Morning Mindset with Paul G. Markel

A daily dose of practical wit and wisdom from Paul Markel: Professional Educator and Trainer, Amazon Best-Selling Author, United States Marine, Television and Radio Host.

Each episode will focus on positive and productive ways to strengthen your mindset to help you improve your relationships, career goals, and overall well-being.

To get show notes, submit a topic request, and for more from your host, Paul G. Markel, visit MorningMindsetPodcast.com. Please leave a review for this podcast on your favorite podcast player, we appreciate your time and effort and we look forward to reading your honest feedback.

This podcast is a Think On! Production

Latest Episodes:

MM220 - Do You Really Know? Jan 04, 2019

Show notes

Do you know something for a fact, or were you just told? How often do you limit your experiences and potential because you allowed someone else to talk you out of it?

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

Welcome to Morning Mindset. A daily dose of practical wit and wisdom with a professional educator & trainer, Amazon best selling author, United States Marine, Television, and Radio host, Paul G. Markel. Each episode will focus on positive and productive ways to strengthen your mindset and help you improve your relationships, career goals, and overall well-being. Please welcome your host; Paul G. Markel.

*Professor Paul*

Welcome back to another Morning Mindset podcast and I hope that you've got your mind, right or at least that you're willing to get your mind right. I am your host Paul Markel. Thank you. Once again for joining me the title of today's Short episode is, do you really know? question mark yes question. Do you know something for a fact? Or were you just told how often do you limit your experiences or your potential? Because you allowed someone else to talk you out of it. You've allowed the opinions of other people too.
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Well influence your decision making, and this could be person to person or this could be via the Internet and unfortunately based upon the world that we live in many times people take things from the internet and they base their decisions upon the opinions of others. You may not. What with a person or you may not talk to a person or you may not interact with the person because someone told you that that person, blank. Whatever, it doesn't matter.
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They told you that that person is this, or that that person is that, or that person said this or that person did that or what have you. They told you that, you don't know for a fact that that's the case, but that's what someone else said. Or you were thinking about going somewhere or doing something and someone said well, you don't want to do that. Well, why not? Well because blankety blank-blank and we say, oh well, okay. Now I'm going to tell you that razor blades are sharp.
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I'm going to tell you that fire is hot. I'm going to tell you that it's not a good idea to stick a car key in a wall socket, okay. Trust me on that. You don't have to experience it for yourself to figure it out. But how often do you do that or do you maybe you don't maybe you're very, you know independent and fiercely independent. Maybe you're a stubbornly independent person and you have to find out for yourself. That's not necessarily a bad thing.
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Often we will limit our experiences. We will limit our potential. We will limit our opportunities not based upon what we know but upon what we've been told or upon rumor or opinion. Are you basing your choices? Whether it's career choices or life decisions on your own experience and education, or are you basing them on rumors and opinions that are given to you by other people and we need to be honest with ourselves here.
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Why is it that so many people will indeed give weight to the opinions or rumors or what-have-you of others? Why will they do that? Well, if we're honest with ourselves, and I think we need to be, we will probably admit that it's far easier just to not do something right and often we Embrace any excuse not to yes many of us do that. I think we're all guilty of it from time to time some more than others.
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What we will do is we will allow a rumor or an opinion or someone else's you know, what someone said or I well somebody told me this or I don't even know and how often do you end up in a position where you don't even remember the source of the opinion or the source of the rumor? It's just been going around, and so rather than take that step forward rather than take a risk rather than go out there and live your life. What you do is you use that as an excuse not to maybe there's a person out there that you've been avoiding or haven't been interacting with that is a good person.
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Maybe they can help you out. Maybe they can bring some value to your life. But you have an experience that person you haven't talked to that person. You haven't interacted with them because well someone said blank. Maybe you were thinking about venturing out taking a risk. Maybe you wanted to get a new job or maybe even thinking of changing career fields, and two adults and I when you're a kid, you just go crazy and you do everything, you’re like “Wow”, but then once you become an adult.
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You know, you're in your 20's and 30's and 40's, the thought of changing careers of leaving your current comfortable job and going somewhere else or doing something else is scary, and there are people who will try and talk you out of it. There are people who will say. "Oh, you don't want to do that." Well, why not? "Oh well because it's too risky or too this or too that" and do we let ourselves be talked out of it.
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People tell you well, you'll you're never going to be the next blankety blank-blank or you're never going to do that for a career. You'll never be able to you'll never be able to make a living doing that now if I told you today if I said into this microphone you won't be able to make a living V doing VCR repair. I'm probably telling the truth if I told you, you weren't going to make a living selling buggy whips you probably well.
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I don't know if you saw them at the Amish community. You can still so buggy whips but my point is this stop limiting your experiences. Stop limiting your potential because you're making decisions not upon what you know, but upon what you've been told. Do not allow other people's opinions and especially just rumors to negatively affect your decision-making. Base your experiences base your Ventures upon your own facts. Upon your own experience, your own education, go out and find out for yourself.
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As I said, I'm not telling you to stick a car key in a wall socket, you shouldn't do that. Fire is hot, water is wet, ice is slippery, razor blades are sharp. You don't need to run a razor blade across your hand just to test and see if it's sharp. Trust me. But stop limiting yourself and stop allowing other people to give you excuses not to have new and better experiences. Alright, that's all I got to say. Do you know do you really know or have you just been told?
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Alright, we are diving headfirst into this brand new year. I hope that you're excited about it, and don't forget. We do have an official website. It's called MorningMindsetPodcast.com. Yes, you put all those things together at a.com to it or just put in your favorite search engine, and if for some reason your normal podcast application isn't working or you can't access it. You can always go to our website and access the shows and if you would like an official Morning Mindset coffee mug, yes indeed, or a poster, or a copy of the book Morning Mindset: a 30 Day Plan for a More Positive and Productive Life.
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If you'd like any of those things you can get them from our website or if you just want a copy of the book with no signature on it. That's cool to go to amazon.com type in Paul Markel, P-A-U-L M-A-R-K-E-L and you will find it. I am your host and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

Thank you for spending time with us today. To get show notes, submit a topic request, for more from your host Paul G. Markel, visit MorningMindsetPodcast.com. That’s MorningMindsetPodcast.com. Please leave a review of this podcast on your favorite podcast player, we appreciate your time & effort, and we look forward to reading your honest feedback.

