type of living, but it also requires it. 

    Will you be a hero?

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

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    (This article kicks off a planned series of installments to be taken from a talk I gave on a recent book signing tour with Orrin Woodward through the central United States. Of course, this good intention could be thwarted by any number of distractions, including but not limited to national emergencies, flash flood conditions at Lake Gaston, manuscript publication deadlines, leadership conference preparation, and possibly even lunch. The reader’s patience, as always, is a necessary quality for participation in this blog, and of course, is greatly appreciated.)

     

  • Trout Fisherman in Hell

    (Below is an excerpt from my next book, being crafted with love and blood even as you read this!)

    There is an old story about a fisherman who believes he has died and gone Trout-fishing to Heaven as he catches one perfect 2 lb trout after another.  As he sets his fly and hooks into yet one more, he can’t fathom his good fortune.  The sky is blue, the weather ideal, the fish biting like he’s never before experienced, and everything is absolutely perfect.  It is not long, however, before the realization dawns on him that he is not in Heaven at all.  Instead, as the boredom and the pointlessness settle in on him, he realizes he’s actually in Hell.

    It’s hard to describe just how hard this little parable hit me the first time I heard it.  In one moment it erased all my whiny complaints about how difficult and elusive success seems to be.  The trout fisherman in Hell story is so extreme, so seemingly ridiculous, that we are confronted with a strange and brutal fact: we may hate opposition and struggle, but it is critical for our mental health.  Without the struggle, we would feel no joy in victory. 

    How can this be? How can it be true that we are actually happier and more fulfilled when overcoming opposition than when everything is easy and simply rolling our way? It is because of the way we were made.  Without a battle to win and an enemy to vanquish, the value of the warriar goes to zero.  In the famous words of Thomas Paine, “What we attain too cheaply we esteem too lightly.”  If we don’t earn it, we can’t enjoy it. 

    This is profound, and it ought to provide a telling answer against all those dismal statistics that suggest that the "odds" of making it are too tall. If we consider only statistics most of us would never get out of bed in the morning, much less find a way to force ourselves to study for that upcoming calculus exam or next achievement in our career.  You see; it doesn’t matter how difficult success is or what the odds are of us “making it.”  What matters is our struggle against the opposition, the force of our will against the force of everything that would try and stop us.  Not only does it fulfill us to have something against which to push, but in the process it also makes us better.  It is the resistive weight that builds the muscles.  So ultimately, it doesn’t matter if success is hard or not, it simply matters that we pursue it anyway.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

  • An Audience of One

     
    Chew3She knocks on the door to my office and waits until I motion her in. Politely she asks with expectant eyes if I'd like to visit her "gum store." For once making the right choice (trying to remember if I've put her off earlier for the same request) I rise from my work and take her by the hand.

    Her big brown eyes and freckled face are all delight as she tours me around the various flat surfaces of her bedroom, each delicately decorated with candies and gums of many colors and varieties. On one particular tray she has segregated Chiclet candies by color, arranging rows of them in a clever striped pattern. On another featuring one lone piece of gum on a tiny silk pillow, she has affixed a sign that reads, "Some of our gum is even royal!"

    Everywhere there are signs, and prices, and even games to be played. Displays have been crafted with boundless creativity and flare. Her marketing skills as a 9 year-old are so far ahead of most adults that I consider hiring her on the spot to write ad copy for our company. "And here are some magazines I put together, Daddy," she says, offering me two well-researched handcrafted gems replete with explanations and diagrams showing how gum is manufactured. Throughout each magazine are clever ads and jingles, one-liners and specials. I marvel at the bud of talent inborn.

    She is my only daughter, all sweetness and flair, with her own style and dramatic expression. She is precious to me beyond description. And perhaps to her, I am (in addition to her mother) the only audience that counts. Her happiness increases as she sees that her work has pleased me. Later, she again enters my office and hugs me. "I love you so much," she says.

    The creative process is exhilerating. We conceive an idea, lay out our plans, and begin work under the most naive of expectations. The mere act of putting things together as we see them rushing into our mind is invigorating. In this delicate early phase, we are alone with the stream of conciousness and can hardly answer its call quickly enough.

    Eventually, however, our peaceful cocoon of creativity must clash with the violent opinions of the real world. And usually we are not treated very kindly. Know-it-alls and pedants, critics and cynics swoop in to pluck the joy from our freshly birthed creations – feeding on our receding happiness like parasites without a food source of their own. 

    And it hurts.

    In fact, many who are stung by the unfeeling mud from the masses retreat within themselves and carefully hide the candle under a bushel, having learned the lesson not to bring it out in front of others ever again. It is tragedy in the true sense of the word. When one's creativity is snuffed by harshness, innocence is lost. Something dies. The world is a little less beautiful.

