Monday, May 26, 2014

Homen por Escolha

Masculino pelo nascimento, homem pela escolha

Deus criou os homens para se tornarem homens. Quais são as funções de um homem?

Aqui estão sete para refletir:

1. Amar sua mulher. Você já criou filhos responsáveis ​​com a mulher que você ama?
2. Preservar e desfrutar da natureza. Você já plantou sua floresta?
3. Para ajudar o seu semelhante. Você já ajudou os necessitados?
4. Amar a Deus acima de tudo. Já fez a parceria com Ele?
5. Para documentar suas licoes de vida. Você já abençoou os outros com suas impressões?
6. Para construir confiança em seus relacionamentos. Você está levando outros a terem uma vida melhor?
7. Para deixar um legado. Você está deixando os lugares que você esta passando melhor do que você encontrou?

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Man by Choice

Male by Birth, Man by Choice


God created males to become men. What are the roles of a man?

Here are 7 to ponder:

1.      To love his woman. Have you raised responsible children with the woman you love?
2.      To preserve and enjoy nature. Have you planted your forest?
3.      To help his fellow man. Have you helped those in need?
4.      To love God above all else. Have you partnered with Him?
5.      To document your lessons. Have you blessed others with your imprints?
6.      To build trust in his relationships. Are you leading others to live better lives?
7.      To leave a legacy. Are you leaving the places you go better than you found them?

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Saturday, May 24, 2014

How to Wow

How to Wow an Audience


This advice given to a college freshman student on how to give a winning 5 minute presentation

1.      Be yourself. Use your gifts (smile and spontaneity). Be bright, be brief, and be gone. Focus on the moment, on the subject matter at hand.

2.      Practice. Practice, practice, and practice the delivery. Communicate the key messages via simple phrases. “Applied knowledge produces wisdom.”

3.      Educate. Educate audience on the subject. Tell the audience the key message with a few different phrases. Remember that communication is mostly nonverbal. Connect with them.

4.      Illustrate. Use a brief story to drive the message home. Show them by using words that create impactful images.

5.      Entertain. Make it fun. Poke fun on yourself so they can remember the message.

6.      Inspire. Use your passion, enthusiasm, and imagination to connect with them. Get them thinking. Make it memorable.

7.      Outcome. Generate action from your presentation. The whole purpose of the presentation is to generate action to produce results.

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Friday, May 23, 2014

Great by Design

Zest of Greatness

Are you living a life with a zest of greatness? The spark is in you. Go ahead and ignite it!

1.      Listen to those with the results in life you want. If you don’t like the results you are getting in life it is time to stop listening to yourself and start talking to yourself.

2.      Stay humble doing what you love to do. Eventually you will master your craft.

3.      Find your calling and fulfill it. Keep asking the question, what have I been called to do?

4.      Dreaming big is a skill like any other. Think bigger of yourself if you want to have bigger dreams.

5.      Put energy, passion, and enthusiasm into whatever you do. Whatever you decide to do in life, do it with zest.

6.      Tragedy normally means a wakeup call for us to change our ways. Never waste a tragedy. Use your tragedies to find your greatness.

7.      Have then give grace. Can action eventually lead you to grace? What do you think?

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Authority and obedience

Authority and obedience

1.      People who encourage and enable others exercise compassionate authority.

2.      Compassionate authority comes from spiritual authority.

3.      We give authority to those who are willing and able to walk with us.

4.      The leader exercising true spiritual authority is located on top of an upside down pyramid. Imagine authority without obedience.

5.      Authority and obedience must go together (Vince Lombardi was a great example).

6.      Those with authority and no obedience are outright dangerous; the same is true for the person with obedience and no authority.

7.      We can all develop enough faith to overcome our fears.

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Monday, May 19, 2014

Warrior or Worrier

Warrior or Worrier

Today's nuggets are brought to you from Brazil, the land of fun, friendliness, soccer, music, food, nature, beauty, youth, and as of late, a strong economy. 

1.      Grudges destroy the heart. Forgiveness enlarges the future of a warrior.

2.      Warriors can’t stand losing. Never underestimate the power of associating with warriors.

3.      We can only be defeated from within. Be careful to buy your own excuses, you get to keep them.

4.      Warriors don’t accept keeping on losing. Let go of all the baggage and break the cycle of dependency.

5.      Figure out ways to turn your disadvantages into assets. It’s in our handicaps we find our greatness.

6.      No wounds, no glory. Most men are bruised warriors needing mending of their wounds.

7.      Become a master of your rarity. Our purpose is usually found in our uniqueness, our rarity.


Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Friday, May 16, 2014

What is genius?

What is genius?


Congratulations Orrin Woodward for being in the top 20. http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/the-top-50-leadership-and-management-experts-mon.html. The world is starting to recognize your genius. Orrin Woodward is young and he has already developed a leader to make number 39 (Chris Brady) on the list. Many more to come into this list! Thank you for your leadership.

1.      Simple. Genius is to take the complex into the simple so the common person can understand.

2.      Creation. Genius is to create an opportunity so the common person can have a shot at leaving a legacy.

3.      Innovation. Genius is to create a whole new industry by intersecting several existing industries.

4.      Learning. Genius is to fail, learn from failures, succeed, and then create an education system for the benefit of humanity.

