My wife Michelle sent me this great video – it made me laugh and inspired me. The power of dance, joy, travel, community, and self expression all come through…check it out:

To find out more about this guy Matt, his project, his travels, and the story behind this video, check out his website at http://www.wherethehellismatt.com/?fbid=BOYzro

With Appreciation,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

Death has a way of putting life into perspective, doesn’t it? While I did not know Professor Randy Pausch personally, his life, his message, and his death (just one week ago today) touched me deeply. Randy gave his famous “last lecture” to his students at Carnegie Mellon University last September and has inspired millions through that lecture (thanks to youtube, Oprah, and people sharing his words of inspiration), as well as the bestselling book he wrote, The Last Lecture.

This week all three of my blog posts have centered around Randy and his incredible message and example. One of the most poinignet aspects of what he said and what I took away from his lecture, as well as every other experience I have ever had personally with the death of someone close to me, is that most of the stuff we focus on, worry about, and even do on a daily basis doesn’t matter that much. It is the people in our lives, the love we have, and the simple things that are the most important.

This week I am in the midst of finishing up the manuscript for my next book, BE YOURSELF, EVERYONE ELSE IS ALREADY TAKEN – which I am excited about, but also has caused a great deal of stress, worry, and anxiety for me since the deadline is fast approaching and I have been behind schedule. As much as I try to remind myself that I will get it done and that it will all turn out, it is so easy for me to give away my life to the process and to my fears about it not getting done, being bad, etc.

As important as this new book is to me, in the scheme of things and when I ask myself what really matters, I realize that Randy’s reminder is so important. Incidentally, we are also expecting the birth of our new baby girl sometime soon as well. Now, that is something that really does matter.

What really matters to you? Are you spending as much time and energy as you can on the things that really matter to you…and letting go of the stress, worry, and anxiety that you allow to flow in the direction of the many things in your life that don’t really matter? If so, let’s all together see if we can remember what Randy taught us and focus on the truly important stuff.

With Passion,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

This week’s audio tip from me is inspired by one of the many pearls of wisdom shared by our friend Randy Pausch in his inspirational “last lecture.” You’re right Randy, people are always more important than things…

Enjoy…

With Inspiration,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

As you have probably seen or heard about, Randy Pausch, professor at Carnegie Mellon University inspired millions through his “last lecture” which he delivered last September called “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.” Below is a segment of that lecture that he reprised on the Oprah show a few months later:

Randy Pausch passed away on Friday, July 25th. He will be greatly missed by his wife, three children, all of the people who knew and loved him…and by millions of us who never got to meet him, but were touched by his message, his story, his wisdom, and his courage.

He wrote a book based on this lecture that has been at the top of the bestseller list since it came out in April. Click here to purchase.

With Appreciation,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

Over the past few years, like many people around the country the throughout the world, I have become more aware of my own consumption, my use of resources, and how what I do impacts the planet. Thankfully as a world we are beginning to wake up more and more to the impact we have on the planet and the importance of each of us doing our small part to conserve the finite amount of natural resources we all have to share.

Whether it is driving hybrid cars, recycling more, buying environmentally friendly products, letting our business and political leaders know how we feel and that this is important, and more – there are lots of things we can do and that many of us have started to do based on the increased awareness of the situation with our environment.

With all of this raised awareness about the environmental impact of what we do, use, and how we live…I think we might also want to consider how we feel, the thoughts we have, and what goes on within us as well.

What kinds of “vibes” are you sending out into the universe, towards others, and in general? When we live with a lot of unexpressed emotions and negativity within us we are contributing or even “polluting” the collective consciousness with all of this. We are “emitting” a lot of toxic energy into our relationships, families, work places, environments, and to our overall society. We don’t usually think about it like this, but it is true. Twenty or thirty years ago, not too many of us thought that how much we drove, what kinds of products we chose to use, or where we put our waste made all that much difference. Now, thankfully, we know better.

This same thing is true for our thoughts and feelings. I am not advocating or even suggesting that we have to be happy all the time and that we should feel guilty for our negativity, quite the opposite in fact. I am suggesting, however, that we become increasingly aware of our internal state and begin to take responsibility for the fact that our thoughts and feelings not only impact our lives and goals, but the people’s lives around us and the overall world as a whole.