    But a true artist doesn't perform for the world. A true artist creates because it is what she does; who she is. All she has to do is remember who her true audience is. It's not the world, or its teeming masses of unthinking envious critics, or even its well-meaning coldhearts. No. Her real audience is her father, her Father in heaven. He is the One who embedded those talents and creative capacities in her to begin with, and it is for His pleasure she should give life to their impulse. Just as I attempted to do in the sincere expression of my approval and affirmation for my daughter's "gum store," God does for His children; for those who are called according to His purpose. He is never harsh or unkind in his praise of our sincere use of talents for His glory. And He is never too busy. Having thus pleased Him, we should thereby be insulated against the opinions of mere mortals. After all, it wasn't for them.

    So express those truths you hold deep inside. Create, write, paint, build, design, assemble, as for a king. His is the only opinion that counts. He is your lone audience; the audience of One.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady 

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  • AND (The Art of the Both)

    ANDThe word "the" is the most common in the English language. Hot on its heels in terms of amount of usage is the word "and."

    "And" is also a very important word when it comes to high achievement.

    We have all heard about the importance of focus. Most of us suffer from distraction diseases of all sorts, including "Interruptidess," "smart-phone-check-obsession," "multi-task-mania," and "involvement-overload." Our natural tendencies are toward diversion and distraction, not focus. Even so, in the accomplishment of all high achievement, there is a degree of breadth required. There is such a thing as too much focus.

    We have all heard that it is critical to "major on majors," that if we "fit the big rocks in the jar we can always get the little ones in later," and similar sayings. And these are all true. However, in our rush to simplify and focus, we must not forget that life is not that simple, and nobody accomplishes worthwhile goals without the ability to handle several things at once. The key is to know which majors to major upon, and which minors not to disregard.

    You see, for every major task toward an objective, there is always a supporting cast of minor details. We may ignore most details as trivial, but some are not. I am reminded of coach John Wooden teaching his incoming freshman basketball players to turn their socks inside out and remove the balls of cotton that could otherwise cause blisters. Mastery and accomplishment are to some extent the product of understanding what details are important and which can be disregarded. We must learn what minor things play a supporting role for the major things. Once we know this, only then can we ignore details and smaller things, knowing that they really play no role in achieving our overall goal.

    As leaders and high achievers we must master the "art of the both." Get good at determining which tasks are primary to accomplishing your goal, but then also discern which smaller ones play an important supporting role. In fact, it is by making these distinctions that you can then focus most effectively.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady 

     

  • Don’t Ever Let the Bozos Get You Down!

    If you are new to the pursuit of excellence, or are just launching upon your dream chase, or are just now responding to a calling on your life, you may need to be warned about something (or someone):

    Bozos.

    BozoReally, I've got nothing against Bozo the Clown. He wore his baldness with poise and managed to keep a smile upon his face despite the wardrobe he was forced to wear. Pretty admirable, any way you slice it. His name does serve as a categorization, however, for a certain type of person.

    It doesn't matter how noble your calling, how amazing your talent, or how sincere your attempt, there will ALWAYS be a Bozo somewhere to criticize what you're doing. Usually, there will be several.

    Bozos, you see, appreciate and grow stronger with each other's company, taking courage from their collective cowardice. Their purpose, as a lower species, is to denigrate others. They will question and criticize your ability, your talent, your motives, your heart, your character, your results, and just about anything else they can think of that you have or are attempting.

    Get used to it. Realize that it's just part of the landscape of high achievement. No one, and I repeat, no one is immune from Bozo Infestation.

    Exhibit A: In this video (be sure to watch it all the way through), a little eight-year-old girl sings a difficult song so well it should bring tears to the eyes of anyone even approaching the classification of a human being. And thousands of people quite appropriately clicked "like." But notice that, inexplicably, more than 2,000 people clicked "dislike." I can't imagine being in the presence of such nincompoops for even two seconds. Bozos are not above the criticism of anything, even an adorable, unbelievably gifted little girl. Just remember this the next time someone trashes you. If they can criticize little Connie Talbot, they won't have any trouble hurling their stones in your direction.

     

    Like a swarm of mosquitos, Bozos will swoop in to darken your brightest shinings. Don't let them. As with mosquitos, you can swat them, ignore them, and curse them. But by far the most effective approach in dealing with Bozos is to apply an effective repellent. In the case of living your life and giving your all, this repellent consists of the following:

    1. An awareness of their existence and a refusal to be shocked by such.

    2. A refusal to listen to their vitriol, realizing that every great achievement is accomplished under a hail of criticism.

