After You're Gone

We hope you don’t go too soon, but if you do, here is some good advice.

Seth Godin said that in his newest book – What to Do when it’s Your Turn.

Be missed.

Leave a hole that looms large and speaks of your absence.

You are here for a short time – 70, 80, 90 years.  Do something with that short window of opportunity.

Write

Sing

Publish

Invent

Start

Create

Make music

Do good work

Make a difference

That is all.

Have a good great rest of your life.

P Michael Biggs

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Christmas Thoughts for 2014

To add to the richness of this season, here are some short thoughts on Christmas and it's meaning. 

Click on each link and discover something insightful and meaningful.  Thank you. 

The Curious Ones of Christmas

A Man for All Mankind

Christmas Peace

Your Best

What Can I Give

Where the Road Leads

A Bit of Hope at Christmas



Enough Light

Got Peace

Need a Gift Idea

What Child Indeed

Your Best

Have a Blessed and Best Christmas, my Friends.

Michael Biggs
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A Word about Success

If I have a large bank account am I a success?

If I know ten famous people, am I a success?

If I live in Hawaii, does that classify my life as a success?

Jim Rohn, famous motivational speaker and philosopher, once said this:

“Success is not so much

what we have

as what we are.”

The qualities of respect, honor, accountability, integrity, and trust never go out of style. 

Got it?

Good.  Now make it so.

P Michael Biggs

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Behold the Pencil

What lesson can we possibly learn from a pencil? 

Just this”

A pencil has to go through the painful process of sharpening from time to time.  You see, the sharpening brings back the point.

If you’ve lost your point, what’s the point of going on?  Go back to the sharpener. 

Get a new focus, a new edge, and yes, a new point of view.

Okay, you can go back to your normal life now.

P Michael Biggs

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Are You Learning

Hi Faithful Readers:
P Michael Biggs here.  I've had a serious change in schedule in my life recently and that is cutting into my writing time.  For now, I'll be letting this post rest.  There is a history here of almost three years of past blogs that make for some insightful reading and I encourage you to partake as you wish.   

I would also direct you to two of my other blog sights that you may enjoy.
  

UP-Words Morning Notes

It's All about People

Also, I've published an eBook on Kindle taken from past The "Almost a Minute" Blog posts.  It is called "60 Ideas in 60 Minutes" and sells for only $.99.  Get yours today if you wish. 

And now ... the blog.  

ARE YOU LEARNING.



Education continues after the diploma whether we like it or not.  And there are tests along the way to determine how good of a student we continue to be.

Do trials plague you?  Good.  What are you learning from them?

Has life taken a few twists you didn’t expect?  Good.  Learn something from those twists and turns and enjoy the scenery along the way.

Some of us face divorce, bankruptcy, job loss, home eviction, arrest and imprisonment, disappointing kids and a whole passel of other life issues.

So what do we learn from each setback?

Ah, that is what you have to figure out for yourself.

Happy learning!

P Michael Biggs

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So What

The odds are against us most of the time.  So what?

Every new invention has never been seen before.  And there are hundreds and thousands of nay-sayers standing on the sidelines telling us it can’t be done. 

So what?

What if you did pull it off?

I saw a copy of a letter that Henry Mancini received in 1957.  Mr. Mancini was considered a musical genius, phenomenal arranger/orchestrator and dominated the musical scene in the 60-80’s.  The letter was a rejection letter prohibiting his acceptance into the ASCAP organization – American Society Composers Arrangers Producers. 

He had a “so what” mindset and went on to conquer the musical world and make a name for himself.

Go and do likewise.

P Michael Biggs

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Simple Delights

Carolyn and I love to go on excursions.  We have discovered some superb eating places, charming small seaside communities and memorable shared experiences on these outings. 

And the beautiful thing is this, we look for the delightful.  We can’t always plan for it, but we manage to find it. 

