"Good content isn't about good storytelling. It's about telling a true story well."

- Ann Handley

Most people want to look good.

They want to appear their best. They want other people to be impressed.

Most people like the advice "don't judge a book by its cover" - not because they know they should not judge but because they don't want others to judge them without digging deeper.

"When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful."

- Dr. Eric Thomas

Most people have enough intelligence to succeed.

If you put opportunities directly in front of them, they can, for the most part, figure them out.

But most people are missing one ingredient that is essential to move forward and solve nearly any problem.

"Great things are done when men and mountains meet."

‒ William Blake

In the last twenty years of my life, there is no greater lesson learned than this: how to reinvent myself.

It has been a struggle, but a rewarding one. I have actually discovered principles that work ‒ for me and others. I have learned that there are only three different ways that we can reinvent ourselves. And each type of reinvention requires different strategies. If you use the wrong strategy, then you will never change.

"Games are won by players who focus on the playing field ‒ not by those whose eyes are glued to the scoreboard."

- Warren Buffett

Most people want to win. And they keep score - not just in sports, but in everything.

They want more money, more time, more "things".

“Those who do not move, do not notice their chains.”

— Rosa Luxemburg

Statistic: 86% of all people have frustration associated with their jobs.

I am not even sure where that statistic comes from — or if it is even accurate.

And I am normally one who doubts most statistics.

But I will say this: I can relate to that statistic. I felt massive frustration in a prior job.

And I did not really know how to handle the frustration. So it grew — and grew — until I broke.

“Sincerity is not a test of truth. It is possible to be completely sincere and completely wrong.”

— Jim Rohn

Most people think they can determine the difference between truth and lies.

But every day, it seems to get more and more difficult.

What is true? What is not true?

Is there a grey area at all? Can something be both false and true?

I just re-watched a movie that I helped to produce, and some of the scenes reminded me of the great and persistent struggle between lies and the truth.

"There are two types of people: those who do the work, and those who take the credit. You should try to be in the first group. There is much less competition."

Most people dream of scoring the winning point at the last second. Or throwing the touchdown. Or playing the lead in the play. Or giving the rousing speech. Or standing on top of the podium in triumph. Or being the entrepreneur making the amazing pitch. We want the big victory while we are leading the pack.

Most of us want to be those people.

"Ask, and you shall receive. Knock, and the door will be opened."

Most people hate to ask for what they want. For some reason, it can be difficult. Or tedious. Or inconvenient. Or they think that somehow life will just hand it to them.

But the truth is that we nearly always have to ask for whatever we want. No one just gives it to us.

And even if we muster the courage to actually ask for what we want, sometimes we only ask for what we need at the moment or what we think is appropriate. It is a rare person who asks for what they really want.

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."

- George Bernard Shaw

Most people hit speed bumps and slow down. Some people even stop.

Some people keep going as long as they can. Then roadblocks appear, and they turn around and end the journey.

But a few people use speed bumps to launch up and forward. And they blast through roadblocks as if they were speed bumps.

“Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.”— Malcolm Forbes

Most people are busy. And even people who are not busy fill their time with just enough stuff to feel busy.

And most people are moving fast enough that they never stop and think about the things that truly are holding them back.

Most people are unknowingly pulled by subtle currents that gently tug and direct nearly all of their movements.

“There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.”

— Bruce Lee

Most people know that success is hard. It takes work. There are challenges that will need to be overcome.

But there is another side of achievement. Success has benefits, but also consequences. Most people never see the dangers that come with success — sometimes until it is too late.

"Of all possessions a friend is the most precious."

- Herodotus

Most people have friends.

But not all friends are the same.

Some friends are what I call "proximity friends." These are people that you become friends with because you are in the same area for a period of time. Since you spend time in the same space, you might naturally become friends with these people.

"How do you stay ahead of ever-rising customer expectations? There's no single way to do it - it's a combination of many things. But high standards (widely deployed and at all levels of detail) are certainly a big part of it."

- Jeff Bezos, from the 2018 Letter to Amazon.com Shareholders

Most people feel like they try as hard as they can. They feel like they give the most effort that is possible.

Most people put their best effort into a project and then think that is the best they can do.

But the truth is that in nearly all cases, we can do better.

"The two most important requirements for major success are: first, being in the right place at the right time, and second, doing something about it."

- Ray Kroc

Most people are not where they should be. They usually arrive where they are by drifting and going with the flow. They take the path of least resistance. And that path of least resistance seems easy and pain free.

“Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great. Weak men wait for opportunities; great men make them.”

— Orison Swett Marden

Most people have a serious problem. And they don’t even know about it. It is hidden. It is subtle. It is silently part of every decision that they make and every single word that comes out of their mouths.

"A failure is a man who has blundered but is not able to cash in on the experience."

- Elbert Hubbard

Most people have no idea how important it is to learn from the experiences of others.

There is a sort of pride that comes from thinking that we can solve all of our own problems and difficulties.

And there comes a point in time when it is not only wise, but necessary, to learn from the experiences of others.

As I meet more and more people - and represent those people in legal and other matters - I have learned a few lessons that I absolutely must share.

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."

- Leo Tolstoy

There is one thing that holds most of us back in life.

This one thing, if not identified, can block our greatest successes and directly cause our greatest failures.

Most people never build up the courage to confront it. And others do not even know that it is halting their progress.

For many people, the great story of their lives is how they confronted it and conquered it.

Fortunately, there is a principle that you and I can follow to avoid its trappings.

"Most people never find God because they don't look low enough."

- Carl Jung

Most people think that success comes from doing big things, all of the time.

If you do one big thing, then you have made it. If you just had one big victory, then that would eliminate the need to win ever again in life. If you just had one big achievement, then you would never have to worry about doing anything well ever again.

But that is not true.

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."

 - Oscar Wilde

Most people recognize winners when they see them on the podium. Or with the gold medal around their neck. Or when the the news notices. Or newspapers. Or Twitter.

It is not hard to recognize winners after the victory. Everyone knows who they are.

And most people love to congratulate the winners. The victors. The champions.

But there is something that is difficult that most people will never do. It is not that it is impossible. It is just that so few people even know how to do this.

"There are no ordinary moments."

- Dan Millman

Most people want their life to count for something. When we pass away, we hope that our lives meant something, to someone. We hope that our existence mattered.

But most people have no idea how to make life count. They have no idea how to give meaning and purpose to what they do.

It's a constant struggle. How do I have purpose in my life but still enjoy it?