A Note From The President

Avil Beckford, President

Sometimes I buy books based on their titles. A few years ago, I purchased Og Mandino's "The Greatest Secret In The World" because I wanted to know what the secret was. In chapter 10, Mandino discloses that, "The greatest secret in the world is that you only have to be a small measurable amount better than mediocrity… and you've got it made." Does this mean that most people produce mediocre work, so if we operate at a level just above mediocre we are sitting pretty? If that's the case, how do we define mediocre? Also, should we function below our potential?

So now you know what the greatest secret in the world is, do you know what the strangest secret is? According to Earl Nightingale, "The Strangest Secret In The World is that we become what we think about." This means that we must control our thinking because the same rule that can lead to success, wealth and happiness can also lead to failure - into the gutter. We must control our minds. Nightingale also says that we are the sum total of our thoughts. We are where we are because that's exactly where we really want to be. We are in the driver's seat. You are learning about all these secrets, so, what do you need to know about the greatest salesman in the world? In Og Mandino's "The Greatest Salesman In The World," I extracted the following ideas because I thought they are things for us to think about:

• Master the art of living not for yourself alone, but for other
• No other trade or profession has more opportunity for one to rise from poverty to great wealth than that of a salesman. Anyone could sell all goods if he/she learned and applied the principles and laws of selling
• Wealth should never be your goal in life. True wealth is of the heart, not of the purse. Do not aspire for wealth, and labour not only to be rich. Strive instead for happiness, to be loved and to love, and most important, to acquire peace of mind and serenity
• Until the fig tree is ripe it cannot be called a fig and until you have been exposed to knowledge and experience you cannot be called a salesman [expert]
• Never feel shame for trying and failing, for he who has never failed has never tried. Failure will never undertake you if your determination to succeed is strong enough

Book Review

Review of Awaken The Genius: Mind Technology for the 21st Century by Patrick K. Porter

Patrick Porter defines awakened geniuses as "those who have learned to tap that superconscious reservoir of information so as never to waste time or energy in recreating the wheel. They simply make modifications and enhancements until they move forward with optimum speed and efficiency."

This book is a practical guide filled with lots of exercises. For example, there is one exercise that helps you to figure out your preferred mode of communication - visual, auditory or kinesthetic. How do you want information to be presented to you? How do you analyze information? Do you decide by how things LOOK to you (Visual)? Or, do you decide by how things SOUND to you (Auditory)? Or, do you decide by how things FEEL to you (Kinesthetic)?

Patrick Porter explains that our brain works on four frequencies: Beta, Alpha, Theta and Delta. In the Beta frequency, you are operating in a state of wide awake, which is the state of mind where you get things done. However, it's also the frequency that produces fear, frustration, anxiety and self-doubt. In the Alpha and Theta frequencies, you are in a state of peace, tranquility, happiness and contentment. This is the state where you meditate, pray, be in the quiet of nature. You get into these frequencies while listening to relaxing music. Alpha and Theta can only exist with a relaxed body and mind. In the Delta frequency, you are in an unconscious dreamland.

Porter also describes the four steps to what he calls "Optimal Learning State." The author recommends listening to baroque, melodic, classical and new age music. These types of music start the Alpha brain wave response, which opens your mind to learning. The four steps:

1. Get into a comfortable position: Sit comfortably in a straight back chair, feet flat on the ground, eyes closed and rolled slightly upwards
2. Use your imagination to create a place out in nature: This will be your personal place of relaxation. Make the experience as rich as possible. Porter suggests that your personal place of relaxation has a golden dome around it, and that in this place you can be or do anything that you want
3. Use your imagination, move through the successful fulfillment of all your goals and outcomes: Imagine what it will be like when you accomplish these positive outcomes
4. Bring yourself back: Say the words "wide awake wide awake

The four steps to "Optimal Learning State" may seem weird to you, but other information that I have read suggest that it's important for you be relaxed when you need to learn - relaxed body, alert mind. This is the author's way of getting you to that stage.

Five Great Ideas

1. To awaken your genius, you have to attain the skills of self-discovery. You must first become a guru about you. Self-discovery is to know yourself and own your successes and faults
2. You must restructure your thinking, so that what others perceive as failure, you perceive as feedback
3. Geniuses realize that now is the best starting point for a brighter and more exciting future
4. We are all moving - some people are moving forward, some are moving in the reverse, and others move wherever the advertisers tell them to go. Are you willing to realize the limitlessness of your potential?
5. We are always in the right place at the right time, and will always have what we need
   

I recommend Awaken The Genius by Patrick Porter.

July's Book List

Awaken The Genius: Mind Technology for the 21st Century by Patrick K. Porter

Survey Results

Leo Burnett Man Study

The agency, Leo Burnett Worldwide, interviewed more than 2,000 men in 13 countries to explore the evolving state of masculinity around the world and explain the opportunities and challenges for marketers. They found that:

• 74% of respondents said they believe the images of men in advertising are out of touch with reality
• There is the existence of a "New Male Spectrum," characterized on one end by enlightened, evolved, modern men-or what have been popularly dubbed "metrosexuals," and on the other end, entrenched, more traditionally masculine "retrosexuals" who cling steadfastly to stereotypical male behavior
• When respondents were asked about their ultimate male fantasy, those surveyed ranked "ending world hunger" (#1) and "being a world famous sports star" (#2) above "being married to a supermodel" (#3)
• The greatest insult to a man, according to those surveyed, is that "he'll never amount to anything" (29%), followed by "everyone laughs behind your back" (24%) and "you're stupid" (21%)
  

(Source: http://www.leoburnett.com/manstudy/PressRelease.htm)

How Did They Do That?

Neil Aitchison, Director of Marketing & Development, Drayton Entertainment

http://www.draytonentertainment.com

Challenge: I have a background in broadcasting and theatre and I got a call to do a humour speech on Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE or Mad Cow Disease) intergovernmental border issue. I had to tie my speech into that theme.

Resolution: I met with the group and I asked many questions, listened and took a lot of notes. I restructured my speech so that it would tie in with what my client wanted. I prepared as I went along.

Lessons Learned:

• Listen hard
• Learning never stops
• Everyone has their own issues and concerns that they have to deal with
• There is always another hurdle to overcome

What Can Ambeck Do For You:

Ambeck Enterprise provides diverse business research and analysis services to senior level executives, through the relevant distillation of diverse facts and data.

Formula For Success

Neil Aitchison

Success is a gradual realization of worthwhile achievable goals. You have to risk failure, work toward long-term goals. Learning never stops. Take steady steps a day at a time and make small reasonable goals.

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