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MM219 - Cowboy Up Jan 03, 2019

Show notes

According to the Urban Dictionary, Cowboy Up means when things are getting tough you have to get back up, dust yourself off and keep trying. In the military, we say “harden the f*** up”.

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Hello, once again and welcome back to Morning Mindset. I am your host Paul Markel. I hope that you are still with me. I hope you're with me for the for the new year. If you are new if you just started, excuse me if you just started listening to Morning Mindset podcast that has a whole lot to discuss and you've got 200 plus episodes that you can go back and listen to.
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Now I'm going to remind you of something if for whatever reason your favorite podcast player has not refreshed or it's not up to date or for some reason. You can't get a hold of it. You can always go to Morning Mindset podcast.com that is actually our official website and all of the shows. Our archives there so you can do that, and if you'd like to get a copy if you'd like to get an autographed copy of the book Morning Mindset: a 30 Day Plan for a More Positive and Productive Life. You can do that by going to the website. Or are you just going to Amazon and Order yourself one. It won't have a signature on it, but you'll get it Prime shipping in a couple of days or if you're one of those digital dudes are dudettes.
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You can just get the book as an Amazon Kindle put it on your phone or your tablet or e-reader or take it with you everywhere you go. Alright, and now at the if you've been here a while if you've been with this show for several months, well this may all actually go back maybe six months or more. I said that I am not. Mr. Rogers. I am not Bob Ross. I am not the fictional Saturday Night Live character Stuart Smiley. I'm all about reality and sometimes reality is hard. Sometimes when you speak the truth, it hurts people's feelings because they don't want you to speak the truth. They want you to say what they want to hear. Now, I'm going to say every time I come to this microphone.
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I'm going to say what I believe needs to be said, but I'm not going to alter that and I'm not going to modify it because I think that someone might not want to hear. Now, you saw the title today's episode. It says Cowboy Up. I started seeing t-shirts with this slogan on it. Probably. I'm guessing about five years ago, maybe a little more. I remember going to 4-H Camp and hearing I think it was one of the nurses tell somebody that they needed to Cowboy Up. One of the camp nurses told one of the campers that they needed to Cowboy Up and it was the first time I had heard that and what it essentially means and if you want the Urban Dictionary definition, I'll give it to you according to the Urban Dictionary and you got to be careful when you go to the Urban Dictionary.
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This is one of those things you probably shouldn't do when your children around and hope your children aren't going there. But Cowboy Up means when things are getting tough you have to get. Dust yourself off and keep trying. Well, there's there's nothing. There's nothing R-rated about that Paul. Now, there's not Cowboy Up essentially means this and it goes and it from a literal translation a Cowboy is on a horse. Maybe he's in a rodeo and he gets thrown from his horse. Now, he could just, you know, kick the dirt and whine and cry and say this isn't any fair and I'm going to go home. But they don't because it Cowboy can't do that. Right? So for cowboy gets thrown from his horse or falls down or whatever. He's got to get up take off his hat dust himself off and get back up on the horse and keep doing it not make excuses.
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Not quit, not suck his thumb and go sit in the corner. He's got to keep on going now when I was in the military and well, I was a contractor and was working with young people. We had a phrase in there was a phrase that was thrown around. Of course, it wasn't thrown around in official classes because we weren't allowed to say squares and official classes, because our military is run now by, basically weak people, but the term that real serious infantry people Fighters Warriors in the military use is hardened the f*** up.
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Yes, it's miserable. Yes, it's raining. Yes. We're cold. Yes, we're hungry. Yes, the truck didn't show up with the Chow on it. Yes, we're going to have to walk farther. We're going to have to go over this mountain over this Hill Cross this River and it's going to suck but we all have to do it so hard in the f*** up and let's get the job done. Unfortunately, we live in a world where cowboy up or Harden the f*** up is frowned upon. We live in a world that will tell you that your own personal Comfort both physically and psychologically is the most important thing in the whole widest world.
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That's not how we get things accomplished. You cannot accomplish goals. You cannot accomplish missions. If the moment that the goal or the mission becomes uncomfortable or difficult or tough if the moment that happens you quit and say I don't want to do this anymore. It's no longer any fun. I thought this would be easy and I just discovered that it's not easy. Well if it's not going to be easy and I can't do it immediately and it can't be done in five minutes and I'm just not going to do it and that is the world that we live in. We live in a world that encourages people to quit the moment. They become uncomfortable.
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We live in a world that encourages people that the millisecond that they and God forbid get dirty or fall down or hurt their Bruiser Widow knees or what have you we live in a world of safe spaces and political correctness and all kinds of weakness and nonsense, and we try to pretend like this weakness and nonsense makes us more civilized and stronger and better as a society, but it doesn't it does exactly the opposite. Instead of teaching your children that all you don't like that. Oh, did it hurt? You? Whittle feelings will come over here, let mommy give you a hug. Oh, that's hard, that's difficult.
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You thought you were going to be able to buy a guitar pick it up and become a rock star the very next day how many guitars sit in the in the corner or in the closets all dusty and not use because we found out that that actually playing the guitar was tough, that you had to actually practice. How many as seen on TV Fitness AIDS? Whether it's the perfect push-up or the perfect shit up or the the the universal all in one gem or whatever how many of those things are in the closet sirs tucked up under the beds because well it's actually was hard and it didn't work immediately.
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So I just quit and put it away. How many of you have not reached your goals? Because when you realize that your goal was going to be more difficult or tougher than you thought it was going to be you stopped. I didn't think it was going to be that hard. You know, not everybody can be a United States Army Special Forces Soldier. Not everybody can wear a Green Beret not everybody can be part of force Recon or MARSOC or a Navy SEAL or you know why they can't it looks cool, but it's hard, and if you quit you don't get to do that you don't get to wear the Green Beret or the Trident or whatever. Sometimes in life.
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We need to encourage each other to Cowboy Up. We need to encourage each other. Yeah, you fell down you hurt your bruise your knee. You're dirty. You're tired. You're sweaty that happens Cowboy Up. Or in the military vernacular, which I'm most familiar and comfortable with we need to encourage each other to harden the f*** up and drive on, and you'll be amazed at what you can achieve if you will simply Embrace that phrase and if I wounded your spirit today by using the swear word, well, I do apologize for that.
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But there's nothing else that can be done about it. I don't swear. I don't use adult language gratuitously. I use it when it is proper and incorrect context and that is exactly what we did today because I'm not Mr. Rogers. I am Paul Markel, and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM218 - Are you a Victim? Jan 02, 2019

Show notes

You can be productive and independent or you can be a victim. The decision is up to you. Sadly, the victim card is so tempting and too easily accepted.

