The Age of the Entrepreneur - 3

The Age of the Entrepreneur - 3

1.      Entrepreneurs keep the eyes of their brain open. Their brains are open even when they are in the twilight, the state of semi-alertness.

2.      Entrepreneurs place themselves at a high state of awareness. They have the ability to turn on their laser like focus while always moving in the direction of their dreams.

3.      Entrepreneurs keep a relentless focus on where they are going. They know that the path to where they want to go may not be straight; they are constantly making adjustments to reach their destinations.

4.      Entrepreneurs fear mediocrity more than they fear failure. They know that failure is expected along the journey; they learn from it and keep moving on.

5.      Entrepreneurs know that what they focus on determines their beliefs. When you are in the presence of an entrepreneur you can tell they got their eyes onto something.

6.      Entrepreneurs know that what they believe determines their expectations. They have high expectations of themselves and pay no attention to what the world thinks of them.

7.      Entrepreneurs know eventually see what they expect to see. They see what the common eye is unable to see, and therefore, do what the world thinks it is impossible to do.

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

The Age of the Entrepreneur - 2

The Age of the Entrepreneur - 2

1.      Entrepreneurs know that there are no problems without solutions. They believe that the solutions are readily available all around them. They have unwavering belief so they can imagine solutions without the evidence.

2.      Entrepreneurs know to keep looking for solutions. They know that a solution can appear at any moment and all of a sudden. They are always ready to accept and record the clues and as the evidence.

3.      Entrepreneurs don’t overlook, ignore, or reject the evidence even if it is against their beliefs. They use their eyes to let clues go to their brains where their intuition processes those clues into pictures. They know that logic can be misleading and intuition is what leads to them the Holy Grail.

4.      Entrepreneurs know they are apt to see what they are not expecting to see. They train their brains to have the ability to see what others cannot see. Faith cannot be rushed or forced. Like love, faith is a choice and it is developed over time. The energy flows in through the eyes into the brain, from the brain to the heart, from the heart to the brain, and then back to the eyes again as it become reality.

5.      Entrepreneurs may run out of money but they never run out of problems to solve. Problems to solve are more important than money. Money follows the value we create.

6.      Entrepreneurs know that intelligence is not a predictor of success. The predictor of success is creating value while solving difficult problems. The key to success is to process the knowledge correctly while in the hunt for solutions. Gut feeling is heart and brain feeling for those who believe before seeing.

7.      Entrepreneurs have a high awareness of the environment around them. They develop the ability to respond, response-ability, based on the stimuli that are continuously arriving to them. Between stimulus and response we have the freedom to choose. Respond instead of reacting.

 Entrepreneurs take full responsibility for their life, do you?

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

The Age of the Entrepreneur - 1

The Age of the Entrepreneur - 1

Happy Valentine everyone!

A new series called “The Age of the Entrepreneur” starts today.

The information age gave birth to a new age, the entrepreneurial age. Like any other economic age, the age of the entrepreneur will give birth to another economic age. When we ignore a new economic age, wealth will ignore us.

Many people today are caught in the rat race. There is a problem with the rat race. No matter who you are, you still are a rat.  I don’t like rats. Years ago I wrote down these two phrases that still guide me today. “The future belongs to those who can see and pursue opportunities before they are obvious” and “Those that take swift action will leave those that don’t breathing the dust.” After traveling around the world for two decades, I had a hunch that a new world order was coming, so I left the rat race to become an entrepreneur 7 years ago. Now I find myself in the eye of a storm, in the sweet spot, where trends converge, filled with opportunities. I feel like a kid in a candy store. I love candy, especially right after waking up from a nap. Entrepreneurs have the same number of hours in a day as everyone else, but they have more ingenuity, energy, passion, enthusiasm, conviction, commitment, and persistence in their hours. It is in the cracks of time that entrepreneurs come alive and change the world as we now today.

