Words of Wisdom from Napoleon Hill

"When the going is hardest, just keep on keeping on, and you’ll get there sooner than someone who finds the going easy.

If you think achieving great heights of success will be easy, you either don't understand at all how the process works or you have your sights set too low. Reaching the top of any field is difficult, time-consuming, and often tedious. The reason it isn't crowded at the top is that most people won't do the things that are necessary to achieve success. They are all too willing to give up when the going gets tough. If you need inspiration to persevere, read the biographies of men and women who have achieved greatness in their lives. You will find that they prevailed because they refused to quit. They continued to toil alone long after the masses had given up and gone home."

This one was in my in-box this morning.  It comes from The Napoleon Hill Foundation's Thought for the Day.  Clearly, I don't need to explain how this applies to kicking the habit...  I'm also, as you'll find out when you read my book, a huge proponent of going cold turkey which makes this quote about success even more relevant.  This also show's how, even though the topic of the book is how to stop smoking, success in ANY endeavor will require you to dig deeper than you thought you'd have to and go farther than you thought you could go.

So, smokers and non-smokers alike, how does this apply to you today?

John Boehner Smokes and So Does Obama

Is Obama still smoking?  What about Speaker of the House John Boehner?  He smokes!  What are you going to do about it Dave?  Good question!  Watch the video...  will keep you updated as to the results and response.

Why Should I Stop Smoking? He Wanted You To Know

Why should I stop smoking?  This seems like a silly question to me.  In my book, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone, I mention that if you don't know by now that smoking is bad for you then pretty much you have been living under a rock for 45 years.

Strangely, people decide to pick up the habit anyway and even stranger, people continue to play Russian Roulette with Big Tobacco.  Big Tobacco's gonna win.  If you haven't seen The Deer Hunter, go watch it and then and get back to me, because that is exactly what happens when you play Russian Roulette with Big Tobacco.

I found this article while searching for topics to write about.  One of the things that I didn't want to do in my book, How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone was to get all "preachy" on you.  I'm still committed to that, but sometimes a good tall glass of Reality Check is just what the doctor ordered.  Besides, once I read this article, I felt morally obligated to pass on his story.

So, here we have Bryan Lee Curtis.  In 1999 he was in his early 30's.  He worked in construction, had two kids and was a regular American trying to make his way in the world. 

He was also a two pack a day smoker.  Bryan started smoking when he was 13.  Most kids who start, get started around this time.  He felt he had plenty of time to quit smoking.

One day, suffering from severe abdominal pain he went to the hospital to find out that he had oat cell lung cancer.  This is a very common form of cancer associated with smoking.  It also happens to be incredibly aggressive as far as cancers go.

The attitude of "it won't happen to me" has got to be the worst form of denial and self loathing I can think of.  Why self loathing?  Let me explain that a little later.

At the time of Bryan's diagnosis, they attempted to slow the progression of the cancer with chemotherapy. Notice, I said "slow the progression."  Not stop the progression, not cure the cancer, basically what that means is delay the inevitable.  Brian was going to die from this cancer.  He's 34 years old with lung cancer.  Rare?  Maybe.  Becoming more common than you thought?  Yes!

Bryan Lee Curtis died 9 weeks after his diagnosis.  He was 34 years old.  He started smoking at age 13.  It took 21 years of smoking to kill him. 

For the skeptics and people in denial, those thinking he's an exception, to those who will justify their own addiction when they read the whole article and see that in addition to construction, Bryan was also a roofer.  So clearly his lungs were exposed to all sorts of additional crap that probably exacerbated his condition.  Besides, you're thinking, I don't smoke two packs a day, I only smoke "X" cigarettes a day. 

For those of you in this frame of mind, I understand where you're coming from and I agree with you.  Because I too thought that.  Granted I haven't had a cigarette since May 2002 and you very well may be still smoking but I was immediately skeptical as to how a 33 year old man gets lung cancer.  Well, two things immediately came to mind.

#1 - Please grab a copy of my book and turn to page 28.

#2 - It's your addiction talking.

What?  Yes.  Your addiction is louder than reality.  Let me say that again. 

YOUR ADDICTION IS LOUDER THAN REALITY!

How do I know that?  Mainly because while Bryan Lee Curtis literally wasted away in under 9 weeks flat and then did everything he could in his highly limited capacity to share with the world the consequences of his decision to smoke, his own mother, wife, nephew and several other family members continued smoking.  These people even smoked in the house he lay dying in.  In fact Brian also continued to smoke until he was to weak to do so.