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Greetings and salutations. Welcome back to the Morning Mindset podcast. I am your host Paul Markel and we're going to continue on the brand new year on the Journey of a new year with a question. Are you a victim, and you say your knee-jerk reaction is “No”. Well if the answer is no, then stop acting like one. I feel like I have to address this because I've seen it far too often. I use often I use productivity tools and one of the productivity tools that's really not that productive at least for me anymore.
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But it's a thing called LinkedIn and many of you if your contractors or your business professionals. The reason that I have a LinkedIn account is that some of the other business professionals that I do business with they have them and I set it up. I don't know years and years ago. I don't use it that much often anymore because now I don't rely on other people for my jobs. I actually rely only upon myself, but I digress one of the things I started noticing. On LinkedIn was when people would put their status and I'm United States military veteran.
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I think I've spoken to that enough times for you guys to know that I served in the United States Marine Corps as an infantryman, and I did a bunch of other things as well, and I was in the first Gulf War with six Marines and we didn't know it was the first Gulf War at the time kind of like World War One, you know, when those guys were over there in Europe fighting in the trenches in World War 1. They didn't call it World War one because they didn't know it. I was the first one but I see military veterans, you know recently discharged military veterans, and in their LinkedIn accounts, they'll put things like “Disabled veteran”.
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Now, I know that that might seem like a wise thing to do, you're like "Oh, but Paul don't you know that there are certain companies and businesses and programs that if you hire disabled veterans, then you get tax breaks and so forth?" Are you calling yourself a disabled veteran? Are you calling yourself Disabled? Is that how you refer to yourself? He's like "Well, you know, what's wrong with that?" It's generally, that is embracing victimization. If this hurts your feelings is just too damn bad because I'm not here to worry about your feelings. I'm here to help you lead a positive and productive life and I am here to tell you that you cannot and you will not be able to lead a positive and a productive and an independent life if you Embrace victimization. Every human out there listening to me has different abilities.
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Some people are in wheelchairs some people use crutches. Some people don't some people lost limbs overseas. That sucks. You know what it doesn't mean that you are disabled for life. Does your mind still function properly? Are you able to speak and communicate with others? Yes, the answer is yes. You have something to contribute you are not a victim. I see in our modern world in our modern society a push a huge push for victimization the victim mentality. Everyone is a victim of an “ism” of sexism or racism or this is a more of that ISM many of the big rights movements of the 60s and 70s, maybe even go back to the 50s or whatever the rights movements started out.
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As you know, potentially productive and good things and we want equal rights for all people equal rights for men equal rights, you know for women equal rights for you know, whatever your skin color is and your ethnic background and you know, all that stuff. It seems on the face of it in the beginning that it is empowering, and we throw these words around all the time. You see in you here empowering Empower this Empower that but unfortunately what these movements devolve into is not Independence and empowerment and strength what they devolve to is these masses of victims.
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Rather than people saying yes, I'm going to take charge of my own life. I'm going to take charge of my own destiny. I'm going to work. I'm going to earn what I'd you know, just I'm going to deserve what I earn and learn what I deserve instead what these rights movements do is they create massive groups of victims. They make it easy for people to accept the victim card and fall prey to that, and if you have accepted the victim card if you put yourself if you will line yourself with another group of put-upon victims, you can't you are hindering yourself. Now. It's easy. It's part of the human condition human beings love their we have two brains.
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We have two minds. We have the weak mind and the strong mind we have the lazy mind in the productive mine. In the lazy week, productive mine says heck. Yeah. I'm a victim of *blank*. I'm a victim of something. something or someone or some group of people did me wrong and now I'm a victim, and because I'm a victim then it's not my fault that I don't work hard. It's not my fault that I'm not productive. It's not my fault that I don't have the job that I want to have that I don't have the life that I think I deserve because I'm a victim. That's bull crap, that's toro caca. The United States of America was not a country built by victims.
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It was a country built by people who said we're going to take charge of our own lives, and we're going to accept both our successes and our failures. We're not going to take our failures and blame them upon some other circumstance or some other group of people and say it's okay that I failed because it's not my fault. That is not how you lead a positive and productive life. My friends, I have a lot of acquaintances business partners friends close friends that have been in war and have lost body parts, and I'm proud that the vast majority of these people are productive individuals. Could you sit around and say woe is me, life sucks. It's not fair that this happened to me. It's not fair, you know, that I have red hair and freckles.
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I'm teasing them kidding. You sure that's easy. Anybody can do that. Anybody can sit back and whine and cry and say I'm a victim, therefore, it's not my fault. You can you know as an American as a human you can do that. I would recommend against it because you're never going to be happy victims are not happy people victims are miserable people because victims don't take charge of their own lives. You can't be independent. You can't lead a productive and positive life. If at the same time you are dwelling on victimization and that is sick and twisted, just what do you want to say and I'm keeping this family-friendly and I hope you appreciate that because tomorrow is not going to be so much.
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You can't live a positive and productive life if you've allowed yourself to buy into the victimization mentality. You know, what if you are a US military servicemen, if you're a veteran if you lost a leg or two legs, I have had the great Fortune of getting to know a US Army veteran a colonel who lost both of his legs from above the knee, bionic legs. Usually use a chair, sometimes crutches. Sometimes this guy has the most positive can-do spirit of any human you ever want to do encounter. He could sit around and say I'm a hundred percent disabled veteran and everyone needs to feel sorry for me poor me. Give me, give me, feel sorry for me.
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He could but he doesn't. Gets up every single day puts on his bionic legs. He puts on a happy face and he says let's get this job done. I'm going to have to struggle it's going to be harder than it used to be but I'm going to do it. You don't have to be a victim. You don't have to buy into other people may have told you other people may have said, you know, wow life really wasn't fair to you. It sucks. You should you know, you have every right to sit in the corner and pout and you can and maybe you should for a little bit but get out of that corner.
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It's time to start leading a positive and productive life. It's time to be independent. It's time to be strong and you cannot do that. If at the same time, you're calling yourself disabled, you're calling yourself a victim stop referring to yourself as disabled stop referring to yourself or thinking of yourself as a victim of something that's is where you're going to start. That's we're going to start right now today for brand new year no more victimization. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, I'm your host Paul Markel, and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

MM217 - Take Time Off to Refresh Jan 01, 2019

Show notes

It is okay to take time off to refresh and rejuvenate your mind and body. This is one of the hardest things to do for small business owner and contractors.