The age of the entrepreneur is here. Those that don’t think and act as an entrepreneur will have a difficult time succeeding in the future. The information age open the gate for millions of people around the world to harness the power of entrepreneurship. It takes a higher level of thinking to succeed in this new age. Most people’s problems are just perceptions, viewed with distorted lenses, not their real problems. Their problems are the way they think about their problems. Entrepreneurs have a special way to go about defining problems and finding the right solutions for pressing problems. Become an entrepreneur and the world will be better because of you. Here are a few things that are necessary to become entrepreneur, to play the game, and eventually, change the rules of the game of business and life. What does it take to become an entrepreneur?

1.      Look for problems that need solutions. There are many problems today begging for solutions. I see them everywhere, do you?

2.      See solutions where everyone is looking but can’t see them. I see solutions to many existing problems, do you?

3.      Never run out of problems to solve. I have a long list of problems to solve, do you?

4.      Recognize problems that others don’t see as problems. I clearly see problems everywhere I go, do you?

5.      Come alive while others are resting, camping, or just plain being comfortable. I get up every day thinking what problem am I going to tackle today, do you?

6.      Finding solutions hidden in plain sight. I am finding creative solutions for all the problems I am solving, are you?

7.      Make competitor's products obsolete. I am not improving the products I have, I am working diligently to launch products that make the competitor’s products obsolete, are you?

Entrepreneurs have a crystal clear vision where they are going, do you?

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

The Faith of leaders

Leaders Have Faith

Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith - Hebrews 13: 7

1.      Leaders know that faith is the key ingredient for successful leadership.

2.      Leaders see the face of God while stepping out of themselves to serve others.

3.      Leaders believe before they see and they see before others believe. Leaders see with their mind, their heart, and their soul.

4.      Leaders have unwavering faith and are guided by a Godly vision to go where it matters most.

5.      Leaders know that when leadership and faith are together they have an unlimited source of power to tap into.

6.      Leaders live out their faith by speaking and living the truth.

7.      Leaders know that their future is as big as their faith. Faithful leaders are fearless.

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

How to Kill Procrastination – Part II

How to Kill Procrastination – Part II

1.      Use self-imposed pressure. I love this line of two letter words – “If it is up to be, it is up to me.” Think “it must be done and it has to be started now.” Think now is the best time to get it done. Get in motion.

2.      Take a nap. Replenish the precious energy. Take short breaks and many deep breaths with those breaks. Short naps are so underrated. Three naps a day allow me to live three times longer.

3.      Date your dream. Keep the eye on your dream and keep the dream in front of you. Burn the images of your dream in your mind. Eventually your God-given dreams will get to our hearts. Visualize how the dream is possible if I keep on swinging. Dream chasers are the owners of the future.

4.      Unplug the electronics. Eliminate the distractions and the garbage that comes with them. Set specific times to plug the electronics and respond to them. Batch-respond to requests. Leverage technology instead of technology leveraging you.

5.      Tackle the difficult big tasks head on. Break the big tasks into small ones and go after them with a vengeance. Nothing can be that big that can’t be chipped away a step at a time. Anyone can do what is easy; champions get the difficult done on a consistent basis.

6.      Find the time. We always tend to find the time for what is really important. It is in the cracks of time we get the important things done. There is as much time as we allow for getting anything done. What matters is the size of the dreams we are chasing within the time we are allocated while we are here on this earth.

7.      Develop the urgency. We create the urgency that is necessary to overcome the inertia. Once the momentum is created stay with it, ride on it, and leverage it. You can tell who is out there just going through the day to day grind, who is out there chasing a career, and then you can really tell the very few who are out there chasing their dream. Be a dream chaser, like a lion that lock the eye on a particular gazelle, and stay with it until your dream becomes a reality.

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

Procrastination Assassination

How to Kill Procrastination

Kill procrastination and become productive. Time is our most valuable and precious resource. Don’t squander it. Fear mediocrity more than you fear failure. Never forget that dreams only come true to those who are true to their dreams. We either develop the discipline to chase our dreams or accept someone else to discipline us to get their dreams. Which one do you prefer? Make stopping procrastination a learning experience; see it as entertainment and reap the long term benefits. If you cannot discipline yourself then success is not for you. If you are not convinced by these words; don’t bother reading today’s nuggets.