5.      Dreaming. Genius is to go where most don’t dare to go and dream when most have forgotten how to dream.

6.      Education. Genius is to pass onto others all the secrets gleaned throughout the journey.

7.      Unselfish. Genius is to teach as much as you can to as many as you can and do it unselfishly.

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Thursday, May 15, 2014

What I Learned

What I Learned – The Law of the Farm

Today’s nuggets come from Reagan Owen, a 14 year-old home schooled young lad. As mentioned in the 7 daily nuggets yesterday, here are today’s nuggets from Reagan. I use my garden to teach life skills to the youth. By following the principles in the law of the farm we did the planting in less than one hour. Reagan’s report has not been edited. 
Here it is!                                                  

I learned that planting seed isn't hard and some seeds need more dirt than others to grow. In order to have a garden, you do not need to pull the weeds. First, you need to soften the dirt and make a small hole, then put the seed in it and cover it up with soft dirt. You can worry about all the other weeds that are around it later.

I also learned that clay stops pigs from having diarrhea; this is because of the iron minerals that are in it. Tilling the ground with a machine chops up the dirt too much for gardens, it's better to water the ground enough for a few days, rather than watering every single day. Another thing that I learned is that minerals come off of wood and seep into the ground. They help the plants grow, and if you have an area that was covered in wood, the ground will be rich in minerals, and your plants will grow better.

I also learned about the law of the farm, and how you have to do things in the order below, to make them work: 
1. Purpose means finding out what you're doing and why you're doing it.

2. Planning is making a strategy on how you're going to make it happen.

3. Preparation is preparing things so that when you are planting it doesn't die.

4. Planting is getting something started with an intent that it will grow.

5. Prevention is preventing the plant from dying by watering it.

6. Protection is pulling the weeds so that they do not strangle the plant, and keeping the rabbits out so that they do not eat the plants.

7. Performance is harvesting what you planted and protected, and finally getting the chance to enjoy it without worrying about the rabbits and the weeds.

The law of the farm doesn't just have to apply to planting seed, but can also apply to anything in life that you want to succeed or get done.

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

The Garden of Life

The Garden of Life

Today’s nuggets come from Michaela Owen, a 16 year-old home schooled young lady. Tomorrow’s nuggets come from her younger brother, Reagan Owen. These two awesome individuals, along with their dad, Drew Owen, helped me to put in the garden this year. I use my garden to teach life skills to the youth. By following the principles in the law of the farm we did the planting in less than one hour. Michaela’s report has not been edited. Here it is. Enjoy it and share it!

Similarly to planting a garden, one's life takes work in order to accomplish success. Planting a garden, as well as most phases in life, require these seven principles in order to prosper: Purpose, Planning, Preparation, Planting, Prevention, Protection, and Performance. 
1.       Purpose - Why am I setting this goal? A farmer's purpose is generally to produce an abundant crop. For a Christian, although it can often be difficult, it is important to have God's purpose in mind. Romans 8:28 (NIV) "And we know that all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
2.       Planning - How am I going to plan success? First, a farmer plans ahead. He chooses the seed, and decides where to plant. It is important for Christians to pray, trust, and ask for wisdom from God when it comes to plans. What is God's plan? What doors has He opened? Jeremiah 29:11(NIV) "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'Plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.'"
3.       Preparation - How am I going to prepare, to better ensure I reap a good harvest? A farmer puts in an immense amount of work preparing his field.
4.       Planting - All of the thinking, planning, and preparation mean nothing, if one does not actually plant. How can one expect a harvest, if one has not yet sowed?
5.       Prevention - A farmer will do his best in order to prevent wild animals from getting into his garden. In a sense, one's heart can be compared to a garden. Proverbs 4:23 (NIV) says; "Above all else guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." The garden of one's heart is greatly affected by what is allowed into it, just like a farmer's garden. If a farmer allows weeds, or animals to get into his garden, it is quite plausible that the crops will languish. Galatians 6:8 (NIV) "Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life."
6.       Protection - To a farmer, this is just as an important stage, as the planting itself. If he does not protect his field from weeds, it is very likely that he will not produce a great crop. Proverbs 2:7 (NIV) says; "He holds success in store for the upright, He is a shield to those whose walk is blameless." This area can be applied to one's life, because one needs to guard one's heart and mind. This can include the kinds of shows and movies one watches, as well as the music one listens to, and the books one reads. Philippians 4:8 (NIV) says; "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." If it does not add up to this verse, it has to go. One must continually pluck out the weeds from one's thoughts, in order to protect and prevent corruption.
7.       Performance - This is the stage where all of one's hard work comes together. All of the previous steps will have hopefully amounted to tremendous success. The more effort we put into the front end, the more superior the results of the harvest will be.

           Thank you Michaela

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

The Fool and the Wise

The Fool and the Wise

How does one go about becoming wise? Wise people take the right actions from the right insights. The use intuition, that gut feeling coming from the creative part of our brain. Wisdom comes from the correct application of knowledge (understanding), from experiences, and from the reflections on those experiences. Wisdom is the principle thing we all shall seek.

Shift your thinking from one brain to another, from left to right and from right to left brain.

1. Don’t believe in luck, believe in God. We don’t lack intelligence and talent; we lack faith, belief in our creator.

2. Believe that even the smallest of actions can have the biggest ripple effects. The ripple effect creates success, wave making creates significance.

3. Know that grace and love can be suited for our own circumstances. Leverage the power of grace and love.

4. Live long enough and you will know that the greatest destruction is brought into our living rooms via a square device connected with a cable.

5. Life is what happens to us when we are making future plans. Work the plans.

6. Take time to reflect and time to love and you will leave a legacy. Love is a powerful force.

7. We all know our pains, what fills our minds in quiet moments. Wisdom comes from reflections to produce growth from our pains.

Will you join my cause to fight mediocrity in the world? Pass these nuggets on to others.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. Be a giver in a world of takers.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others.
Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx
Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy