The Road Not Taken

Started reading Rich Dad Poor Dad, by Robert T. Kiyosaki tonight. Truth is that I have started this book at least two other times. But I am committed to finishing it this time.

Not very far into the book, Kiyosaki writes about one of his favorite poems by Robert Frost that he uses in everyday life:

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step has trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads onto way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence;
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

--Robert Frost [1916]

Are You A Dreamer?

These people not only know how to dream, but they weren't afraid to act upon their dreams:

• Nathan Sawaya and The Art of the Brick


• The Laundress (make sure you click on The Places We Love - NY. Love the side scrolling)


• Terra Chips


• Tracy Stern and SALONTEA (not your mother's tea shop)


• SENDaBall - Literally


• Kaile Warren and Rent-A-Husband (click on Find A Husband Near You)


• Mindee Doney and Julie Pickens with Boogie Wipes (this is not a typo)

Finished The Big Idea tonight. The companies/individuals listed above were mentioned in this book as successful entrepreneurs. If you are dreaming about owning/running your own business, read this book. You will get the bug.

Life Of A Stone Crab Fisherman

Came across this interesting series on the Life Of A Stone Crab Fisherman in the Naples Daily News. They have printed two parts so far. Enjoy!

Part I

Part II

12:59

Take time to watch this video. What an interesting man and business. I would love to go shopping there.



Found it on Seth's blog.

What We Can Learn From U2

Excellent article at Giant Impact on how the group U2 has managed to stay together for so long. Here is an excerpt:


The bedrock of any team is the relationships between its individual members, and U2 are no exception. Certainly, the four self-assured showmen have had their artistic squabbles and personal conflicts. Yet, the mutual respect shared by the members of U2 has enabled the band to remain intact after 30 years of making music together.

Ask U2 about the band's internal dynamics, and they'll invariably point to the metaphor of marriage. In the words U2's guitarist and keyboardist, Edge "I'm so close to the other three guys in this group that sometimes it feels like a marriage."1 Drummer Larry Mullen Jr. agrees, "We don't always like each other but we respect each other, and we love each other. Marriages don't last this long."2 While U2 may have their rocky moments, at the end of the day any disagreements between them pale in light of their committed friendships.


Good stuff.

Birthdays, Ankles and Facebook

I must confess that I have a new appreciation of Facebook. A few weeks ago I hurt my ankle and ended up in the ER, which was packed. So while I was waiting, I took a picture of my ID bracelet they make you wear and posted it to FB with a caption that read "Guess where I am?". Within minutes, I received many responses and well wishes. It felt nice to receive all those notes.

And the same thing happened today, on my birthday. By 6:45 a.m. I had already received four birthday wishes and they continued to appear throughout the day. It gave me a nice feeling and put a smile on my face. Thanks to all my "friends" - the ones on and off of Facebook for your nice messages!

Health Care Alert!

An important message from the Ohio Chamber:

Members of the United States House of Representatives are expected to vote on a health care reform bill any day now. Having worked to combine three different proposals passed by different House committees, legislative leaders are hoping to pass legislation by weekend's end.

As the debate has heated up in recent months, it seems clear that while the current proposal in the U.S. House may cover more individuals, it will come at a significant cost to employers and taxpayers. Employers will be forced to pay more in taxes, pay stiff penalties for not meeting the level of coverage as required by the government and lose flexibility when it comes to offering benefits. As employers are seeing unsustainable increases in health care costs every year, this legislation would add more taxes and new penalties while doing nothing to reduce the underlying costs of health care.

There are certainly plenty of arguments for and against the proposed reform efforts, but one thing is certain; we need health care reform in this country that control costs, increase access and decrease the burden placed on employers and employees. Incentivizing quality of care and empowering consumers through the use of health care savings accounts are just two examples of common sense reforms that legislators should be considering - NOT throwing more money at a broken system.

That is why we need your help now! I STRONGLY URGE you to use one of our sample messages to contact your member of congress and ask them to VOTE NO on the Affordable Health Care for America Act that may be voted on in the next few days.Your voice will make a difference!Click the link below to log in and send your message:http://www.votervoice.net/link/target/ohcc37886205.aspx