1.      Learn to prioritize. Never sacrifice the important for the sake of the urgent. Use your purpose and mission to set priorities and make decisions. Spend your time in the few activities that make the most difference in your life.

2.      Plan the week in advance. Failing to plan is planning to fail. If it is not in my calendar it does not exist yet. Be a slave to your calendar not someone else’s calendar.

3.      One bite at a time. Break complex tasks into smaller ones. To do lists are simple to make and easy to follow. It is not my personality to make lists but I found out I get the right things done lot faster when I use the list method.

4.      Think long term. Long term thinking improves short term decision making. Do the right things right. Kill procrastination or procrastination will kill your opportunity.

5.      Keep your eye on results. Achieving the results gets you the prizes you crave. Many hard workers focus on activities; many smart workers focus on results. See life as a game. Play the game to win. Don’t forget to have fun.

6.      Use the power of concentration. Concentrate in one task and finish it. The greatest accomplishments have been achieved in the cracks of time when concentrated energy is consistently deployed against problems. No problem can resist the attack of a ferocious procrastination killer. 

7.      Prepare and prepare. Chance always favors the prepared. All the things you need at your reach before beginning. Prepare the soil, have the right seeds, and tools before planting.

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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

Winning Admiration of Our Children

Winning Admiration of Our Children

Happy is the man that wins the admiration of his own children.

As parents we strive to do our best to help our children to grow up and become responsible adults. In that process we make many mistakes and watch our children make their own mistakes as well. The key is to learn from the mistakes so we can prevent repeating the same ones. Today I will dwell on a few things that I believe had a positive impact in raising my own kids. I often felt and saw myself as a kid as they were growing up; the difference was they were way cooler than me!

1.      Teach them to have faith. Read to and with them stories that help them to believe and to build trust in themselves and in others. Invest heavily in their education. Help them fall in love with reading and learning. 

2.      Build their self-esteem. Tell them stories that help them grow in their own uniqueness. Help them with their school projects. Go to their classes and do presentations with them. You can become and remain your kids hero and friend.

3.      Have fun. Sing and play and be a kid with them. Support them to develop their own plays displaying the sorrows and joys of life.  Adopt their friends and open your house and your heart for their friends. I confess my singing career came to an abrupt end when my 2.5 year old daughter said - "Dad stop singing, I will fall asleep." No wonder I am not called Carlos Santana. My musical talent remains undeveloped!!!

4.      Help them visualize their own potential. Help them find their passions and potentials. Help them connect with nature and our creator. Above all, help them detect their God-given purpose. Hint - If you don't know your purpose and mission in life it will be harder for them to have their.

5.      Encourage them to develop their own interests. Travel with them and expose them to different languages and cultures. Talk about their interests. Ask questions to help them think about their futures.

6.      Be there for them. Provide support when they need the most. Be there for the school plays and their team sports. Care for them in sickness. Celebrate their successes.

7.      Set an example of excellence. Teach them to manage their frustrations and savor the joys that can come out of difficulties. Be there during the teen years. Help them to realize that being different is OK; it is the only way they will be able to make a difference in this world.

I felt compelled to write and share with the world the above nuggets after my daughter Andrea posted the following:  

"If you know me well, you know I'm a big dreamer and risk taker. I get it all from Carlos Fontana. I know your birthday isn't until next week but as far as I'm concerned you should always be celebrated. Thank you for always knowing when to support Marina and I in making our own decisions and when to be there and teach us important life lessons. Just a one hour talk with you can turn a bad day into a positive and productive one. You're nothing short of an extraordinary person. So many people around the world look up to you but we are so lucky to be the only ones to call you dad. I love you!" 

And I love you too. This is one of those moments in life that takes our breath away and tears running down our faces. Now you know why I feel so blessed. By the way, I can only, at most, take a quarter of the credit for the responsible adults they became. The other three quarters, at least,  belongs to them and their dedicated mother.

Thank you for reading and reflecting on today’s nuggets. Share them with 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