Plans are well and good, and I believe in planning, however, we make room for those unexpected delights that come along.  Some of our favorite days are days in which we set out with no agenda and our objective is simply to go exploring.  We look for the unexpected, the delightful and the new opportunities.  We dare to engage in conversations with strangers and allow the delight and surprise of the moment to engulf us.

Be surprised. 

Find delight in the unusual and the unplanned.

Life is not a script.  It is an adventure.

P Michael Biggs

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The Story You Tell

When you tell of your goals, what is your story?

When you tell of your successes, what is your story?

An interesting observation – people want to place their faith in you, in your goals and in your successes.  If you tell a good enough story, you will have followers and believers in your story.

Sometimes, we want to believe so badly that we will even believe a lie.  And that is soon revealed, and then what?

Tell your story well.

Make it believable.

People will stand in line to listen and follow if it is good enough.

P Michael Biggs

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Never Carry This

Some of the best advice I've heard in a while is this phrase from Denis Waitley.

He says this …

“Never carry a failure into the present tense.”

Here is the thing.  Perhaps you failed at something.  You ARE NOT a failure.

See the logic here?

What you may have failed to do is far different from who you are as a person.  Grasp that concept and you are well on your way to health and accurate thought.

I've dropped a few drumsticks in the past.  I am still a pretty good drummer.  Just ask my wife.

I've sung a few flat notes.  I can still sell a song from the heart.

I've had a few typos in my blogs.  I am a successful writer.

“Never carry a failure into the present tense.”

P Michael Biggs

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Be Kind or Be Right

The title alone gives away the answer.

Of course we would rather be kind. 

If you find it necessary to correct a fault, always be kind.

Need we say more?

That is all.

P Michael Biggs

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Gatekeeper

You are the gatekeeper.  No one can get by you without your permission.

No thought can enter your mind and take up residence without you opening the gate

Are you a good gatekeeper?

Just because it is on your plate doesn’t mean you have to eat it.

Just because it is on your TV doesn’t mean you have to buy into it

Just because some powerful person proclaims it doesn’t mean it is true.

Be a good gatekeeper.

Think for yourself.

P Michael Biggs

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Ultimately Good to Great

I started out slow as a writer.  It almost never happened.  But with tenacity and diligence the skill has come into its own.  Along the way I’ve written a few weak blogs, some lousy paragraphs and have misspelled a few words.

But that is part of the deal.  I continue to pay a price for whatever measure of success will eventually come.

And you too.

Seth Godin says this:  “People who are good in the long run fail a lot, especially at the beginning.”

Has your work and best effort been rejected?  That is only an opportunity to do better work.  Figure out what went wrong and fix it next time.

Ultimately you’ll go from good to great.

As Seth says, “The long run is a lot longer than the start.”

P Michael Biggs

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Hope Smiles

Hope smiles …

In the kind word of a spouse

In a bottle of the right meds

In an email from a long-time friend

Hope smiles …

In the ray of sunshine

In the words of a great book

In a firm handshake

Hope smiles …

In a smartly dressed applicant

In a gesture of grace from a policeman

In a doctor’s reassuring words

Does hope smile through you?

  

P Michael Biggs

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Investing in Others

This post is all about others.

It involves belief before someone proves him/herself.

It means spending time to develop and nurture another.

It means teaching them the secrets of the kingdom and you relinquish control.

It means placing value on one who has thus far proved valueless.

It means perhaps growing a person to be greater than you.

Do you dare invest in others?

P Michael Biggs

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Positive Emotional Support

Just how important is positive emotional support or a word that says “I believe in you”?

Consider this.

During WWII, a tactic used by the North Korean army was to deprive American soldiers of emotional support.  They accomplished this by sowing a spirit of “it’s not my job” among the soldiers in their care.  One they broke through in this way, they could get the American boys to turn on one another and abandon any spirit of comradery that formerly existed among them.  Once 40 men watched as 3 of their prison mates were thrown out of their mud hut and left to die in the elements.  They said, “It’s not my job.”