    3. Pity for their pathetic little lives they are choosing to waste.

    4. A steady focus upon your dream, your calling, and what God built you to be.

    Don't ever let the Bozos get you down.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady 

  • Leadershift Happening Now

    Orrin Woodward and Oliver DeMille Launch a Leadershift

    My good friends Orrin Woodward and Oliver DeMille are set to release their groundbreaking book Leadershift in just a couple of weeks. If you are concerned about the erosion of freedom in the western world and are sick of partisian politics as a supposed answer to that decline, Leadershift will fill you with delight. Written as a readable story, the plot follows the gathering of leaders to discuss the enormous problems facing all free societies in our world today. What emerges from this gathering is a surprisingly simple, yet monumentally profound way to understand what has happened to freedom and what is necessary to restore and preserve it.

    Woodward and DeMille Make It Fun

    Let's face it; boring books stink. And nobody wants to read another screed from the people on the "blue state" side blaming those on the "red state" side, or vice versa. While playing the blame game might feed the flames of our righteous indignation, it doesn't produce any worthwhile outcomes. Meantime, our civilization continues to decline. What Leadershift does in an entertaining way is illuminate real solutions based on accurate analysis of the problems themselves.

    But I won't spoil all the fun for you. Do yourself a favor and read this little book yourself. You won't be disappointed!

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

     

  • Rascal Manifesto

    Stephen Palmer of the Center for Social Leadership concepted the idea for a poster for the Rascal Manifesto. His gang also recently produced this video to promote it. Enjoy.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

     

  • Your Personal Brand and the “Margaritaville” Concept

    It happened to you and it's uniquely yours. No one else has your story. No one else has your particular mixture of experience and ability. Not only did God make you unique in all your parts, but the life He lets you live is just as uniquely yours. Nobody else experiences the world in exactly the same way as you.

    These concepts are important to understand, because they form the basis of your personal brand.

    What is a personal brand?

    A personal brand is "whatever you do or bring to the world that is uniquely yours." Surprisingly, the more you stick to what is uniquely yours and the more authentic you are in what you do, the more interesting it is to others and the more marketable it is.

    Allow me to give an example.

    My incredible wife Terri Brady is a very interesting person with a compelling personal brand. Beyond all the foundational things that attracted me to her back in our college days (her love of the Lord, her values and her upbringing, her beauty, her courage, her playfulness, her native intelligence, her musical gifts, and above all, her undeniable wisdom in choosing me!), she has lived an incredibly interesting and inspiring life. Her list of brand experiences include prolonged infertility, TTsurviving a life threatening brain tumor, engineering degree and work experience, home schooling four children, a consistent record of physical fitness, mastery of multiple musical instruments, dedication to worship and serving in the name of Christ, leading and mentoring many other women, high level entrepreneurship and business ownership, fabulous public speaking to audiences of tens of thousands around the world, a wildly popular blog, not to mention being married to a rascal like me! In addition to these unique experiences, many of which were beyond her control, how she carried herself through these events is even more impressive. The trials came without complaint, and the victories came without conceit. If you wrap all these things together you've got one incredible woman with a lot to share with others. All of these pieces together comprise Terri's personal brand. They make her interesting. They give weight to what she teaches. They give power to what she says.

    Now, what would happen if Terri tried to teach people about scuba diving? Or produce a product focused on fashion? It wouldn't work. It's not her. It doesn't fit her brand.

    The purpose of this example (beyond a shameless ploy to get points with my wife) is to demonstrate that who we are at the core, in the most authentic version of ourselves, is what we should focus on bringing to the world. In other words, only do what only you can do. It might be inspiring to know that when you do exactly that, you will be the most fulfilled. It's when you are doing precisely what you were built to do with the specific gifts God gave you that you feel the most alive. Any time you stray away from this reality you feel less yourself, less alive, less real. Life isn't about finding employment that pays the bills and then hanging on through the years waiting to die. It's about discovering what God built you to do and then doing it with all your unique abilities to His glory and pleasure.

    Quite often I have people approach me asking how to become a public speaker, how to write a book, or how to best start a blog. Many times they've already made an attempt but the effort hasn't gained traction. My advice to them is always the same: first determine your true authentic personal brand. Find out what you have that is uniquely yours, and work your guts out bringing it to the world. The more your heart is in it, the more others will want it. There will always be a market for the best you've got to give (but, that is not to say that it won't be harder than you can imagine). You've got to focus. You've got to bring it all to bear on your great unique brand.

    One more example.