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Hello, and if you are listening to these in chronological order and you are following the calendar, happy New Year, welcome to a brand new year a brand-new year of mourning mindset, and we're actually we're approaching our actual one year anniversary. I'm pretty sure. That it was January 15th of 2018 when we launched this adventure, I believe that's the case so welcome to a brand new year take time off to refresh. Yes indeed, that is what we just did. I just did that during the Christmas break and it's okay to take time off to refresh and rejuvenate your mind and body.
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This is one of the hardest things to do for people who are small business owners or contractors people who work for themselves or people who work under contract because you're like time is money, money is time if I'm not working. I'm not making money. It's not so hard actually for people that have if you have a normal 9 to 5 40 hour week job with you know, scheduled vacations and so forth, and then your time off is already pre-planned for you. But for those of you who are out there and you maybe you have two jobs.
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Maybe you have a full-time job and you have another job that you do for fun or extra money or what have you and it's very easy. To feel like you're wasting your time or if you take time off you feel like I'm wasting my time or I feel guilty or what have you need to know when to work and when to take time off and I know this may seem silly to some people, but I know a lot of folks out there. Especially young folks that are trying to get ahead. You know you want to be recognized by your company.
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You want to be recognized by your peers you want to advance you want to go get that promotion and so forth in your work work work work work work work and especially at this time of the year in my field of endeavor. There are a lot of people in my peer group that are killing themselves because it is trade show season. Yes, Trade Show Season is just about to officially kick off and when trade show season comes along people are working long hours extra hours extra meetings extra planning extra travel and so on.
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That's because of that fact that's one of the reasons that a lot of experience larger companies will give their people time off before the trade show season begins because they want them to be what they want them to be fresh and rejuvenated and they say go home take time off don't answer emails. Don't don't text or tweet or whatever just relaxed because we're going to need you. In a few weeks. Why do we need to do this? Why do you mean you're like “Paul, you said at the very beginning that the show was all about, you know positive and productive, and how can I be productive if I'm taking time off? How can I be productive if I'm not answering emails?"
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Your body let's say I'm going to use a fitness and strength reference here. How do you strengthen your body, like how do you grow muscles? You grow muscles by stressing them, right? You have to stress your muscles, you have to work your muscles. You actually have to overload your muscles, and when you overload your muscles, when you stress them, they will respond by growing and expanding and net that will make you stronger. That's how the human body works. But in addition to that, if you are on a strength training program and you have a good coach or a mentor, they will remind you that part of your strength training is sleep. You say odd doesn't make any sense at all.
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You know, how is how to sleep make you stronger? It is actually during your deep cycle sleep pattern that your body repairs itself. It doesn't repair itself because you're laying on the couch watching TV. It doesn't repair itself because you're sitting at the table, you know, it repairs itself when you're sleeping. It sounds funny or counter-productive. You're like, "Well I want to be strong. So I've got to work(x5). Also in addition to that, if you are serious about gaining strength, you can't you won't gain strength if you go to the gym every day. Many people when they decide they say "I'm going to this is my resolution. I'm going to do it, I'm smart, I'm intelligent, I have motivation. I'm going to the gym every day. I'm going to go five times, you know a week."
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Your body cannot grow your muscles can't grow now. You can increase your cardiovascular endurance by going five times a week. You absolutely can but if you're trying to grow strength trying to grow your muscles, they can't because they don't have time to rest. They don't have time to grow. Your mind, your productive mind is the same way. If you try and force your mind to go(x6), produce(x4). Every day and if you take time off, then you're wasting your time. If you don't answer emails that you know within 30 seconds of the moment they arrive you're wasting your time, you're not being productive.
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You're not going to get that promotion. Calm down, calm down. Eventually what you will reach as you'll reach a point O overload and you'll be worthless to everyone including yourself. part of being productive. Is knowing when to work when it's important to work and also when it's important to take time off. Just like growing your muscles. You have to sleep. Yes, you know part and as that's a great thing about strength training program is your coaches recommend that you eat and your coaches recommend that you sleep and it's okay to take naps. That's right.
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It's absolutely within the training program. To take naps. My wife's Akiko and take a nap, and I said yes, I am is part of my program training regimen my coach told me that I should take a nap, but seriously, ladies and gentlemen, if you hope to lead a positive and a productive life, you need to have balance and you need to figure out when it's time to work and when it's time to. Take a break, turn off your phone. Tell everyone "Look if it's an emergency, call 9-1-1. I'm not answering emails. I'm not answering texts. I'm going to put my phone away and I'm going to go read a book or take a walk or do whatever."
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Alright, so this is me telling you that it is okay sometimes to take some time off, refresh and rejuvenate. There's too many R's right there. You want to rest your mind, you want to rejuvenate your body. Alright, that's it for today. Ladies and gentlemen welcome to a brand new year. I'm excited. We're going to do lots and lots of good things in this new year. I am your host Paul Markel and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM216 - Resolutions, Goals, and Challenges Dec 31, 2018

Show notes

The term “resolution” has become a bit of a joke, or a punchline, due to the fact that most people make and break them in a very short time. We will take a close look at resolutions, goals, and challenges to help us improve our lives.

