All Good Found

Charlie "Tremendous" Jones' Unusual Businesscard

2010-02-07T13:10:00.009+01:00

The other day I found this speech where Charlie "Tremendous" Jones shares the story about his highly unusual businesscard. Charlie recognized that people tend to threw businesscards away but they would not threw anything like a book away. So instead of giving away traditional businesscards, he started to give away books with his contact information included. There´s also a longer audio interview with Charlie discussing this subject.

Charlie "Tremendous" Jones was an avid reader and used to say:

You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for two things, the people you meet and the books you read.

A Tremendous Life: The Story of Charlie "Tremendous" Jones (watch trailer) is a newly produced DVD giving you an intimate look about Charlie´s life.

You can get your own copy from Tremendous Life Books or from Amazon.

Review of the Movie The Shift Starring Dr. Wayne Dyer

2010-02-02T21:49:00.007+01:00

I´ve just been watching the movie The Shift for the third time. It still leaves me with a deep sense of peace and freedom. The concepts in this movie that really empower me are the things Dr. Wayne Dyer says about surrendering, being of service and connecting to a higher energy or Source and just let it work through you.

In the movie we get to follow the frustrated filmdirector trying to make a name for himself and his film crew filming and interviewing Dr. Wayne Dyer, the busy and overworked wife and mother of two seeking her own expression in the world, the rather self-absorbing businessman and his wife and a few people who are living on purpose and already have made the shift. They will all be deeply touched and transformed during their stay at the beautiful Asilomar Conference Grounds on the Monterey Peninsula, California, USA.

Throghout the movie, Wayne talks about two phases in life, the morning and afternoon of life. How we since childhood have the false belief that more is better and that we early start to identify ourselves with our possessions and with what we do and have achieved. The Shift is highlighting the different sides of the Ego and how to go from ambition to meaning.

This is a lovely movie that I heartily do recommend. Apart from the important message the movie conveys, it also brings you a wonderful scenery from Asilomar.

You can get your own copy of The Shift or view the movie online.

Disclosure: Compensated Affiliate

Pondering the Thoughts of Søren Kierkegaard

2010-01-22T10:16:00.007+01:00

A Mystery Couple Pay It Forward

2010-01-18T08:53:00.002+01:00

I loved the movie Pay It Forward and was delighted to hear about this real life story in true pay it forward style.

...a mystery couple, who didn’t leave their names or numbers, walked into a restaurant, finished their meal and then set-off a chain reaction of generosity that lasted for hours.

Ways to Help Haiti Earthquake Victims and Rescue Efforts

2010-01-16T17:11:00.006+01:00

It feels somewhat akward to be so far away from Haiti and not being able to help in more profund ways in the aftermath of the earthquake. We have tried to help in the best ways possible, in this case that was donating money to the Red Cross and sending Reiki to the situation to help those in need and the rescue efforts.

Ways to help Haiti earthquake victims and the rescue efforts:

The British Red Cross
The American Red Cross
Doctors Without Borders
How to Help Haiti Earthquake Victims (Chris Pirillo´s great article about how to help

Picture by MINUSTAH via Getty Images and CNN.

Ernest Hemingway´s Productivity Trick to Avoid Writer´s Block

2010-01-14T13:03:00.002+01:00

Ernest Hemingway practiced this interesting rule to avoid writers block and to stay in the flow.

The best way is always to stop when you are going good and when you know what will happen next. If you do that every day … you will never be stuck. Always stop while you are going good and don’t think about it or worry about it until you start to write the next day. That way your subconscious will work on it all the time. But if you think about it consciously or worry about it you will kill it and your brain will be tired before you start.

Related reading:

20 Inspirational Insights and Business Advices by Virgin´s Richard Branson

2009-12-05T13:44:00.004+01:00

I´m currently reading Richard Branson´s book Screw It, Let's Do It, a book that offers some great lessons. Here is a list which condenses Richard´s philosophy into 20 short inspirational insights and business advices.

How Jason Fried of 37Signals Work

2009-12-03T12:06:00.007+01:00

Inc. magazine interviewed 37Signals Jason Fried about his typical workday. I love Jason´s approach in running the business and some of his philosophies. In todays rather hectic lifestyle it´s refreshing to hear someone like Jason, prefering to use the expression "less is less" instead of "less is more".