    Jimmy Buffett is an overwhelmingly successful musician and entertainer. He has attracted a following of fanatical fans who dress up in crazy costumes and follow him around on concert tours. He has sold millions and millions of dollars of music and books. He has a string of successful restaurants and a clothing line. He even has (or had) a channel on satellite radio! Over the course of more than four decades, Unknown Jimmy Buffett has assembled a massive entertainment empire. And really, when it gets right down to it, he did it all with just one song.

    If you listen to Buffett's early music, you will notice that it doesn't really match his brand. The songs are serious, the topics are ordinary, and it's obvious that in those early days he hadn't really struck the chord of his true authentic gift, of his personal brand that would someday delight millions. But as soon as he produced the song Margaritaville, a star was born. He had hit upon it – an escapism genre that whisked people away from their cold, boring lives and put them in the warm tropical sun.

    Imagine going to a Jimmy Buffett concert. You take in the enthusiastic crowd, you sing along with some of the songs, you feel relaxed and happy as you too escape to the islands for a few fun figurative moments. But what would happen if Buffett finished up his concert and failed to play the song Margaritaville? You would not only feel disappointed, you'd feel cheated. Buffett HAS to perform that song at every concert because it is the classic embodiment of his personal brand, and Buffett, being the consummate entertainer and crowd pleaser, knows this better than anyone. 

    This principle applies everywhere. How disappointed would people be if Stephen King came out with a marriage book? Or if Dave Barry released a serious novel? Or if Michael Jordon left basketball to play, I don't know, let's say baseball? These people, and every successful person in every walk of life, have succeeded by finding their true authentic gift and then giving it over and over with gusto.

    Which brings us back to you.

    What is your unique brand?

    What are your particular foundational gifts?

    What are your unique experiences?

    How have you grown as a result, and what can you give out of it?

    What innate talents has God given you that are yours?

    What makes you feel the most alive?

    What makes you feel the most fulfilled?

    What things do you do that seem to bring the most accolades from people?

    I guarantee that if you answer these questions and package all of this together, you will be at least heading in the right direction. Whether this means you will write books, blog, create music, speak on stages, preach, start a company, paint, organize something, lead a charity, invent a new technology, or whatever, if you line things up to be a product of who you are and what you uniquely can contribute, you will succeed. By this, I mean that you will find meaning and fulfillment in contributing something that only you can contribute.

    Don't live anyone else's life for even a minute. It's yours. It's unique. Find your Margaritaville and then sing it with all you've got until you can't sing anymore. I promise, there will be fans cheering for your authentic output.

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady 

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  • Israel Initiative Study Trip

    My good friends at Shepherds Theological Seminary in Cary, North Carolina have committed to providing an intense Israel study trip for their students. Here is a quick highlight video of the 2012 trip (which I was privileged to attend). If you know of young people going into the ministry or mission field, have them check out what Shepherds has to offer!

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

  • Success is Hard

    Many Misunderstand Success

    The most formidable obstacle in anyone's path when deciding to enter the business world will likely be their own thinking.

    This was certainly true of me.

    I used to think that all I needed were the specifics of an endeavor and a little time and I could be a success. What I discovered along the way was that the specifics are easy and simple to acquire, and almost (I say almost, meaning comparatively) irrelevant. What I needed the most, and what I see as a similar need in many people with whom I work, is a "business mindset." And actually, beneath that mindset is another important manner of thinking, namely, a "success mindset."

    Success is Difficult

    Here is what I didn't really understand: In anything worthwhile, success is hard.

    Let's consider business in general and the costs to even get started. According to buildyourfirm.com, the average startup cost for an accounting office is $50,000 for a book of $150k of business. According to fastfood.com, to start an Arby's franchise requires a $37,500 initial fee, a liquid capital requirement of $500,000, and a total estimated initial investment of $2.3 million. This is followed by the requirement of paying a 4% royalty. A Cinnabon requires $30,000 up front, $100,000 liquid capital requirement, a minimum net worth of $300,000, and an overall estimated initial investment of $362,000. The royalty payment required is 6%. One more. Subway requires a $15,000 initial fee, $90,000 of initial liquid capital, a minimum net worth of $500,000, and an estimated initial investment of $238,000. The royalty payment owed is an ongoing 8%. So with just this small sample size considered, it is obvious that the cost of starting a business is high. (Keep in mind that the average North American has just $3,800 in regular savings and cash).

    So what about the odds of business success? According to a report by creditdonkey.com, 50% of new businesses are out of business by year five, and only 35% are left in year ten, with many never making any money at all.

    What about sports?