Another tactic was to withhold a supportive letter from home while delivering overdue bills from collection agencies and letters of sad news, family break-up and illness.

This had a devastating effect.  The prisoners had nothing for which to live. 

There is great value in a well-placed word of hope, an affirming hand on one’s shoulder and an encouraging word of “you’re going to make it; I believe in you, we’ll get through this together”.

“Positive” is the key word here.

P Michael Biggs

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Grow to Become

What are you growing up to be?  Interesting question.  Here’s my story.

~Born in a small town in Tennessee - population 6,500

~We paid one cent for twelve minutes parking in town.

~A few times each year we made an occasional trip to Nashville.

Did everybody pay a nickel for an hour’s worth of parking?  Did the rest of the world speak with a slow southern drawl and have funny expressions?

Time passed.  I grew. 

I learned more skills, met more people, saw more sights and expanded my thinking.  Learning happened.  In time we grew to become more …

Here is what J.K. Rowling says about this.

“It matters not what someone 

is born, but what they grow to be.”

~J.K. Rowling from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

What are you growing to be?

(For the record – I am very proud of my hometown and my roots.  That was a launching pad for everything that followed.) 

P Michael Biggs

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Attitude

Attitude is always a player on your team.  It goes beyond positive attitude verses negative attitude. 

Attitude gets into …

  Trust of self and others

    Belief in the job at hand

      Willingness to do what it takes

        Willingness to cooperate or not

Attitude is HUGE!

P Michael Biggs

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What Do You Do about That

Oprah was raped at age nine.  Look what she did about that.  She’s a multi-millionaire and a household name.

Bill Gates didn't complete his university education.  He’s one of the richest men in America.

Tony Blair, former PM of Great Britain, once said his teachers used to call him a failure.

Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison.  He became a respected world change agent and leader.

All have a tragic incident to tell.  All rose above those incidents and made something of themselves.

What do you do about your story?

P Michael Biggs

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Books

Books affect people.

They transport you to faraway places.

 They introduce you to interesting people.

  They take you on adventures.

They take you to the brink of death and back. 

 They teach you things.

  They make your heart beat faster.

They put you to sleep.

 They add to your life.

  They change you.

They enlighten you.

 They make you think.

  They open your imagination.

Books are good for you.

P Michael Biggs

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Happy

We are all in pursuit of happy.  Where exactly is it found?  Disneyland claims the phrase as “The Happiest Place on Earth”. 

So are we only happy when at Disney? 

I don’t think so.  Note this.

“Real happiness comes from inside.

Nobody can give it to you.”

~Sharon Stone

We all know how the rat race works.  We say and think …

When I get that dream job, then I’ll be happy.

When I move into that dream house, then I’ll be happy.

When I have three million in my retirement account, then I’ll be happy.

And do we ever reach “happy” when these things come our way?

Usually not.  For we move the bar up a notch and aim for our next happy possession.

I really do believe “happy” is an inside job.  I like living in the moment, making special moments, enjoying the sunset, or the strawberry shortcake, or holding CB’s hand. 

I am happy when experiencing life’s precious moments. 

P Michael Biggs

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Your Verse Is?

Short on time, large topic so listen up.

Walt Whitman put this idea in a poem, and I quote:

Answer:  that you are here

that life exists and identity,

that the powerful play goes on

and you may contribute a verse 

That begs the question:  What will your verse be?

What indeed!

Will you sing?

Or write

Or build

Or make babies who grow up to shake our world

What is your ultimate contribution?

Make it with all that is in you.

Make it as only you can make it.

Just make your contribution and perhaps the world will be better.

P Michael Biggs

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2 = 11

I love this metaphorical idea.

  

It is the old “strength in numbers” idea.  United we stand … divided we fall.  Good advice for a nation, a church, a community, a family, a company.

And this one:

“One man standing 

is always alone, 

but two are 

equal to eleven.”

Loan me your strength, and you use mine and we create a mob of strong individuals who become a force with which to be reckoned.

Something to consider.