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Welcome back to the Morning Mindset podcast. I'm your host Paul Markel, and I hope that during the last week or so. If you're listening to these live, if you're listening to them sometime in the future, the date doesn't really matter. But we took some time off around Christmas time over the Christmas break spend some time with our families and I hope that everyone out there in the audience that you have the opportunity to take some time off to spend the holiday season with your family and relax and enjoy. The holiday season if just for a little while now as I record this and as this is going out it is time to flip over the calendars and begin a brand new year.
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What do people do what people talk about when December 31st rolls around, as the end of the year rolls around, people take stock in their lives. They think about what they did what they accomplished what they wish they would have accomplished. During the previous year and then they look forward to the new year and often we hear people making resolutions. Unfortunately, the reality of our world is that the term resolution has become a bit of a joke or a punchline. It's something that late night, you know night talk show comedians for a couple of days. We'll talk about resolutions and jokes and so forth and why is that? Why has the term resolution become a punchline or a joke?
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Well, it is because most people make them and break them in a very short period of time whether it's a day or a week or a month, but what is a resolution what is what does it mean to resolve? Essentially a resolution is a promise that you make to yourself. When we talk about resolutions, generally we're not resolving that we're going to do something for someone else we're going to do something for ourselves. It's a promise that we make to ourselves. It's a challenge that we make to ourselves and unfortunately, many of us fall very short during that. But just because the resolution has become a punchline, doesn't mean that it's not worthwhile.
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Think of resolutions as goals. We've talked about a previously on this show what short-term goals and Midterm goals and long-term goals, and whether or not it is a goal for let's say your resolution is to blank you want to improve your life. Somehow during the New Year. and you took a look in the mirror, and you said I need, whatever. I need to get a new job, I need to get a better job. I need to make more money, or maybe I need to fix my finances or I need to quit smoking or I want to lose weight. I want to get healthier or stronger or have a better relationship with my spouse a better relationship with my children, whatever it happens to be. That's great.
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These are promises that we make to ourselves now when you set a goal if it's a specific goal, let's say you want to buy a new house this year you want to buy a house for the first time ever and you know, your lender said you have to have a minimum of $5,000 down before you can get the loan. So that is a very definite and specific goal. Your goal is to earn X now other times we say well I want to. Lose weight or I want to dis or that now the goal is important but just as important as the goal is the journey toward the goal because if you're serious about it, if you're serious about meeting your goals, whether they're short or mid or long-term goals, then what you will do.
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If you're serious about achieving your goals is you will alter your behavior in order to achieve those goals. That's what challenges are often. We see and challenges become the new buzzword and quite frankly YouTube and the internet are wearing it out there wearing out the word challenge and they're watering it down and it's becoming almost pointless but challenges if you challenge yourself. You're challenging yourself. You are saying to yourself. I want to make a change. I want to make an improvement. I want to discipline myself. I want to lead a more positive and productive life and that's fantastic. Now often we fall by the wayside and we get disappointed with ourselves and that is one of the reasons why resolutions get broken.
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People will say okay my resolution for this new year as I'm going to quit smoking cigarettes, right and they do good. They do well for a couple days and then the third day in they break down and they smoke a cigarette. Now what most people will do unfortunately is they'll break their resolution and they'll say well that was nice. I broke my resolution. I'm done. I might as well go right back to where I was before. What doesn't have to be the case, you know, let's say your resolution is I'm going to go to the gym three times a week every week all year long and by February 1st, you find that you've gone once or twice or three times in the entire month.
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You say well, I broke my resolution. I might as well quit and go back to the way I was no, you don't have to just because you quote break and that's the thing about these New Year's resolutions is people think "Well, I broke my resolution. So that's it for the year. I'll try again in another 11 months. I'll try it again", but doesn't have to be the case, and you shouldn't expect that you're going to be perfect. I saw a picture. I was on the internet and it was a picture of a basically a fit or trim person and it showed them slowly morphing into an overweight, obese person and it said this end the title was it said: "This did not happen overnight." It didn't happen in a week or a month.
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Even it took you 20 years from in 20 years. You went from being a physically fit person of you know, recommended weight to wherever you are now and maybe your maybe you that's not your problem. Maybe you're very physically fit right now, but what people expect. It took you 20 years to get to the point where you are 48 pounds overweight or whatever you feel is, you know overweight, and what we do to ourselves as we say, well I'm going to resolve and I'm going to challenge and I'm going to make myself. I'm going to be thin again, and they think that they're going to do it in 30 days. You know, it took you years to get to that position, that point and you think that in 30 days you're going to make this huge change? That's not how people work.
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Maybe you've been smoking for 20 years and you want to quit. All right, you can quit you should quit but it's not going to happen overnight and you're going to stumble but just because you stumble does not mean now that you have you have an excuse and that is what we do as a society. We stumble and the very first time we stumble or the very first time that we fall short on our resolution or our path to our goal or our challenge or whatever the first time we stumble we use that as an excuse to quit.
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Like "Hell, I broke my resolution, was nice while it lasted but I'm just going to go right back to where I was." No, you don't have to go right back to where you were. You don't have to go back to those negative or bad habits. Stop using it as an excuse. How many times have you heard that either from yourself or from others? Oh, yeah. Well, you know my new year my resolution was I was going to do blank. But then, you know, I was going to cut out sweets or I was going to cut out was it going to drink soda anymore wasn't going to eat, you know cookies or sweets anymore.
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How is doing well for a few days and then you know I came home and I was tired and I had a bad day and and I ran for the cookie jar and and well, that's it. What do you mean that's it? Well, I broke my resolution. So it's okay and if we can be completely and totally honest with each other. How many of us have broken resolutions just so that we would have an excuse to go back to The Way We Were. did I slap you in the face with some cold reality? Yeah, that's true. So here's the deal. If you're serious, give yourself a break.
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You know, you're going to stumble, it's okay. But if you're genuinely serious about your resolution, about the promise and think about like that when you hear the term resolution, think of it like this a resolution is a promise that you make to yourself. It's an agreement that you make with yourself. You're going to go for a new goal or a challenge or what have you? So just because you stumble just because you fall just because you break your New Year's resolution doesn't mean it's time to quit and go right back to where you were pick yourself up off the ground and drive on. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, well as my calendar is said this is going to go out on New Year's Eve, and so I will talk to you guys again next year. I'm your host Paul Markel, talk to you real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM215 - Best Xmas Present Ever? Dec 21, 2018

Show notes

A common question during the holiday season is, what was the best Christmas present you ever received? That took me some time to think about. But, I have an honest and thoughtful response to that inquiry.

