It’s a Win, Wipeout and Amazing Race!

 Pow! The 14th annual wife-carrying race is off. This time held in Finland. Countries like Australia, Japan and U.S.A. were there. It’s a 400-meter run. With your boo on your back. Hurdle to jump. Pool to wade through. Laugh your face off. ‘Cause it’s a win, a wipeout and an amazing race.

Sounds familiar, right? Well there’s the Amazing Race. A 21-day, eight-country trek. Started out in California. With 13 couples/pairs vying for a million-dollar prize. Find the clues. Survive the challenges. Fly to the next country. It takes teamwork. Street smarts. And some guts. Last team standing, wins.

Then there’s Wipeout. The Reality Show built around an obstacle course. Beat the clock. Or be beaten-down for trying. Gotta use your head. Lest you wind up dead. Timing is everything. Go too fast. Could still end up last. Go too slow. Miss the chance of competing in the next go.

These shows remind us about having a gameplan. For achieving career dreams. Strategy instead of brute force. It’s the way you execute. Before the time expires. Works better with a playful focus. No need to burn rubber. If actions are out of step with reality.

Do your best. Complain less. Test your idea. Grow your game. Arrive at a breakout moment. Go from unknown. To big around town. Kick-in the “after burners.” Like Usain Bolt. Shift the tide. Like President Obama. During the political campaign. Positive action. Moves you closer to a big win.

Hip Tip: Every public win has a private victory that brings discovery, leaves people stunned and needing recovery.

Blog Talkback: Without the help of Youtube, how do you make a name for yourself on the job or in business?

Watchout For Real Housewives Who Carry Knives!

 The Guiding Light. Shines no more. Lasted for 72 years. Started on radio. Before moving to TV. The business is changing. Soap Operas of old. Are like today’s Reality shows. Watchout for Real Housewives. Who carry knives. What do Soaps and Reality TV have in common? The star of the show.

Striking personalities. That wow and seduce. Lots of passion. The romantic variety. Guiding Light is now history. Maybe having lived out its useful purpose. What does this mean for career dreams? Start somewhere. First there was Housewives of Orange County. Then NY, NJ, and ATL.

Society has evolved. Housewives not stuck in the kitchen. They have six-figure salaries. And hourglass-figure bodies. The marketplace changed too. Professionals included. Some holding 5-10 different jobs. In 3-5 different career tracks. Over a lifetime. Making a living. Living their best life. 

Find a career fit. For your personality style. Like the Real Housewives of ATL. Checkout the personality quiz. That matches you with a housewife. Make passion come alive. Lisa and Shereé into fashion. Kandi’s a singing star. Kim trying to find her voice. Nene’s hot sweet and sour sauce.

Live-out your life’s purpose. It’s how you’ll be remembered and rewarded. Watchout for the haters. Not always out to get you. But just like housewives. Some still carry knives. Will cut you up. Stab you in the back. Without drawing blood. Might come close though. To killing your dreams.

Hip Tip: Successful people use the fire of passion, plus the strength of personality to serve with purpose and live-out their dreams.

Blog Talkback: How do you stay positive or relaxed when things around you say otherwise?

Think You Can Dance Your A$$ets Off?

 Dancing with the stars. So you think you can dance your a$$ets off? Get your groove on. Like it’s 2009. What’s the #1 dance reality show? Says a lot about shake, rattle and roll. But more about career dreams. Even “boom boom” rhythm and soul. Since most ambitions. Start out as an audition.

An interview for some. Demo or pitch. Sell your sizzle. Flash your shine. On the dance floor. Or door to door. Develop an idea. Create a new dance. Package a promo. You get 60 seconds of fame. Or one go. To state your name. And Strut your game. Get down. Boogie Oogie Oogie.

Then it’s reviewed. By the judges and decision makers. Going into production. Picked for the top spots. Hired for the job. Performing each week. Fast on the feet. Growing in confidence. Applying new competence. People want more. So they vote their favorite back.

After a while there is big news. Money from endorsements. Deals for personal appearances. Pay raises from profit-sharing. Corner office move. Market value has grown. From seed to mass appeal. The covers of magazines. Talk show circuit. Photo shoots and celebrity scenes.

How’d they do it? Create something from nothing. Produce the goods. With your passion for fashion. Gift for gab. Knowledge of Business. Groove-ability! Spread your wings. Moonwalk the entire dance floor. Just showcase your skills. Circulate the thrills. And cause others to experience the chills.

Hip Tip: You can dance your way to the top. If you’re willing to bring your A-game and bust your A$$ets.

Blog Talkback: How does your favorite dance, dancer or entertainer inspire career dreams? 

The Biggest Loser is The Biggest Winner!

 Reality TV gone global. Can’t you see the promo. “First Grease Lightening. Now Bolt Lightening!” That’s what could happen. For the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt. The new Superman of Track & Field. Hold that thought. Now, back to reality. Where the biggest loser is the biggest winner.

One of the contestants is a firefighter. Another a former athlete and aspiring musician. Both have concerns about seeing their kids grow-up. But the firefighter is worried about keeping his job. If he can’t pass the upcoming physical. Too heavy for peers to lift. If injured fighting a fire.

All hoping to lose the most pounds. Improve their health. Even win the ultimate prize. What’s so fascinating about this show? Well, you get put on a diet. Of exercise. Counting calories. Managing food intake. Important ingredients for regaining self-control. And losing the fat rolls.

Then there’s the “D-factor.” Discipline is an ugly word. If you’re not an athlete. But Biggest Loser isn’t ashamed. Knowing when to turn down the sweets. And turn up the heat. No pain, no gain. Every push-up on the mat. Or drop of sweat. Moves you closer to reaching the next goal.

It’s a matter of personal discovery. Tapping your limits. Finding hidden talents and inner strengths. Like Whitney Houston. Whose comeback reminds us. What career dreams are about. Changing your diet. Of friends or focus. Discipline and discovery don’t kill. Just make you stronger.

Hip Tip: A winner makes small losses become bigger gains and adds new habits to reach higher acclaim. 

Blog Talkback: What does The Biggest Loser say about becoming the biggest winner?

 Jay-Z is da man! He’s retired from the game. But keeps them guessing. After 10 or so albums. He now sits in the big chair. As a Record Exec. Not since LA Reid, has there been so much expected. From an artist turned businessman. Jay knows about hits. And turning lemons into lemonade.

Started out in the ‘hood. With a mother he credits for his success. She would tell him to work hard. At whatever he wanted. Jay spent a lot of time writing. His thoughts then turned into beats. He would write so much. His lyrics became memorized. Before being televised. Jay worked his gift.

All them songs? Came from his experiences. Selling what he didn’t use. Living lower than his standard. This created some conflicts. He would turn his hunger. Into something that became his hustle.  Jumpstart some songs. Drop hooks into his records. These were really channeled emotions.

Beyonce knows Jay is the real deal. He shows cool. In sunglasses. Or with a drink in the shade. Even if angry at the copycats and wanna be’s. He knows how to shake the beefs. Between rival rappers. Cool and refreshing to the last drop. Just like lemonade. That goes from squeeze to freeze.

Not every success means millions. Or every million shows success. Jay’s success is in a body of work. Arthur Ashe said “You make a living with what you get. You make a life with what you give.” Successful people work their gifts. Channel their emotions. Are cool about it. Giving all they’ve got.

Hip Tip: Successful people turn their inside out and their outside in to squeeze the most juice out of life.

Blog Talkback: If you could buy success, do you think you would want it?