We rarely have meetings. I hate them. They're a huge waste of time, and they're costly. It's not one hour; it's 10, because you pulled 10 people away from their real work. Plus, they chop your day into small bits, so you have only 20 minutes of free time here or 45 minutes there. Creative people need unstructured time to get in the zone. You can't do that in 20 minutes.

Jason´s picture by Chris Strong.

Worry, a Powerful Driver by Robert E. Rubin

2009-12-01T11:55:00.003+01:00

I haven´t posted anything for a very long time, but now it´s time to get back on track. To start slowly, I´d like to link to an article that a friend sent me some time ago, Worry, a Powerful Driver by former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and an investment banker Robert E. Rubin. It´s a good read about how to deal with challenging experiences and also a good reminder not to underestimate yourself.

After graduation, I sent a tongue-in-cheek letter to the dean of admissions at Princeton, to which I had not been accepted four years earlier. "I imagine you track the people you graduate," I wrote. "I thought you might be interested to know what happened to one of the people you rejected. I just wanted to tell you that I graduated from Harvard summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa." The dean wrote me back, "Thank you for your note. Every year, we at Princeton feel it is our duty to reject a certain number of highly qualified people so that Harvard can have some good students too."

All Good Found´s 10 Favorite Posts

2009-10-08T16:36:00.008+02:00

Since I´ve been running this blog for nearly eight months, I thought the timing was good to create a post containing a list with some of my favorite posts. Looking through the list below, I think I´ve done a decent job finding posts that might inspire you to change your life for the better.

5 Tricks to Stay Mindful

2009-10-07T16:15:00.002+02:00

To stay mindful in our sometimes hectic world isn´t always a simple task, but these 5 tricks will help you to stay more focused on the present moment.

Related reading:

Think Outside the Box while Thinking about Exercise

2009-10-05T13:06:00.006+02:00

Chris Freytag would like us to think outside the box while thinking about exercise. You can exercise anywhere, anytime, the only thing it takes is some creative thinking. Recently, I´ve taken up physical exercise again, but somewhat different compared to the past. Instead of going to the gym I do push ups, dance to some tunes, all in the comfort of my living room. The trick I´ve used to get me started is to set a goal to just exercise for 10 minutes or so. The happy surprise is that since it feels so good doing it, I usually keep up with it longer. This little exercise program of mine has also got me more active during the rest of the day and my overall well being has improved. And the only thing it took was a few minutes of exercise!

Related reading:

IBM Think Notepads

2009-10-03T17:59:00.005+02:00

IBM gave away these wonderful notepads to their employees and others outside the company to encourage thinking. I´m a big sucker on these kind of things, so if you have one notepad to sell, please, get in touch. IBM Logo Merchandise Store has a Think Note Jotter IBM Vintage for sale.

From the IBM Archives it says:

When Thomas J. Watson joins the Computer-Tabulating Recording Company -- the forerunner of today's IBM -- in 1914, he brings with him the "Think" motto he coined when he managed the sales and advertising departments at the National Cash Register Company. "Thought," he says, "has been the father of every advance since time began. 'I didn't think' has cost the world millions of dollars." Soon, the one-word slogan "THINK" appears in large block-letter signs in offices and plants throughout the company.

Listen to Thomas Watson as he speaks about thinking. Here is the transcript of the same speech.

Via kottke.org.

Related reading:

All Good Found´s 10 Favorite All Good Movies - Part 2

2009-10-02T21:42:00.012+02:00

I decided to follow up on my previous post, which included a list of some of my favorite movies with another one. Enjoy!

Related reading:

All Good Found´s 10 (Almost) Favorite All Good Movies

Forbes' Interviews with the Members of the Forbes 400

2009-10-02T11:30:00.005+02:00

Forbes has interviewed some of the eight members of the Forbes 400 on 22 topics ranging from universal health care to the right amount of vacation.

We asked eight of the wealthiest self-made members of the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans to weigh in on 22 topics, from universal health care to the right amount of vacation. These guys have horrendous schedules and a lot on their minds, but for the most part, they were willing to share.

Related reading:

The Power of Gratitude

2009-10-01T17:41:00.002+02:00

Would you like to put yourself in a better mood and enjoy it´s accompanying benefits? Why not take up the practice of gratitude and start with this little daily exercise?