    According to Business Insider, the odds of success in professional sports is even worse than the odds of making it in business. Consider that in baseball, for instance, just 0.6% (that's 6 out of 1,000 boys) of high school players and just 11.6% of college players even make it into the pros, while the average professional baseball career is just 5.6 years long. It's 0.08% (that's 8 out of 10,000 boys!) of high school players, and just 1.7% of college players that make it to the pros, where a professional career lasts an average of 3.5 years. In hockey it's 0.1% of high school players and 1.3% of college players that make it to the pros, where an average career lasts 5.5 years. For basketball it's 0.03% (3 out of 10,000) of high school players and 1.2% of college players that make it to the pros, where a career lasts just an average of 4.8 years.

    Ok, so business is expensive and hard, and sports have super long odds, but what about other areas of success?

    Let's say, for instance, marriage?

    According to marriage and divorce expert Marty Friedman, in 1970, 72% of people were married, whereas only 59% are today. The average divorce occurs at the 7 year mark, and 50% of first marriages, and 60 to 70% of second marriages end in divorce. Fatherless households account for 63% of youth suicides, 90% of homeless/runaways, 85% of behavioral problems, 71% of high school dropouts, 85% of youths in prison, and over 50% of unwanted teen pregnancies.

    Okay, so matrimonial relationships are fraught with challenges and horrific ramifications, what about a totally different category, say, acting?

    The best sources I could find seem to agree that only about 2% of those consistently active "in the field" make it as a full time occupation.

    Well, what about authors? How many become best selling authors?

    According to one of my publicists, there are approximately 1,000,000 books published per year.  Only about 200 go over 100,000 in sales per year, which is 0,02% (or 2 authors out of every 10,000).

    What about goal setting in general? Let's get away from specific industries and endeavors and just talk general success.

    According to researcher Douglas Vermeeren, 80% of people never set goals at all! Of the roughly 20% who do, approximately 70% fail to hit those goals!

    Have I made my point? Success anywhere is hard! All these statistics certainly bring a little light to Sturgeon's Law, which states that "90% of everything is crap." Or the old Pareto Principle which states that for any given output, "roughtly 80% of the output is due to just 20% of the causes." 

    It begins to be obvious that in any endeavor only a small percentage of the population actually "make it." Does this mean that business, professional athletics, marriage, acting, writing, and goal setting in general are "scams?" Certainly not, it simply means that excellence and high achievement adhere to the cold, cruel laws of success, even if most people are unfamiliar with them. 

    Let me reiterate: to reach the level of mastery and high accomplishment in any area will be difficult, fraught with peril, and painful. So much so that it will eliminate most of your competition along the way. The laws of success and competition are brutal, and apparently most people are not familiar with them.

    This is what I was missing when I started out in business, when I started writing books, and when I started doing public speaking. The good ones made it look so easy I just assumed that with a little practice I could do what they were doing just as well – and I was in for a rude awakening. This is what I find when working with most people; that they just have no concept of what success really takes, or how slim the odds of high achievement really are.

    Why?

    Because most of us are raised in a soft cocoon of protection, in which we are given trophies for participation, and told we are great even when we are not. Many careers and occupations shelter people from the cold realities of competition, paying them a salary regardless of output and forcing them to confront their performance only in little ways and perhaps as seldom as once per year in a soft-ball performance review.

    Let's face it, there are very few places in our adult lives where we are really forced to confront a totally honest scoreboard of our performance. And when we do, many of us shy away from it with cries of "it's not fair" and "you cheated" on our lips to hide the painful reality that we don't really measure up. We are more comfortable in our "illusory superiority" than we are confronting the brutal reality of our lackluster abilities.

    This is why I chose to highlight businesses, sports, marriage, acting, and writing in my statistical review: because each of these activities requires participants to truly exceed in order to succeed. There are no shortcuts to success in any of them, and they each expose participants' true abilities.

    Success is Worth It

    But success is worth it, right?

    It depends upon what you define success to be. I would recommend reading the following articles for assistance in determining your own unique definition (Success: An Important Definition, Competing Views of Success, Customized Success – It's Your Life, The Top 10 Realities of Success). But yes, in my opinion, success is worth it, as much for what it makes out of us during the journey towards it as for any amount of reward for achieving it. There is just something exhilarating about opening yourself up to the scoreboard of life and daring to have a look at how you stack up.

    What are the odds (in any endeavor) of you becoming one of the top performers? Long indeed.

    What are the odds of the pursuit itself making you into a better person in the process? Almost assured.

    So dare to pursue something amazing, and worry not about the people around you who seek guarantees and the quiet false comfort of an existence hidden away from the scoreboard.

    They just don't "get it," but you just might!

    Thanks for reading!

    Sincerely,

    Chris Brady

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