Ignore Everyone And Veer Off Course – MBA Tips For Repositioning Brand You

“Branding demands commitment; commitment to continual reinvention; striking chords with people to stir their emotions; and commitment to imagination.”

Sir Richard Branson

“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”

George Bernard Shaw

“Now that I’m over sixty, I’m veering toward respectability.”

Shelley Winters

You can have anything you want in life if you position yourself properly.

The problem is that most individuals let other people set the course for their life and then follow it with blinders on. They build momentum but they never evaluate its direction. In fact, the average person chooses to keep his blinders on because he’s too afraid to veer off course. Even though it’s someone else’s course.

In Graduate school, my roommate, Ben Harms used to help take care of his girlfriend’s dog, Leo. One weekend, I came home and the dog had a huge cone wrapped around his head to keep him from turning his neck. The cone is called an Elizabethan collar and is worn by cats and dogs as a protective medical device to prevent the animals from biting or scratching their bodies while injuries heal. I don’t remember why Leo had to wear the collar but I do remember what Ben called it: the cone of shame.

When you stay on someone else’s course and refuse to take a different path, even when you know you should, you’re wearing the cone of shame. You’re restricting your movement and blinding yourself to other options, or other positions, often as a result of past wounds.

If you ever find yourself wearing the cone of shame, chew it off. Be your own master.

The key to enjoying life and gaining influence is to constantly evaluate your position in life, relative to your biggest goals, and to reposition yourself when necessary. … More »

Be Your Own Empire – Freelancing Your Way To Financial Independence

“Flaming enthusiasm, backed by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success.”

Dale Carnegie

“The man who trims himself to suit everybody will soon whittle himself away.”

Charles Schwab

“Your real boss is the one who walks around under your hat.”

Napoleon Hill

Working stiffs have one fate. Being snapped in half.

Which is why anyone climbing any sort of career ladder dreams of two things: 1) being the boss, and 2) being financially independent.  Sounds like a simple plan, right? The problem is that most people define being the boss as achieving a job title with the word “Manager” in it. That or they think being the boss requires some slow ascent to a position right above middle management that takes 20-30 years to achieve.

What’s worse is that most individuals will only consider themselves financially independent when they have a nest egg of 1-2 million dollars. Some people don’t even have a number in mind, they just plan on working until they arrive at some magical realm where they never have to think about money again. Please know that even Bill Gates and Warren Buffet think about their money; they know exactly how much they have and exactly where it is going.

With these kind of definitions, its no wonder the American dream is to work a 9-5 job for 40 years, retire from a mid- to upper-level management position, and travel the world on a budget with your best years behind you. Do you really want to work your life away for an adequate vacation that will probably end with you going back to work because you’re bored? Do you really want your life to be a monument to the status quo? The truth is that you can be your own … More »