I was recently asked what my greatest accomplishment of the last 10 years is. I’ve done some great things over the past 10 years. I launched a multi-million dollar business. I also had the courage to leave it. I completed and published my memoir after it being incomplete for 14 years. I bought a home. Reached financial independence. My life has had huge changes. However, one accomplishment...
I suffered for years for an unknown reason. Despite my outward success, the money I made, the things I owned, I was extremely unhappy and miserable. Then I came across the term “Imposter Syndrome” and things started to make more sense for me. I was living my life feeling like an imposter. That I had fooled the world, and didn’t deserve what I had. My case was made particularly...
I love metaphors. I’ve learned I use them more than the average person. I did it so often and so easily most of my life I didn’t even realize it. Now I see it, and lean into it. I use metaphors to describe abstract or complicated ideas or even feelings and turn them into something easily relatable. One of my favorite metaphors is thinking of myself as a gunslinger. I think of watching...
The exhaust fan in my pool cabana room had died at the end of last year. It sat broke through the winter since our pool was closed. In the spring as we re-opened it, I knew I had to do something, but wasn’t sure what. My mind remembered seeing stickers on the side of the road on the backs of traffic signs with a simple message: Broken bathroom fan? Call the Fan Whisperer. Such a simple and...
There’s an old school computer programming term called “Close to the metal”. It means you’re working with assembly level languages that the chips and hardware understand, rather than much more easier for humans to understand higher level languages. This was more important back in the day with limited hardware and memory power. You had to squeeze everything you could out of...
Many years ago when I was still DJing I was waiting to be picked up at the Arrivals section of Chicago O’Hare Airport. I was standing by the driveway where cars picked up the waiting passengers. Beside me was a teenage girl and her mother. They had a few suitcases, coming back from who knows where together. As I waited for my pickup, a car pulled up in front of the mom and daughter. A man...
There’s a box that sits on my desk that is very special. What’s inside of it is even more special and priceless. There is literally nothing like it in the world. Would you like to hear me tell a story about it?
There’s a piece of very colourful art that hangs prominently on my wall behind me. It’s visible when I’m speaking. You might have seen it already. There’s a powerful story about it and how it got there. I mentioned this to a friend. He commented that I have an amazing knack for creating curiosity in people. OF COURSE he now wanted to hear that story. So I recorded this...
I speak with people quite a bit who beat themselves up with all their “failure” stories. They think their failures mean they are not successful. The reality is failure is a necessary part of success. There is no one in the world that hasn’t failed, multiple times, at everything. The most successful people have the biggest failure stories. Myself included. We are taught to not speak of them, to...
It is so easy for me to dazzle people with the “greatest hits” version of my story. To talk about the things I’ve done, to show the pictures and video. I’ve done some cool stuff, no question. I am often “the most interesting person in the room” and for a long time it was fun to be that for people. To tell my stories. Problem was, I was only telling one slice of it. No one ever heard of the...
I was speaking to my accountant this week, for the first time in close to a year, as we discussed filing my taxes. We chatted a bit to catch up. Knowing I am not actively involved with Stealth Seminar any longer he asked what I’ve been doing. “Mostly taking the time, working on self-development, exploring new avenues, figuring out how I can help people. I’ve taken some courses on coaching.” “You...
I’ve been dealing with complicated feelings lately. It’s this idea that while people out there are struggling, unprecedented unemployment and uncertainty, that at the same time I’m in a good place, emotionally and financially. I actually feel like I’m thriving. As someone that’s gone through tough times in the past, I’ve always prepared myself for the worst. I’ve never shaken the fear that...
“You’re watching me make this up” – I can say this to a stranger now because there is nothing fake about me. It’s been liberating. I’m not faking till I make it. Not anymore. That was a strategy I used effectively for years but not now. I’m showing up as the whole Chris. That is who they are there for. There is no faking that. They’re either going to want more of that, or not want it, and if they...
As I write this we’re over 1 month into covid-19 quarantine. My kids were sent home for March Break last month and told they’d not be coming back for 2 more weeks. That’s been extended indefinitely. Everything has been turned on its ear since then. For the past couple of years I’ve been trying to work out “What’s Next?” for me, and that question now has entirely new meaning. As I wrestle with...
As I sat to write this week’s article that famous quote from Back to the Future popped into my head from out of nowhere. It’s the scene from the very end of the first movie. Doc has just returned from “the future” and now he’s taking Marty back to the future. Marty: Hey Doc, you better back up, we don’t have enough road to get up to 88. Doc Brown: Roads? Where we’re going, we...
I just did an exercise to “write down 5 things you’ve accomplished this week” and it was actually hard to come up with the list. Without intention, I realized I had cut my schedule way back in response to over-scheduling myself. When the Covid-19 lock-downs hit and things got serious I rallied to support people. I scheduled Zoom conferences, connected with new people, wrote a lot and worked on my...
The world is changing in ways we can’t even prepare for. A month ago seems like a year ago. What next month, or next year will look like is impossible to predict. I only control the things I have control over. For me, in the immediate short term, is that my family and I are safe and have the things we need. Then it’s the “What’s Next?” question. As an entrepreneur...
I recently did an interview for Rich Litvin’s podcast called 1 Insight (link below). He spent some time with me pulling my story out and what really drives me. One of my take-aways from it was this idea that I’ve always done things my own way, creating new things no one else sees. I thrive on hearing the words “It can’t be done”. While we’re in the middle of...
The doldrums is a sailor’s term for when they are at sea caught in calm, monotonous, windless weather. It’s a term that I’ve learned can also apply to times in your life, and certainly has in mine. The doldrums generally follow exciting times, times of tremendous growth and commitment to your goals. After having achieved some success, things begin to taper off. This is...
I’ve always been forced into action, usually for straight up survival reasons. If I didn’t make money, if I didn’t generate income, I’d be screwed. Often the things I did ran their course, and it was time for me to move on. There was no choice about it. For the first time in my life, I’m not in this position. I’m in a very comfortable place, yet I’m...
For so many people, whether or not they will voice this, when asked “What do you want?” the (secret) answer is: “More”. More money, more “stuff”, more house, more vacation, more whatever. The thing is, when you get “more”, the answer still remains “more”. I can remember 10 years ago figuring out my monthly budget. If I could generate...
There’s a scene in the 1993 Tom Cruise movie The Firm that I think about often. The lead character named Mitch, played by Tom Cruise, is having a meeting with an FBI agent at a dog race track. We see the Greyhound dogs whipping around the track chasing a mechanical bone. Mitch: Doesn`t the dog ever get the bone? FBI Agent: Yeah. When it happens they can never get that dog to run again. For...
Upon reflecting my story so far, and the distinct chapters I’ve lived, I begin to see a clear pattern. The things I’ve done all have had exciting periods of explosive growth. Of creation. Then things plateau, which is not terrible either. Often that’s the period of seeing some return on the sacrifice I made during the growth period. Eventually, however, the plateau turns into...
As the new year (and new decade) begins, I get very reflective. I’m coming off of what ended up being 2 years off. And by off, I mean off of traditional work. Just over 2 years ago the decision was made that I would step away from my responsibilities at Stealth Seminar, that a new team would come in to replace my work. I had reached the limits of my abilities, and it was time to change...
I’ve come to embrace the idea of living with paradoxes. Two completely competing thoughts or ideas or states of being, that both can be true even if they counter each other. The most recent example was with my son’s performance in high school. His grades leave something to be desired. I want to really push him to get those grades up, at the same time I acknowledge that the life...