September 1, 2008

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In This Newsletter:

Happy Labor Day - Article

Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity

Positive Energy in a Can?

Greetings!

I wrote this newsletter as Hurricane Gustov was impacting Cuba and was expected to head to the Gulf. I’m not sure where and when this hurricane will hit but please join me in praying for the people who are in its path.

Happy Labor Day

As I write this I’m getting ready to head to Long Island, NY to speak to a school district on September 2nd. I have a feeling it’s going to be a special trip. Not only because I’m going to connect with passionate, hard working principals and teachers but also because on Monday I’m going to visit the neighborhood and house where I grew up. While I’m there I’m also going to remember and celebrate my Mom who was born on September 3rd and who passed away 2 years ago.

We always celebrated my Mom’s birthday on Labor Day and this year it carries special significance. You see, only now do I realize how hard she worked to provide for her family. When I was a kid most women didn’t work outside the home, but she did. When women didn’t hold sales positions, she did. When women didn’t rise the corporate ladder, she did. Even during the last year of her life she worked 110% to become the top real estate agent in her South Florida office. It’s no wonder why I have always valued and honored hard work. I had a great role model.

So this Labor Day, I want to celebrate all the people who have worked hard to provide us with the lessons and examples of hard work, dedication, and commitment. I also want to honor the 100,000+ people who read this newsletter and who work hard every day to serve, design, create, build, drive, develop, share, sell, teach, lead, educate, heal, type, dig, paint, clean, fly, cook, farm, manufacture, deliver, code, and contribute to each other and the global economy.

And on this day I hope you will also honor yourself and the work you do because one of the most important legacies we will leave others is our attitude and example of how we approach work. Too many people believe their jobs don’t matter and they see their work as insignificant. But if you really think about it, every job matters and no one is insignificant.

Realize that when you order a salad at a restaurant a farmer had to grow the lettuce, someone had to transport the lettuce to the restaurant, where someone washed the lettuce, and someone chopped the lettuce and someone at the restaurant wrote a check to pay for the lettuce and someone made the plate where the lettuce was placed before someone finally brought the salad to your table that was built by someone so you wouldn’t have to eat on the floor.

Every one of us is connected to each other through the jobs we do, the products we create and the services we provide. Labor Day should not be a day just to celebrate the end of summer or enjoy our final day of freedom before heading back to the daily grind but rather it should be a day to honor ourselves and each other for the work we do and the contribution we make. Our children are watching us and our attitude and our example of how we approach work is something we will instill in them forever. Let us leave a legacy through our positive attitude and actions.

I hope you have fun and enjoy your Labor Day!!

Who taught you the value of hard work? How do you approach your job? Why and how does your job matter? Join the conversation on our blog.

Stay Positive!

-Jon

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Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity

The No Complaining Rule

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Positive Energy in a Can?

I got a kick out of this the other day. The Positive Energy message is spreading. Check out how Sambazon is promoting their drink as "Pure. Positive. Energy." While I focus on positive energy as it relates to leadership, sales, teamwork and customer service I actually tried this drink at Whole Foods the other day and must say it was very positive!