Have you ever noticed the unparalleled beauty of the sky?
 
Consider the splendor of the ocean as it embraces the earth while creating the horizon so near, and yet so far away;
 
Think about the beauty of the rolling hills that seem to go on peacefully forever, but stop somewhere along the bottom of the sky;
 
Ponder the majestic walls of the towering mountains as they connect the heights of the heavens to the depths of the earth…
 
Each one of these magnificent “scapes” -- seascapes, landscapes, and natural skyscrapers -- has a profound beauty in and of itself.
 
However, the grandest beauty is found where the earth meets the sky, where the sky meets the sea, and where the thunderous seas meet the defining shores of transient rock, soft sand, and every changing person.
 
It is at these junctures where an absolute transition occurs.
 
Moreover, it is at these junctures where one form of nature complements the other while simultaneously conquering the same.
 
Likewise…
 
YOUR grandest beauty is when you are in the midst of transition.
 
And know this:
 
You are always in the midst of transition! 
 
The correlated question is…
 
“What are your two states of transition?”
 
Indeed… from what condition are you transitioning?
 
And, more importantly…
 
To what condition are you currently headed?
 
Where, exactly, are you going… and how do you intend to get there?
 
Surging past the first 60 days of 2016, what’s next for you, your job/career, and all the things you hold dear?
 
During our years of formal instruction, we had the all-important GPA to track our academic status as we journeyed from youthful student to adult contributor.
 
And though our grade point average seemed to be a decent review of how well we had retained and regurgitated all that was presented to us within the halls of education, our real results-oriented tests are reflected in our lifelong response to adversity, animosity, and abject failure.
 
Indeed, the real test is in the next defined GPA...
 
It is not in our respective grade point averages.
 
No… the GPA of which I speak is in the map that includes your Goals, Plans, and Actions.
 
Regardless of where you started…
 
Irrespective of your past challenges…
 
Notwithstanding the dislike that some people might have specifically for you…
 
And never mind the number of times you have failed at getting up, moving up, or simply moving on…
 
The most important thing you can do for your self, your company, and your entire world, is to create your next set of goals.
 
However, before creating your goals, ponder on your specific dream...
 
Yes… YOUR dream.
 
As I often tell my daughters, “Things always happen twice: once in your mind, and once in real life.”
 
Dreams are actually as real as life itself.  Some dreams are good; some are bad.  Some dreams are meandering; and yet, others are amazingly purposeful… as in full of purpose.
 
The dreams of which I am referring are all about purpose… YOUR purpose.
 
What is it?
 
The dreams of which I am referring are all about the ALIGNMENT and FULL INTEGRATION of every aspect of you… mind, body and soul.
 
A dream is what I call a tangible intangible.
 
A dream is a noun (a person, place or thing).  Thus, it IS real; it does exist, despite our inability to see it with our physical eyes.
 
Things always happen twice: once in your mind, and once in real life.
 
Thus, a dream is a thought, which is an act, merely waiting for transACTIONs to occur between mind, body, and soul.
 
It is this transACTION that I offer you in the simple roadmap of the dream’s GPA.
 
Goals. Plans. Actions: this is your roadmap.
 
Goals, Plans, and Actions: these are the steps on your purposeful journey.
 
This simple blueprint for success starts with your dream… your thought… your tangible creation that is trying to escape the mental confines of the glorious state of mind that is within you.
 
Today I ask you to help your dreams escape by clarifying the one and only you.
 
Your sole goal for the next 40 days is to clarify. 
 
Let me help by defining this most important concept of “clarification”:
 
1:  to make clear or pure, usually by freeing from suspended matter;
2:  to free of confusion;
3:  to make understandable.
 
Clarify, my friend.
 
Clarify your mind, your body, and your conversation (not just your words, but also every single exchange you subsequently have with this incredibly interconnected world).
 
Clear up the confusion between and among your divided self.
 
As you progress and free yourself from confusion and suspended matter (that is the “stuff” that is around you, but not an actual part of you, until you make it so), you will be gifted with a greater gauge of understanding; you will see more… simply because you will be more…
 
You will be “more clear,” more aligned, and so much more purposeful.
 
Indeed, by the end of the next 40 days, you will begin to do things on purpose.
 
Then, my friend, you will be ready to initiate that all-important transACTION from dream… to goal… to plan… to specific actions to make your dreams come true.
 
Remember…
 
Your grandest beauty is when you are in the midst of transition.
 
And you are always in the midst of transition.
 
The question is, “What are your two states of transition?”
 
From what condition are you transitioning?
 