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Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Ho ho ho! Welcome back to the Morning Mindset podcast, and if you're listening to these in order as they are released chronologically per the calendar. It is almost Christmas as a matter of fact, I believe if my show notes are right that this episode. We'll be releasing right before Christmas weekend Christmas weekend. 2018 and if you're listening to these episodes in the future, well, hello future man, or woman welcome from the past. But and also we will be dark Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
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A little bit of Showbiz Ligety for you guys there we will be dark on those days. So, what was the best Christmas present you ever received or what was the best Christmas present ever people ask this, you know pretty frequently around the holiday season people will say oh, what's the best present you ever got or you know, what have you and of course there is the expected answer your you could think what if you're an adult with children and a spouse then you're supposed to stop and think "Hmm, I should say whatever gift it was that my wife or husband gave me or then you say well, they expect me to say whatever the macaroni picture that my child made in first grade. That was my favorite one ever."
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What have you, these are the expected answers or you could say the birth of our Savior. Jesus Christ is the best present ever and that is, of course, something that is expected of you. But that doesn't really take a whole lot of thought doesn't matter of fact, it takes only the thought of figuring out what other people want to hear and that's the problem that we encounter in our world is often when people ask us questions, Rather than giving them an honest answer we stop and try and think what do they want to hear? What do they want to hear? Do they do they want to hear X, Y, or Z or is that the actual answer?
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Now I thought about this, I gave it some honest thought what was the best Christmas present ever or some of the best presents? You know when you're a child you get toys and so forth, and when you're an adult you get practical things like wool socks and ties and underwear and shirts and stuff like that. Like, you know, I got you something. I knew you needed, and your wife's like I know you need new underwear. So here you go there in multiple colors, but what are some of the best presents I've ever received.
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Well, I'll tell you thinking back to when I was a young child as opposed to an old child when I was young. I received a Playmobil. If you guys know what Playmobil is Knights of the Round Table playset and if memory serves me there were either six or eight nights, and they had all the accouterments it came with they had little horses and swords and Lance's and helmets and Shields and there was like a little round actually wasn't around table. That was a rectangular table, but there was a throne and I'm sure that there's a crown for the king and so, and I law when I was a kid when I was a young child in the 70s. I loved Playmobil stuff and my absolute number one favorite thing. When was the Playmobil Knights of the Round Table or night or whatever it was?
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They called it the knights set, and I would sit on the, you know when I got that Christmas morning, I ripped into that thing and I opened it up. I got all the little figures out and all the little horses and everything and I laid there on the floor of the living room by the Christmas tree and I played with that thing for hours. Why because it inspired my imagination there is no batteries. Nothing lit up. You know that it did they didn't make sounds, there is nothing electronic about them. They didn't make sounds it didn't make lights. There's no app to plug in there was no online upgrade to come up with then when I was older my parents knew that I was and then I got into The Dungeons and Dragons thing and so I would go to the Hobby shop.
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I think it was called Hobby Lobby or, Hobby Kingdom. The Hobby Kingdom or whatever and they had these little LED figurines dwarves and elves and nights and fair maidens and monsters and Orcs and goblins and all that stuff, and of course, when you bought them they were just plain. Gray, you know their unfinished and what I did in on Junior High I got the little testers paint kits and I painted them various colors and all that stuff and my parents knew that I was into that when I was in junior high and they bought me this set.
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It was a Roman legion set and it had all the little legionnaires and chariots and tiny little figures and you could make dioramas and what have, and I remember that because I got that and I thought it was fantastic and I painted each, you know, all the little characters I painted them and and so forth and I would set up scenes and what have you and when I was you know, the thing about Dungeons dragons is the original most kids don't understand this today. They don't realize it because they all have Xboxes and PlayStations or Wii's whatever, but Dungeons & Dragons really required a tremendous amount of thoughtful creativity and imagination because it wasn't all laid out and played out for you.
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I mean you had your little figures and you had your cards and you had so forth, but most of it was in your imagination, and so thinking about the greatest Christmas presents that I ever received. At least when I was a child, the greatest Christmas presents that I ever received were those that caused me or required me or inspired me to use my imagination whether it was the little Playmobil said or a little figurines or what have you, and I guess I had an active imagination or whatever you want to call it when I was a kid, but thinking about that and I would spend hours and hours.
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I mean that I when I was in elementary school, I was in elementary school. I was probably well. I know I was I was 10 years old the year that Star Wars came out and we went to see in the movie theater and it was the greatest thing at my ten-year-old eyes had ever witnessed. It was phenomenal it changed my life, and so I immediately assumed well as soon as they're available. I discovered that there were Star Wars action figures and so of course, you know, 10-year-old me, 11-12-year-old me there. I am and I had the Star Wars action figures and the reason the Star Wars action figures, the same thing, you know and inspired my, and that's what I would say.
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Now you can do whatever you want. I don't care, maybe it was a football. There's a little football, maybe was a Red Ryder BB gun. I don't know. I never got a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas. I was surprised although I gave my child one. I was able to give my youngest child. I gave him a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas many many many years ago. At least for me my honest thoughtful response to that inquiry. What's the best Christmas present ever? Well, if you're talking about sitting, you know at the base of a Christmas tree with all the bright lights and shiny tinsel and ornaments and stuff the best Christmas present I ever got or those that inspired my imagination.
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There you go, that is my honest answer to you freaks out there. I hope that you have a wonderful holiday weekend Christmas New Year's whatever it is that you're celebrating, you know, maybe you're celebrating Leif Eriksson day or. What do they do on Seinfeld it a Festivus. I've got over again. Maybe you're celebrating Festivus just year, but regardless, I am your host Paul Markel and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM214 - What Lifts you Up? Dec 20, 2018

Show notes

We all get down or feel down. That is natural. We should focus on and remember things that lift us back up and make us feel good. What in your life lifts you up? Try to spend more time focusing on that. (Filter: Take a Picture, playing my guitar, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