P Michael Biggs

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Fear

Got fear?  Who doesn’t have a dose of fear in some area of life?

Want to conquer fear?  Now that is the big question.  Buckle up.  I’ve got some insight.

Do it!  Do the thing you fear. 

A quote:

“Find out what you’re 

afraid of and go live there.”

~Chuck Palahniuk

That is all!

P Michael Biggs

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Go Ahead - Make Some Mistakes

Go ahead.  I dare you to make some mistakes.  And if you do, then you are stretching, growing, learning.  You are moving out of your comfort zone and skating on the edge of your abilities or knowledge.

And look what did or did not happen. 

You probably didn’t get fired.

You didn’t divorce.

You didn’t get sick.

You didn’t get zapped by aliens.

You learned something in the process.

You simply tried and missed at something. 

Now – what did you learn? 

How far off the mark were you?

Can you adapt and adjust and try again tomorrow or next week?

Good for you.

You tried and failed.

Now, try again.

P Michael Biggs

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They Still Work

After all these years they still work.  They are not broke.  They are not out of style.  They don’t need new batteries, and they haven’t tarnished and need refinishing.

What are we talking about here?

Two simple verbal expressions – Please and Thank You.

I hope you keep these well oiled and use them often in your day.

Please and Thank You swing open large doors that once were tightly locked.

Thank you for reading.

P Michael Biggs

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Bounce or Break

If we don’t figure out how to bounce after every miss-step we break apart.  A bounce is nothing but resilience.  It is tenacity to try and try again.  Life is one big long race toward the finish line.  Along the way there will be pot holes, pit falls, barriers, cliffs, crevices and confusion. 

If we crack up at the first sign of an obstacle, that is a major breakdown.  Rather, may we have the guts to bounce back, overcome, tunnel through or whatever other metaphor you chose to use. 

Bounce or break?

I choose bounce. 

P Michael Biggs

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Rejection Is a Gift

Seth Godin gets credit for this idea today.  I’ll use my words however.

I hate rejection, for it speaks of lack, of falling short in some measure.  Those are the negatives of rejection.

But consider the positive side of rejection.  If we fail in the beginning we learn a lot, but that is a part of the process.  We pay a price so that we can be good in the long run. 

Rejection is a gift and a chance to do better next time.  As Seth puts it, “it is an opportunity to figure out how to bounce, not break.”

P Michael Biggs

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Duet

A duet is a musical composition for two performers.  They can be singers, pianists, or any other combination of two instruments.

Marriages should be role models of duets.  If so, you work together, you harmonize and you allow each other a moment to shine individually and them come back together and do the duet thing as the score indicates. 

Business partners operate as duet, hopefully.  The success of their business enterprise demands that very fact. 

Just saying.

P Michael Biggs

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Harmony

Harmony is a pleasing effect in musical terms.  It occurs when two or more notes are in perfect relationship to one another.  Harmony is good.  Disharmony is not.

For instances the notes – C E G create a perfect triad for a C major chord.  We could even and a Bb and make this a seventh chord, which also adds a bit of new color and beauty. 

Flat the E – which becomes C Eb G Bb and you create a minor seventh, which yet again adds a nice color. 

Harmony in life is two or more individuals in sync and agreeing on a certain direction.  If one takes a contrary opinion, then disharmony sets in.  And if you add ten other voices and they are evenly split and take differing sides, then you have cacophony.  That is disharmony at its worst and it hurts my ears.

I love harmony.

P Michael Biggs

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Postlude

In music, a “postlude” is the final prt of a piece of music.  Often in a church service one will hear a postlude, often performed on an organ. 

A concluding passage in a speech can often be referred to as a “postlude” as well.

I’ve had to sit through a few postludes in boring sermons, and I’m not talking about just one postlude.  Once, there was this preacher and I tell you he did about six postludes.  He was what you might call “wound tight” and had a lot to say.

Most postludes, however, are mostly pleasant to endure.

P Michael Biggs

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