51 Life Lessons: Raw, Uncut, and Totally True

By someone’s clock I just rolled over 51.

Age is truly nothing but a number. And, it’s not even that really.I apparently breathe better than I did ten years ago according to the ECG and EKG my doctor just gave me. So, my doctor said it’s true and doctors know everything even though mine tells me I still need to get the colonoscopy I didn’t get last year.Many of you reading this know me for my award-winning business book, The Hiring Prophecies: Psychology behind Recruiting Successful Employees, or my job interviewing book, Interview Intervention: Communication That Gets You Hired.To a lesser extent, I’m also known for my motivational speaking and original, daily, motivational quote called Today’s Line to Live By®. You can find those quotes circulating all over the social sites ( Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn). You know you want to hit the LIKE button, FOLLOW button, or whatever other button thingies there are. Hurry. Go ahead. I dare ya. You’re missing out on 3 seconds of daily enjoyment. (That’s 18.25 minutes/year of enjoyment. Think big picture people.)I’m not just a one-line wonder either. I wrote an entire book with loads of inspiration called Out of Reach but in Sight: Using Goals To Achieve Your Impossible. In fact, it was a speech I gave about how to get everything you want out of life and have fun doing it.I do literally zero, zip, nada marketing for that book, which, of course, means it’s my best-selling book. Go figure. Wait. Don’t.Yes, for my birthday, I don’t accept gifts. I give gifts. So, you can add human oxymoron to my list of qualities.If you’re reading this after Friday September 8th at 11:59 PM CT, you’ll likely have to wait until September 2018 to have this wonderful FREE opportunity again. Sorry. That’s your punishment for not following me sooner. Okay. Stop crying. Just send me an email. Related: How to Get Hired on the Second Job Interview

Anyway, where was I? Oh. Life lessons…

History never technically repeats itself. But it sure does rhyme. Dejavus and do-overs make life easier. But, those sonnets, odes, and limericks are killers.

Doubling down is risky. You better triple down to be safe.

You can listen to others. You can listen to the universe. You’ll never be great if you do both.

It’s never risky to value and follow your passion. It’s deadly not to. Sometimes that death happens quickly. In most cases, it’s slow and painful.

Someday isn’t even a real day. Although for some people it’s every day.

When you blame others, you’re really punishing yourself as well. Don’t blame me for this fact.

Be there. The innate presence you enjoyed as a child requires practice as an adult. You’ll never remaster it, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.

Never explain yourself. Not even to yourself. You probably wouldn’t understand you anyway.

If you need more than one hand to count your best friends, you’re not a great best friend.

The truth isn’t the problem. But fear of the truth is another story.

Life AND death are part of life. Make sure you live first and die second. Yes. It’s possible to do it the other way.

Make plan A work. Tell the other 25 letters to go to hell. But, if you get to plan C, feel free to call the slaughter rule on yourself and start over.

If your friends don’t understand you, find smarter friends. Or at least more understanding ones.

Life was meant to be lived on the edges so I’ll never understand why there’s so much real estate in the middle of the road and so little on the sides. I guess some questions aren’t meant to be answered.

Your life only gets better when someone is willing to go against the status quo. Imagine how awesome your life would be if that someone was you.

Go for broke. It’ll test your mettle. Just don’t quit 5 minutes before the miracle. If you’re wondering when that is, it’s usually 5 minutes from now. Set your watch.

There are only two things you should pray for: the ability to recognize the signs God puts in your path and the strength to handle running into them. Asking for anything more is shear gluttony.

Marriage is only hard if you marry the wrong person. Choose wisely. Wait if you have to.

Watch what you look at. You can’t unsee some things.

Some things might be unteachable, but nothing is unlearnable. No excuses. What. So. Ever.

If you’re afraid, good.

The biggest lie you believe: success is a place. If you think success is somewhere else or somewhere down the road, it’ll never be where you are.

There is magic in everything you do. E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. If you can’t see it, you’re not looking hard enough.

The chaos in your life is eagerly waiting for you to make sense of it. It’s patient. It’ll wait for you to assemble its value. If you can’t see it yet, I suggest you enjoy it rather than fight it. It’s tougher than you are. And smarter.

You can play air guitar perfectly or fumble with the real thing. Fumbling is way funner.

You didn’t need to learn any lesson one second before you learned it. Don’t judge yourself. You were never stupid. You were always timely.

You can shadow box all you want, but life is lived in the ring. And the other guy throws punches. Learn how to take a punch. More importantly, learn how to get up.

Keep a list of everyone who tells you “you can’t.” The longer the list, the more successful you’ll be.

Do the same thing with rejection letters. “You can’t” and “we’re sorry to let you know” are basically the same words.

If you feel old, you are. If you feel young, you’re probably still old if you have to talk about feeling young.

Never speak ill of anyone. Better yet, don’t even think it.

If you don’t love dogs you’re not worthy of being my friend. If you don’t love my dogs…I can’t even finish this sentence…

Family is who you say they are. Not something you determine by swabbing your mouth or plucking your hair. Unless you wanna pluck your family’s hair for the fun of it.

There are time zones you live in and ones you stand in. For very few, they’re the same.

You talk to yourself more than to anyone else. Be nice.

Write stuff down. Don’t try to remember it. You’ll forget. Most times you’ll even forget where you wrote it down.

Even if you have to do it in your head.

Don’t be stupid. It requires no skill, is your greatest asset, and will get you farther than any degree.

I don’t know if I’m on the right track until someone calls me stupid or crazy. Then I’m sure of it.

It’s better to be ridiculed than silent.

Marry the person you can’t live without. That’s not a suggestion. Or debatable.

I can’t point you in the right direction until you tell me your dream. Speak. Or guess in silence.

The older you get, the looser your plans get. That’s because you’re smart enough to know things never turn out the way you plan. And you’re good with that because they always turn out okay. Even those times you unnecessarily worried yourself to death.

Don’t listen to anyone who tells you to be yourself. THE only real goal in life is to be your best self.

Claim every minute you live. You lived it. No matter the outcome. No one else gets credit. No one else gets blame. Cowards blame. Winners own it.

Facing your fears will never make you more afraid. Never. Try it. It’s a no-lose situation kinda thing. Pinky swear.

Other people’s expectations of you are their problems, not yours.

Money is an inaccurate measure of value. Profit is not the same as important. Get a new pair of glasses if your prescription is old.

Look for the good in people. It’s there. For some, you’ll have to look harder. Really harder.

Watch what you chase. You could lose everything chasing nothing.

Most people spend as much time judging a moment as they do living it. Sad. But true. I hope you enjoyed this moment…