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Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Hello and welcome back to Morning Mindset, I got it right that time. That's right. I am your host Paul Markel. Thank you, once again for joining me for this show for sharing this with other people for leaving comments on your favorite podcast application. Whatever that happens to be today. We're going to talk about what lifts you up. We all get down. We all feel down at certain times we go through highs and lows in our lives. That's what life is all about. That's natural.
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But what we need to focus on is not so much the things that get us down or when we do get down when we feel low when we feel bummed out when we feel like we don't want to get out of bed or we don't want to do anything, what have you. Need to focus on things that lift us up? What lifts you up? What makes you feel good? Put you back on your feet, again, Julie Andrews. She sung are saying about it in The Sound of Music.
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That's right, it was called favorite things and you older people understand this and you know these younger people are like, what is he talking about raindrops on roses and Whispers on whiskers on kittens, not Whispers and warm woolen mittens. Those are a few of her favorite things when the dog bites when the bee stings when she's feeling sad. She simply remembers her favorite things and then she doesn't feel so bad. That's an actually a concept that's pretty old. But how often do we think about that?
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How often when you're feeling down when you get down when you just win the blues have taken a hold of you. Do you have a plan in place to bring you out of it? Or do you just kind of float along? I know I've been guilty of this. Sometimes I've gotten down or felt like, you know, what's the point and I don't have a plan or I didn't put a plan into action. What I want you guys to do is I want you to think about that now it's easy to feel good when everything is going well course, it's natural when you encounter something that makes you, legitimately, seriously just it uplifts you.
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It makes you feel good. I don't know what it is, it could be a song. It could be a picture that you look at it could be an episode of a television show. They're the office is a classic American television show. I know it was British first, but no one cares about that. There are certain episodes of the I like the office. It's been off the air for a while now, but it's still available on Netflix and there are certain episodes of the television show The Office that actually just make me feel good. There are certain songs that just instantly it's like an adrenaline rush. It's like a stiff drink or what have you makes me feel good. For instance. The band filter has a song called take a picture. That when I listen to that song it instantly lifts me up.
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They're older songs that lift me up. For instance. I talked yesterday about Stairway to Heaven Sarah to have an instantly lift me up because it transforms me back to where I was at the time and I think about that that makes me feel good. Playing my guitar as I said before I'm not I don't claim to be a musician by any stretch of the imagination and I don't play for other people, but when I have the opportunity I sit down by myself, and I play and I don't think about other things. That's the great thing. That's the greatest thing about musical instruments is that when you're focusing on the instrument itself and focusing on trying to hit the right chords and hit the right strings and all of that stuff.
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When you're focusing on that, you're not focusing on anything else. You're not focusing on what's got you down or depressed or angry or frustrated or what have you when I'm playing my guitar. I don't think about what's on Facebook or social media or anything as think about the good stuff. What lifts you up? Maybe it's a passage that you have read or a poem or a song or what have you something that I when I if I'm feeling depressed or if I'm feeling like extremely frustrated. I guess. I like to read Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. If you guys don't know what Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, it was actually turned into a song many many years ago.
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But it's a time for everything and it explains an ecclesiastic that includes you a sees that as humans who inhabit this Earth. There's not only time for happiness. There's also time for sadness. There's not a time for us, for death, but for birth. Birth and death happiness and sadness peace and War there's a time for all things under heaven and when I read that, I reread it. I'm in a pretty much have it memorized by now, but I'll go back and I'll read it. It makes things and puts things into perspective. Sometimes we just need some perspective in our life.
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Sometimes when we get down or feeling down or we're bummed out, we just need something to kick-start us to give us that little bit of perspective to make things seem like they're not all that bad. Just like Julie Andrews song sang about or something about what is the correct pronunciation is she sing. She sang she sung. My English professors. I hope they're not listening to this right now. But so. What I want you guys to do when you're feeling good when you're feeling up when you're feeling upbeat and you encounter something and there may be things that you've never thought about. You know, what I forgot about that song Or that passage or that book or that show or whatever set yourself a plan.
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Set up a defense mechanism or a defense plan create your own defensive plan against the blues that sometimes we all need to sing the blues and sometimes singing the blues is just part of life and I understand that you know, that's something that Darryl taught Michael singing the blues is sometimes part of life. There's an office joke for you guys for those who get it, Congratulations.
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If you don't don't know what to tell you. So what lifts you up and when you find something that lifts you up make a mental note of it so that the next time you need to enact your your plan your defensive plan against the blues you can go and do that thing, and appreciate that thing for what it is whether it's a song whether it's a passage whether it's a book whether it's a musical instrument, whatever it is, maybe it's just petting your dog.
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I don't know but think about that consider what it is in your life that lifts you up. All right, ladies and gentlemen, that's all I have for you today. Thank you. Once again for being a part of the Morning Mindset audience. I hope you're enjoying it. I hope you're sharing it with others. Don't be greedy. Don't be greedy. Share this show with other people. I'm sure that there's at least one person that you know, that would get something out of this show, and if you'd like to leave us a message or write us a letter or what have you go to MorningMindsetPodcast.com and you can do that, and if you'd like to get a copy of the book it's available on Amazon, or you can get signed copies from our website. All right, that's it. That's all I have for you guys today Merry Christmas. Happy New Year, and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM213 - The Staying Power of Kindness Dec 19, 2018

Show notes

We remember those who have wronged us, but we should remember those who have treated us with kindness. Being kind is not just niceness. Sometimes kindness is honesty.

