My Diary resumes… The “Entrepreneurial Myth”… and Obi doing tricks

Thanks to everyone’s feedback regarding my diary.  The last time I wrote I decided to stop writing after 17 years… many of you emailed me and gave me some really good insight and for things to think about.  It was really weird not writing… and as Tom Schoenwald said, “writing is therapeutic” and I had to agree with that.  Not writing for 2 weeks made me feel there was something missing… a “void” in my life… so on April 25, I started to write again.  And… it FEELS GREAT!  Whether or not I will leave the diary as my legacy (as Trish Ryder suggests) is not clear but one thing is for certain.  I am much happier having my diary back again!

Now to another more somber note… recently one of my close family members had some medical issues and had serious surgery.  As a result, I had to cancel my traveling plans and canceled my trip to Philippines in May.  I really miss my team out in the Philippines.  Initially I was supposed to go there for the Grand Opening Launching Celebration for USANA that was held at the SMX Center… but alas, my family member’s condition prevented me from traveling too far from Los Angeles.  I also had to cancel this week’s trip to June for a training session as well.  I can’t stray too far from Los Angeles in case something comes up and I am needed.  The good news is that the family member is recovering well and I should be able to travel outside LA again soon.  Thanks again for all the “get well” wishes and prayers.

I have read a really great book since I last wrote.  It seems like every book that I have read is “a great book” but this one has a huge impact and is crucial for small business owners to read.  It’s a classic and if your business is relatively new and generating income, then this is a must read.  It is called “E-Myth Revisited” by Michael Gerber and was first published in the mid 1990s.  It’s a great book because it talks about how businesses get started and why most business fail.  The successful business owner is really 3 people in 1. (like Jeckly and Hyde except that there is another person!)  They are the Technician (who invents product and produces and lives in the past), the Manager (who organizes everything and keeps things running and lives in the present) and the Entrepreneur (who is visionary and lives in the future).  Without giving the book away, to have a successful business, you must be all 3 at same time and this applies to my USANA business as well.  The book was great and it gave me a vision as to where I will be 6 months from now and also 10 years from now.

After that book… I took a brief timeout from reading and instead went through the book and analyzed to see what areas of my business needed improvement… after the timeout, I finally read Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink. It is a good and quick read and talks about how often the most crucial and best decisions are made within less than 2 seconds. (in a “blink” of an eye).  Very interesting read…

Kelly and I went to Santa Barbara a few weeks ago just to get out of LA.  It was fun… also interesting since this was the first time we took Obi on a road trip.  Obi was great and very well behaved.  Santa Barbara was beautiful and we went wine tasting and also looked at some open houses at Montecito.  Montecito is one of the richest places in America and we checked out some million dollar homes just for fun.  We saw this one house that was really something… that had its own wine cellar in the backyard!  And then we saw another $8 million dollar house on top of the hill that overlooked the entire Pacific Ocean.  Anyway, it was a very relaxing and fun weekend.

Speaking of Obi, we got Obi neutered.  We learned that neutered dogs are healthier and live longer and grow bigger!  And the early you get neutered, the better.  So we got Obi neutered in mid April when he was about 4 1/2 months old.  I found this interesting… our breeder REQUIRED us to get him neutered and made us sign a contract/agreement so that we would not “spoil” the breed and lineage.  Wow… I didn’t know breeders were that strict.  But I guess if you were able to breed a few champions, you would want to keep the pedigree as pure as possible.

VIDEO: Obi’s Basic Training.  Obi knows to “watch”, “sit”, “down”, “come”, “shake hands”, etc

We must end with a highlight!  So… I just found out a week ago from USANA that I will be one of the successful associates that will be featured in the upcoming 2009 – 2010 Health and Freedom marketing newsletter!  Wow!  I knew I was doing well and on the way up but I never expected it to happen so fast!  I was REALLY REALLY EXCITED AND PUMPED!  I told Kelly and my mom and all my leaders immediately!  I had to answer some questions for my profile and then was a little nervous when I had to submit my pictures before they went to press… because … I knew that whatever picture I submitted I had better look good because that was what over 80,000 North American associates would see for the next 12 months!!!

Until next time,

God Bless