Gratitude On The Cruise

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Every September my wife and I go on a cruise, usually to the Caribbean. We usually bring 10-20 other staff members and their spouses with us.

We have a great time, traveling the world seeing the beauty of the earth.

But something happened this last time we were on the cruise.

I was walking down the hall toward our stateroom and one of the very cheerful attendants walked past with a big smile on his face… “Hello” he said with a smile.

“Hi there!” We smiled back.

Just then an older couple walked past. They were grumpy. Irritated about something, probably something to do with not getting enough food at the all you can eat buffet..

As the attendant walked past them, they could barely muster a smile as they continued on complaining about some, no doubt, insignificant problem.

The whole situation struck me profoundly.

I see spoiled Americans cruising with their boxes and bags, full of expensive clothing, and traveling in style…We’re living in total luxury going to incredible exotic locations!

We’re stuffing our faces with all you can eat food, until we are sick…we spend a week doing nothing but pampering ourselves…]

And yet, many of us still find reasons to complain!

I’ve seen first hand many guests are upset on these trips. They still find something to complain about. To be ungrateful for. They harass stateroom attendants about how the bed wasn’t made to their satisfaction…or the room service was late. (Oh the horror!)

The contrast was sad really…between the pampered guests… traveling in style, disgruntled about something, while the stateroom attendants are working hard, smiling away while sacrificing for their families thousands of miles away.

Many of them are from the Philippines, Caribbean islands, or India. Most of them are married, many have children back at home. They are living on a boat, in cramped conditions, working extremely long hours doing hard work, for 9 months out of the year, thousands of miles from their families.

These folks don’t get to see their children grow up, or be there for their wives when mom needs a break. They don’t get to go out to the movies on the weekend for date night or take a day off.

Don’t get me wrong, they are working on these cruise ships by choice, and for many of them it’s a good paying job that gives them the ability to pay the bills back home.

That’s not the point.

The point is simply this…if there was anyone that has a reason to be frustrated, disgruntled, or be less than cheerful on a luxury cruise ship in the middle of exotic caribbean islands…you wouldn’t think it would be…the guests.

You’d think the ones with a reason to be down in the dumps would be the workers.

I couldn’t help but wonder what these people must think of us ‘Americans’ as we stomp around with scowls on our faces while we are being pampered at every turn.

Certainly not all guests behave in such a despicable manner, but I’ve seen my share of this on cruises.

Then I started thinking of myself, and my own lack of gratitude.

To my shame, even with all the blessings I’ve been given. The abundance, the health, the good fortune of my family, and friends, and everything I’ve been blessed with… I find reasons to complain.

Despite being taught from a young age the importance of gratitude, and my own efforts to teach my children the value of gratitude, of giving thanks…I know I can do better. I can be more thankful, and express gratitude to the Lord for his bounteous blessings more frequently and more sincerely.

I believe gratitude is one of the greatest traits a human can posses. It raises a person to a higher plane, a level of grace and sophistication that ingrates will never achieve.

I’ve made a commitment to myself this year to cherish the blessings and goodness of God in my life…and it never fails to bring me happiness and peace.

One of my core values is Dedication to Financial Independence; for myself, my employees and you, the people we serve.

I believe that wealth is the ability to truly experience life. To live a life that is fulfilling to each of us individually…

And I’ve found that a life that is built on the foundation of gratitude and thanksgiving is a truly fulfilled life.

 

Brett Kitchen

 

 

Billy Mays #1 Rule For Selling (RIP) PART 1

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Billy Mays is best known for his days on your television screen selling cleaning products like “OXYCLEAN” “Orange Glo” and “KA-BOOM”.

He started as a young man making sales to passersby on the Atlantic City boardwalk.

He perfected the art of the pitching, and became one of the worlds best at it…

One of the things that made him so successful was his knowledge of the most powerful human persuasion technique: The Demonstration.

He was famous for turning down huge TV opportunities on great products because of one simple reason…they couldn’t be easily demonstrated on TV in 60 seconds or less.

That was his Cardinal Rule. No demonstration = No Sale.

So as a rule, whatever it is you are trying to sell, find ways to demonstrate it visually.

This is why I’ve spent so much time and money investing in video. Video is a powerful medium, but not just for the reasons many ‘online business guru’s’ tell you.

They’ll tell you people want to be entertained. That’s true but that’s really not the power of video.

The power of video is in, you guessed it, DEMONSTRATING your product.