When we each do our own part and begin to wake up, deal, heal, and let go of the toxic stuff within us – we can become a catalyst for positive change and also we do our part to cleaning up the emotional and energetic environment of the planet.

With Passion,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

I recently saw this wonderful video and was moved and inspired…check it out:

As I watched this video, it reminded me that love and appreciation are the most powerful forces in the world. Our egos and life circumstances sometimes cause us to “forget” this, hold grudges, and disconnect from others…but when it comes down to it, love never dies and we are all connected to each other in infinite ways.

As the end of the video suggests – let’s all use this as a reminder to reach out to some, re-connect, forgive, or simply tell someone important to us that we love them.

With Inspiration,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com

Remember the three key elements to effectively acknowledging others - genuine, specific, and personal! And, it’s usually best to do it in person if you can - face to face, eye to eye, and heart to heart! If you have to do it by phone, card, or email - that can work too. For some specific ideas about how to acknowledge people, click play to listen below.

To download an MP3 recording of this message, right click here and select “Save Target As” to begin download.  

Check out the clip below of a TV interview I did a few months ago with the Fox station in Orlando, FL when I was down there for an event. If you enjoy this and would like to see some other recent media clips, feel free to visit www.focusonthegoodstuff.com/media.html

Would you like to be more effective at appreciating the people around you?

An important distinction we can make in our desire to appreciate the people around us more successfully is to remember the difference between recognition and acknowledgement.

Recognition is about rewarding the actions and results of others. It’s important, as most of us like to be recognized (even if we get a little uncomfortable or embarrassed about it) and many of us notice (or get upset) when we don’t get recognized, especially if we think we deserve it.

As important as recognition is, it’s also limited for a few reasons. First of all, it’s always past based. Second of all, not everyone responds to or is motivated by recognition in the same way. Third and most importantly, it’s always about results, what people have done, and what they’ve accomplished, not necessarily who they are.

Acknowledgment on the other hand, includes recognition, but can be much broader, personal, and ultimately powerful. An acknowledgement is any act of appreciation for another person. A performance award is an acknowledgement (based on results), but so is a smile (which may or may not be based on anything specific). Telling your spouse or child they did a good job cleaning up the house is also an acknowledgment (based on something they did), but telling them that you love them and how grateful you are to have them in your life can be done for any reason and at any time.

If we want to have the people around us feel appreciated, it’s important for us to focus more on who they are as human beings, what we appreciate about them personally, and not simply focus on what they accomplish or don’t. And, sometimes the most important time for us to acknowledge others is when they fail or make a mistake. While we can’t always acknowledge the outcome, we can almost always acknowledge the effort.

Utilizing the power of appreciation and becoming a master at the art of appreciating others is about us both re-actively recognizing the great things that people do and more importantly pro-actively acknowledging them for who they are, what qualities they have, and how they positively impact our lives and others simply by being who they are.

Action: What You Can Do

Think of three or more people in your life who you interact with on a regular basis. For each person, think of something specific you can acknowledge them for – not something they’ve done or accomplished, but something about who they are that you appreciate. It could be their attitude, their effort, their commitment, their friendship, their humor, their honesty, or anything else…feel free to come up with more than one thing, as I’m sure there are many.

Take some time today to let each of these people know and to acknowledge them personally, not because they did anything to “deserve” it, but simply because you feel moved let them know how they impact you in a positive way. Have fun with it and see what happens!

Interact - Share your thoughts on this article here.

-Mike

[post from Appreciation in Action newsletter]

Below is a short video that is funny and inspiring. It shows people doing the “gratitude dance” all over the world. Check it out and see if you are willing to be a part of this. More importantly, when we ask ourselves and others the powerful question, “What are you grateful for?” the answer will always inspire us, make us feel good, and remind us that we have lots to appreciate in our lives, always.

I originally ran across this video here.

Take some time today to think about, talk about, and ask others about what they are grateful for. And, if you’re willing and inspired; do the gratitude dance!

With Gratitude,

Mike
www.Mike-Robbins.com