And, most importantly…
 
To what condition are you currently leading your self?
 
You are the most important leader in your life.
 
Where are you going?
 
What do YOU want to achieve?
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve! ®
 
~ John

As I stepped out onto the circular track, ready to begin my morning ritual just before sunrise, the smell of the morning dew greeted my awaiting senses. The grass surrounding the track was freshly cut, and I was motivated to get my day started.
And then I felt it.
 
That small… tiny… miniscule pebble somewhere just south of the arch in my right foot "spoke up."
 
At first, all I "heard" was the soft whisper of the pebble’s voice as I strode along the graveled path. I was not bothered, per se, by the tiny little whisper. After all, I was wearing a nice pair of sweat socks and a great pair of running shoes.
 
Nonetheless, I “heard” the little whisper from that tiny pebble.
 
“Never mind me,” the tiny pebble seemed to say.
 
“I won’t hurt you. I won’t cause any damage. Focus on your meditative walk. You can do it. Don’t listen to me.”
 
I listened to that little pebble for the next 1,722 paces… until I finally pulled over, removed my right shoe, held it vertically (toe-side-up), and watched the tiny morsel of a rock settle into the heel of the shoe.
 
And then,

                 ...I let it go.
 
Right there along the path of the track, I let that little whisperer of an allegory drop to the earth.
 
Me?
 
I stood there, between heaven and earth, attached to the earth by unseen forces, but closer to heaven by virtue of height and faith.
 
And then, I replaced my shoe on my right foot, inhaled deeply, and began my newly inspired journey in earnest. Back on the right track and no longer listening to the soft-yet-steady words of that pestering pebble, I only heard my own inner thoughts and the teachings of heaven. Wow! What a difference it made! I could actually align my thoughts without the occasional aside from the whispering pebble.
 
The nerve of that little pebble! “I won’t hurt you. I won’t cause any damage," it said.
 
But oh!  Its little conversation with me WAS the damage.
 
Now... ideally, I should have never given that little pebble the opportunity to garner my thoughts. Ideally, I should have dispensed with that little bugger and his persistent whisperings as soon as it spoke up... as soon as I had begun to listen.
 
Ideally, we should all prepare the best possible foundation for our journey in life.

But life is beautifully meandering, and as much as we prepare for the perfectly planned path, the road gets a tad bit rocky every now and then. Interestingly, we often view the rockiness as an outside influence. In reality, you and I know that we often allow things to pester, fester, and make us the court jester in our very own kingdom.
 
The name of my most recent book, The Ideal, implies the lofty goal of achieving an “almost perfect” life. However, perfection does not exist. Moreover, the quest for The Ideal life is a continuous quest; it is not something we someday complete and subsequently cease all effort toward… it is a life-long dream.
 
In fact, The Ideal life is an existence, a lived life, and an alignment of your resources toward an acceptance and eventual understanding that the path of life is not smooth. It is meandering, unstable, and sometimes jagged, ragged, if not outright tattered and torn with discontent, disdain, and downright damning downpours of one disappointment after another.
 
Yet, the time we share does not stop. The clock of our lives keeps on ticking.
 
What, then, are we to do?
 
Rejuvenate. And we must do this often.
 
Mealtime, while feeding the body, is the perfect time to rejuvenate the mind and soul.  
 
Why not invest a mere 180 seconds and feed all three at the same time?
 
Start your breakfast, lunch or dinner thinking about how blessed you are to have what you already have, starting with your five senses… as well as the great sense of timing you now have.
 
Want to try something even MORE special?
 
Send yourself an email with the subject line “Two Little Pebbles.”
 
In the email to your self, simply write two straightforward sentences:
 
1. Beginning today, I will stop _______________________________________ .
 
2. Beginning today, I will start ______________________________________ .
 
Fill in the blanks, hit SEND, remove those little pebbles that whisper persistently in your inner ear, and get started on living The Ideal life!
 
In work and play… in life, love, and life-long search for happiness, we all employ a day-to-day philosophy.
 
Make no mistake: We ALL have our own philosophy.
 
What's your personal philosophy?
 
My philosophy is simple:
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve! ®
 
~ Aloha,
 
John

Problems?
 
Pause.
 
Pray.
 
Peace.
 
Proactively pray…
 
Promote peace.
 
Prevent problems.
 
Practice praying!
 
Praying will not prevent or resolve all of your problems.
 
But if you proactively and persistently pause to practice praying,
a more purposeful, powerful, and peaceful existence is practically yours.
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve! ®
 
~ Aloha ~
 
.