His funeral was an open casket funeral.  He wanted everyone to see the ravages of his disease brought on and exacerbated by smoking.  But after the funeral, people went outside an lit up.  Foolish. 

I too am guilty of this blindness.  My mother died of cancer.  My aunt.  My Grandfather.  You know I had a cigarette after every one of those funerals. 

Now for those of you who've never dealt with nicotine addiction, this has got to sound like the stupidest thing you've ever heard.  How can you watch someone die from cancer and continue to do the very thing that will most likely land you in the exact same spot?

Stupid, huh?

Yes it is. 

Nicotine and the habit, addiction and compulsion that is the cigarette is very, very powerful.  You have an unbelievable task and challenge ahead of you should you decide to quit.  Wait!  Stop, don't quit!  Just stop.  You decided to start, now decide to stop. 

Need help with that?  Get my book.  Need some motivation with a little tough love and humor thrown in for good measure?  I told you in the beginning, I wouldn't get all "preachy" on you and I won't. 

But I will leave you with this...  Bryan's story needs to be told.  This is what can happen.  This is what can be the final result.  Sue Landry first published her story in 1999.  You can find it here:  http://www.sptimes.com/News/61599/Floridian/He_wanted_you_to_know.shtml  Take the time to read and reflect and then ask yourself what you can do to just help one person stop.  Me?  I wrote a book.  What can you do?

Rest in Peace Jack Lalanne

Jack Lalanne passed away on Sunday at the age of 96 from complications due to pneumonia.  He was an icon to health, wellness and fitness.  It's only fitting to quote dear Jack Lalanne in my blog on how to stop smoking:

"The only way you can hurt the body is not to use it.
Inactivity is the killer and remember, it's never too late."

Originally, I had written, "it's only fitting to quote dear OLD Jack Lalanne..."  and then I went back an deleted the word "old."  Jack Lalanne was 96 when he passed away but he was anything but old.  "Old" in my opinion is a state of mind.  Nothing more, nothing less.


To show you what I mean, Wikipedia provided me with an excellent example of the youthful mind at work:

In 2004, LaLanne emphatically told an interviewer, "Would you give your dog a cigarette and a doughnut for breakfast every morning? People think nothing of giving themselves that for breakfast, and they wonder why they don't feel good."  If asked about sex, he had a standard joke, saying that despite their advanced age, he and his wife still made love almost every night: "Almost on Monday, almost on Tuesday, almost on Wednesday..."


When I was born, Jack was already 58.  Two years later, Jack was shackled, hand cuffed, tied to a boat and tossed in the San Francisco Bay just off the shore of Alcatraz Island.  From there, Jack swam to Fisherman's Wharf...  FOR THE SECOND TIME!  The first time was 10 years earlier.  THAT is what I call being in shape.  Clearly, Jack lived up to his most recent book title, Live Young Forever.

Growing up, I had a few Television experiences that I believe have a certain partial responsibility for my affinity with late 19th and early 20th century pop and physical culture.  One was the 1950's Superman series played in rerun and then there was Jack Lalanne.  I remember watching that show in the mornings on T.V.  The memory is not vivid, but it is present.  When I think back to some of the things that I saw in childhood that stimulated my curiosity for physical culture, Jack Lalanne always comes to mind.

So how did I wind up smoking?  The pull of the past was too strong and Jack got vetoed by Bogart, Dean and Sinatra.  Ironically, I still exercised while smoking.  I lifted weights and ate pretty healthy.  Amazing because if I didn't have exercise I honestly don't know if I would have been able to stop.  Exercise has saved me.  In recent years, exercise and physical culture has kept my head as about as straight as it's gonna get. 

So for me, it came around full circle.  Health, Fitness and Wellness won out over nicotine, tobacco and another old friend named Jack.  Old No. 7, to be exact.  February 19th will mark 4 years sober and in May I'll realize 9 years of being a smoker who doesn't smoke.  Sorry Bogie.  You're cool to the end.  The main problem there is that the end came too soon.

Jack Lalanne and Humphry Bogart are now immortal.  Both their lives can teach us something and both of their deaths can give us lessons to carry with us into our futures.  Both men strong and vibrant.  Both funny, loving and passionate.  Both figures to look up to.  One smoked two packs a day and died way too soon, the other juiced himself to 96.  Camel's or Juice?  Uh....  juice please.

God speed Jack Lalanne.  Thank you.