The danger is that this exercise seems so trivial that it isn't worth doing. But consider this: people are constantly worrying about things they don't have or things that haven't happened, consequently they rarely take stock of the beneficial things that they do have and good things that have already happened. If it's possible for even the simplest negative thought to provoke a change in mood, then why not a positive grateful thought as well?

All Good Found´s 10 (Almost) Favorite All Good Movies

2009-09-28T20:58:00.018+02:00

I´ve seen some great movies over the last couple of years and I´d like to share some favorites of mine. I hope you can find a gem or two from my list and feel free to go ahead and expand my list in the comments below.

Related reading:

All Good Found´s 10 Favorite All Good Movies - Part 2

Asking Duncan Bannatyne

2009-09-25T22:34:00.008+02:00

I was asking Duncan Bannatyne over Twitter, if he could name a few good books for aspiring entrepreneurs. Duncan was kind enough to answer my question and recommended his own two books, Anyone Can Do It and Wake Up and Change Your Life.

I have nothing to say against Duncan recommending his own work, considering his life story. In his younger years he served in the Navy but was discharged for threatening to throw his commanding officer overboard. This incident got Duncan imprisoned for 9 months in Colchester military detention centre, before being discharged aged 20.

Back in Glasgow he hit rock bottom after the death of his beloved sister and he started drinking heavily and was a bit wild. He was arrested for being drunk and disorderly, and aged 24 locked up in the Barlinnie prison on the outskirts of Glasgow for non-payment of a fine.

He later moved to Jersey and was living the life of a beach bum, making just enough money for the rent. But as Duncan´s 30th birthday approached, he decided it was time for a change and suggested to his first wife Gail, that they should start their own business and become millionaires.

As Duncan said in Dragons' Den: The Dragons' Stories revealing his own story, with his criminal record, no qualifications, no references, the best option was to start his own business. Indeed, a very wise path to follow.

What I like about Duncan is that he´s a living proof that you can succeed in life, even though you might have fallen of the path, have no solid background to fall back on and that it´s never too late to make drastic changes in life.

You can order a copy of the book signed by Duncan.

Sources:

The Cinema Documentary the Age of Stupid

2009-09-24T10:45:00.003+02:00

The Age of Stupid is a new cinema documentary that deals with climat change (watch the trailer).

This enormously ambitious drama-documentary-animation hybrid stars Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite as an old man living in the devastated world of 2055, watching 'archive' footage from 2008 and asking: why didn't we stop climate change while we had the chance?

Sam Dickson Won Greenpeace Design Awards 2009

2009-09-20T18:14:00.003+02:00

Sam Dickson won Greenpeace Design Awards 2009 with his poster among 1500 creative contestants from 77 countries. I find the winning poster to be very engaging with it´s powerful words and imagery. Another favorite of mine is Denis Popenkov´s poster with a message that makes you think hard and long. Overall, the finalists contributed with great material.

Set Smaller Goals and Get Bigger Results

2009-09-07T20:14:00.003+02:00

Dan Heath and Chip Heath have written a good article about how you can overcome procrastination by setting smaller goals and by doing so get bigger results.

We're all used to hearing about stretch goals, and when you feel empowered, stretch goals are useful ambition teasers. But when you feel overwhelmed, stretch goals are a recipe for paralysis.

Related reading:

In a Minute You Could

The Common Denominator of Success by Albert E.N. Gray

2009-09-02T17:13:00.004+02:00

I found the speech by Albert E.N. Gray, The Common Denominator of Success, in Earl Nightingale´s book This Is Earl Nightingale. In the speech, Albert talks about, as Earl puts it, the few who succeed in a world where success is available to everyone.

Success is something achieved by the minority of men and it is therefore unnatural and not to be achieved by following our natural likes and dislikes, nor by being guided by our natural preferences and prejudices.

Inspired Living from Architectural Digest

2009-08-28T18:11:00.004+02:00

Be inspired by Architectural Digest´s lovely galleries covering everything from libraries to incredible views:

Earl Nightingale’s The Miracles of Your Mind

2009-08-25T15:53:00.003+02:00

I´ve been inspired by Earl Nightingale's message about your own gold mine in his book This is Earl Nightingale and here´s an video recording of it.

Uplifting Gift Products from Compendium

2009-08-24T18:25:00.006+02:00

Compendium creates and distributes wonderful gift products, and I love their greeting cards and postcards. Not only do I like the products for their uplifting messages, but also for the good overall design.

Via English Muse.