There are other obvious benefits, like trust, and credibility, and pre-selling your prospect, however, the demonstration that you can do on video is incredibly powerful.

My uncle and father have a business selling dog runs and dog kennels. Their product is very innovative, and unique.

When they came to me for consulting several years ago to launch the product, we put most of our time and effort into creating a compelling video that would show in the first 30 seconds the benefits of the product.

They’ve gone on to create a multi-million dollar business…and the foundation of it is a visual demonstration using video. (You can see their product at www.k9kennelstore.com)

In the next article I’ll share how to create visual demonstrations even if you have a product or service that is not tangible or visible. Many businesses, professionals, and services fall into this category…and I’ll show you exactly how to do this…next time!

The Best Holiday Of The Year

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In Utah, fall is really the most beautiful time of year.  The days are warm, the mornings and evenings are crisp. The leaves are turning golden yellow and sunset orange.

The air is pure and clear after the regular rain showers, and the signs of Thanksgiving are starting to appear.
Me & my son.
The football season is in full swing.  Spending Saturdays at the stadium with friends and family brings back great memories, and creates new ones.

Of course there’s the pumpkins and Halloween that every one loves, but Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday.

And even though its now too cold to waterski and hang out at the lake, I still love fall.

I guess I get nostalgic this time of year because my father always taught us to be grateful. To be humble, and realize that everything we have comes from God. He worked hard to create a wonderful life for my family, and always made sure we never took anything for granted.

I’ve been so blessed.

I have so much to be thankful for.

Starting with my wife and 3 kids who mean the world to me. My parents who taught me so much and sacrificed so much for my well being throughout my life and continue to be a great influence in my life.

I’m thankful for my brother and 3 sisters. I’m grateful we all have a great relationship together, and love each other very much.

Not a day goes by that I’m not thankful for the goodness the Lord has blessed me with, and as I look out my office window and see the beautiful mountains that surround us, I am often in awe.

Sometimes it’s fun to just take a minute and think of all things you can possibly name that you are grateful for. It’s amazing about the things we take for granted every day that we really should be VERY thankful for.
My family.
Things like running water, toilet paper, microwaves, central air, and cars with cup holders. It sounds a little silly at first, but its true!

These are great inventions and I am definitely grateful I’m not wondering out the back yard to the outhouse in the middle of the winter! (It wasn’t that many years ago that my mother in law grew up doing exactly that!)

Yesterday walking into the office I took a deep breath of the fresh crisp air and was grateful for the clean air, my health and body.

For me, the most important thing I am grateful for is Gods love and his sacrifice for us to return and live with him someday.

As I’ve grown I’ve learned that one of the surest ways to be truly happy is to through humility and gratitude.

This is my favorite time of year…because there is so much to be thankful for.

Brett

Do You Work As Hard To Be Successful As Steph Curry?

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This years NBA Playoffs and Finals is one I will remember for a long time.

One of the reasons was of course, Steph Curry and his amazing clutch shots, the other reason was because my son Joshua is now old enough to appreciate the games and watch them with me.

I’ve always loved basketball, I love what it teaches a person about themselves, It can bring out your self doubt and help you recognize that and turn it into self confidence.

It teaches discipline and hard work. For most of humankind the only way to excel in the sport is by paying the price of time and effort in the gym, working out, doing drills, shooting thousands of jump shots, and running until you throw up.

That hard work teaches a valuable lesson that will serve anyone well throughout their lives.

Steph Curry is also a classy guy, he’s a God fearing faith based person who loves his family and isn’t pounding his chest telling the world he’s the greatest.

He’s a magician on the floor, and his attitude and behavior off the floor makes it easy to root for him.

Basketball has always been my first love when it comes to sports, it’s fun seeing my family embrace it, seeing Joshua practice his dribbling and shooting in the backyard takes me back to the days of practicing in the rain, cold and 100 degree temperatures…

All the hard work paid off for me when we won a state championship in high school, but even more importantly, it taught me that if I want to be successful in work and in my family, it isn’t going to come easy…not even close.

Anything worthwhile costs effort and work, no one gets rich and successful without it, despite what it may look like from the outside. In America financial success can be had by anyone, regardless of upbringing or race, and my next couple of articles about real life people I’ve met recently from a taxi driver in Seattle to a real estate investor in Florida, will prove it…

So enjoy this video of Steph Curry making jaw dropping shots…shots he should be able to make, and know he spent a lot of time in a lonely gym making those exact shots, long before he ever made it on the Big Stage.

Brett