Grant Cardone Contest and My Book

How would like to tinker with using social media to expand your business?  Social Media can make a dramatic impact on brand awareness, lead generation and getting the word out there that you are out there.  Before the internet, word of mouth was the best form of advertising, but now with the internet, word of mouth suddenly has a global reach.  Social media and blogging has gotten me personally hits on my blogs and Hubs from all over the world.  "LIKES" on Facebook from "How to Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone" has people from all over the world.

What is your business?  Are you using social media to promote yourself and your business?  If not.  Why not?  Do you sell insurance?  Are you a bank teller?  Personal Trainer?  Therapist?  Author?  Car Salesman?  It doesn't matter what you do, it you're in the business of exchanging on thing for another, you're in sales!  Social media is a powerful way to expand your reach.  If you want to get started or at least try it, a great way to get your feet wet is through a little contest being had over here:

http://grantcardone.com/blog/c/StopDontQuitCom

For those of you you who've never heard of him, Grant Cardone, is a sales and marketing trainer and author.  He's on his 4th book and has been touring the country revolutionizing the way we do business.  From the automotive industry to real estate and to any sales oriented career, Grant has studied and practiced the art and science of selling for a very long time.  He has probably forgotten more about how to sell than most people ever actually learn.  His business exploded greater than ever when he started in with social media.  It's amazing how just a little extra effort can make huge impacts on your life and business.

It's his contest and the prizes are...  you know what, forget the prizes for a second.  Today, I signed up for twitter. http://twitter.com/StopDontQuitCom  Why have I not signed up for and started marketing me and my book, "How To Stop Smoking Without Killing Anyone" on Twitter yet?  Today I did because of a "silly" contest.  What was is it that finally got me to do that?  Was it the opportunity to win $10,000 in training materials from Grant?  Was it the opportunity to win an iPad?  Not really.  You see, I'm not "into" contests.  I'm competitive with only one person and that's me.  Sure I like to win, but I don't like to win at the expense of others so I always look for a win/win scenario.  This contest challenged me to step up my game in social media and will do the same for you.

At the very least, if you want to see a brilliant example of social media working to expand a business.  Check out this link and look around.  You will see the power of Social Media in a whole new light.

http://grantcardone.com/blog/c/StopDontQuitCom

Thanks in advance for checking it out.  Sign up just for the hell of it and see if you don't learn something.  In fact, I double dog dare you to sign up, try it and see if you don't learn something new.  When you do learn that one new thing, please let me know what it was by leaving a comment on this blog post.

Thanks again!

My Interview with Myself

  

Inspired?  Interested?  Curious?  Get your copy today!

Ted Williams The Man With the Golden Voice

Ted Williams was a homeless man with a pair of pipes that will simply blow you away! Watch this video below.

I saw this guy on the local news channel here in L.A.  I then went to Google News to read up on this rags to riches type story.  More importantly I wanted to know more about this man who has conquered many of his own demons and found some level of solitude on the side of the road.

The first thing I read was a blog post from the Washington Post:  http://voices.washingtonpost.com/blog-post/2011/01/golden-voiced_homeless_man_hea.html

In it, Melissa Bell reminds us of an little experiment done a few years back where world renowned Joshua Bell went into a subway with his multimillion dollar violin and proceed to play classical music for the people going about their daily lives.  Guess what?  Hardly anybody took notice of who was playing or the perfectly beautiful sounds coming from the subway tunnel.  What does this tell you about the toll taken by the hustle and bustle of daily American life?

This calls for a Ferris Beuller Quote:  "Life moves pretty fast.  If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it!"

And so it goes for Ted Williams, a man on the side of the road with a pair of pipes destined for announcing.  Two + years of sobriety and his "will work for food" sign had golden tonsils too.

Follow his story and see if you aren't as amazed as I have been.  This story for me is also so inspiring and humbling.

Part One from Early Show on CBS:  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/01/05/earlyshow/main7215450.shtml

Part Two from The Early Show on CBS:  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/01/06/earlyshow/leisure/celebspot/main7218743.shtml

This is a testament to faith, willpower and positive thinking.  But the back story is what I'm interested in.  There's no need to delve into the deep dark recesses of Ted Williams' life and addictions and how he got to that "lowly" place.  What's most important was that through the grace of God he found strength, salvation and was able to rise from his own ashes. Pardon the pun.

Ted Williams is a Phoenix.  Fly Ted Williams, Fly!  God's Speed Brother!  May the wind always be at your back.  Thank you for taking the journey you have taken.  You will touch many and encourage millions.