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*
Hello and welcome back to... I almost said the other the name of my other show, but welcome back to Morning Mindset. Yes, I need to remind myself. I need to get myself in a Morning Mindset type of mood before I hit record on the digital recording software that we use here in our studio. Alright, today I'm going to share something personal with you. You're welcome. A lot of people I would say most people probably have a song or a group of songs a playlist that defines their time in high school or their time as a young person.
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I have actually several songs. There are several songs that if they come on the radio or if I find them on my phone or a search for them deliberately that I can be transported right there. Right back to where I was at that time when I was listening to it, and one of those songs is Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven and if you're an old codger like me, you're like, "Duh, that's everybody song." But if you're a young crumb crunching Millennial, you're like what that old classic rock song from that old band Led Zeppelin. Yeah, now the reason that I mean other than the obvious that the fact that it is a monster ballad, why Stairway to Heaven means something to me.
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That's because when I went to high school in Detroit, I started high school at the time. It was the early 1980s and if you know anything about music history Stairway to Heaven was released in the late 70s, it became a monster hit and the DJ's that DJ'd is high school dances. That song was chosen to be the final dance of the Night song and I don't know how long they had been doing it before I went to high school there and I don't know how long they continue to do it after I was gone. But while I was there Stairway to Heaven and it’s a long song was the that was the signal that this is the last dance of the night. Now in modern times, people would be like, oh that's a stupid song and, you know, dance to that and the fact of the matter is it wasn't really it was a slow song but it wasn't a slow song.
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It was a slow song that got faster didn't matter. It didn't matter. Now. The reason that that song means so much to me. Is I recall the Freshman mixer if you guys don't know what a mixer is. This is something that they used to do in the old days before the Advent of Facebook and Snapchat and Instagram and all of these Modern Marvels they wanted. Freshman to get to know each other and to get comfortable with their new school because why because well the fact is the majority of the people that were at the high school didn't go to elementary school or junior high together.
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Now I know many areas of the country, you know, you go to elementary school with the same group of kids and then you go to Junior High with the same group of kids and you go to high school with the same group of kids and you know each other from kindergarten through graduation, but when I was going we had a lot of small parochial elementary schools all over the Greater Detroit area, and then we had just a couple handful of high schools, and so all these small parochial Elementary and that basically they went K-8 schools.
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You would all get together in this one school and you only knew maybe 20 or 30 people when you actually started your freshman year. So they would have this thing called a freshman mixer and it was a dance and it was only for freshmen because they didn't want the freshmen to be overwhelmed or intimidated by the upperclassmen. Now the people who put it together in addition to teachers obviously was the student council the freshman, sophomore, junior, senior student council members. They put it together, they organized it in all that, and I remember during the Freshman mixer, asking two senior girls. I know I was 14, I asked two senior girls not the same time separately. To dance. and they both did and it was like I was dancing with angels.
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I was so far out of my league, but you know what? They said. Yes, they danced with me out there on the gymnasium floor in our socks because you weren't allowed to wear Street shoes on the gym floor, and their names were Janice McPhee and Patty Duffer. He says wow, Paul. How long ago is that Ben? It's been a while take today's date and go back to the fall of 1981, and that's how long it's been. Why do I remember them and why do we remember that dancing water? Remember that because ladies and gentlemen, they were kind. To me every freshman every 13, 14, 15-year-old doesn't matter whether you're a boy or girl. You're self-conscious. You're awkward and I was no different but even though I was an awkward skinny 14-year-old freshman.
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These senior girls. Do you guys remember that? Can you can you recall when you were 13 or 14 or even 15 years old looking at the seniors a high school seniors and they just seem so old and wise and mature and so far out of your league, even though today it's funny because if you look at someone that's three or four years older and you're like, yeah, whatever no big deal but back then, you know when you're that young. But those two girls and they're obviously grown women now, but they were kind to me, and I remember that kindness all these years later now kindness doesn't always have to be about just niceness or being you know, smiling and you know false niceness sometimes kindness can just be Honesty.
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When I was in infantry school, and I was in the Infantry School in the Marine Corps the sergeant who was in charge of my assault section and I was in assault man so we had an assault section the sergeant who was in charge was a salty infantry marine and he took the time and I talked about him before his name was Fred Sizemore sergeant. He took the time not only to teach us what he was supposed to teach us what it said in the, you know, but he also had the 3-ring binder that said teach these kids this these are the subjects you need to cover. These are the tests. You need to give this is what you have to do according to the rules. He did more than that, and he was honest with us. He told us he said there's the way they say things are, and there's the way things really are in the Infantry in the Marine Corps.
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He told us that the Marine Corps you as you might think it's big. It's a large organization. He said but the Marine Corps is a small organization in the global scheme of things and the Infantry is even smaller. He said you might think that you can screw someone over here and you'll never see them again. I said but you will be said or you could treat someone right and do the right thing because then you'll end up in a unit with them a year or two or so from now and you'll already have a relationship established with them the moment you arrived, and Fred Sizemore was absolutely right everywhere. I went in the Marine Corps every base.
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I checked into or checked on to every unit I was a part of, I ended up at some point in time running into or being stationed with people, Marines, infantrymen that I had known previously. Now Sergeant Sizemore did not, he would not fit the I guess the general textbook description of kind or kindness, but he was kind to us because he was honest with us and he told us exactly what we could expect out of our new lives out of our lives as Marine Corps infantrymen, and I remember that. I remember that to this day. I remember his name and I remember how he treated us because of the staying power of kindness often. We remember and we dwell on those who have wronged us. It's human nature.
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Everyone does it I do it you do we all do it. But what we should be doing is we should be dwelling on we should be remembering we should be thinking fondly of. Those who have treated us with kindness. Now those people that I just mentioned here, they probably didn't think anything of it. They probably, those wonderful young women who were kind enough to dance with an awkward freshman. They probably don't sit at home thinking about that dance or about that freshman they danced with.
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Sergeant Sizemore probably had hundreds, if not thousands of young Privates and PFCs go through his school there were in his in the assault section while he was stationed with the school of the Infantry there on Camp Geiger. He probably doesn't remember me as an individual. But that's okay cuz I remember them remember them all. Things that you do that you don't think anything about May resonate with others. If you are honest, if you are kind if you are considerate to other people you have no idea that could resonate with them and stick with them for years and years. There is a definite staying power to kindness. So give it a try. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, I am your host Paul Markel and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM212 - Appreciate Good Service Dec 18, 2018

Show notes

How often do you take the time to truly appreciate good service? Do you show appreciation or do you just expect it as a given? Praise in public, correct in private.

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Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

Alright, let's get right into it. Welcome back to another episode of Morning mindset podcast and we are on I heart radio and iTunes and Stitcher and all those good things. But if for some reason your favorite podcast player is not working that morning or that afternoon you can always go directly to our dedicated website and the dedicated website is MorningMindsetPodcast.com and the audio links will be there as well as the show notes and all the other good stuff, and if you'd like to send us a message or ask a question or what have you. You can do so directly from our dedicated website. How easy is that? Super easy, yes indeed.

When is the last time that you took the time to truly appreciate good service? Have you taken that time and have you gotten any good service lately? Have you done business with a company that went above and beyond? Have you eaten at a restaurant or shopped at a store where they went above and beyond the norm to give you good service a good product a good experience. Good service. Do you show your appreciation or do you just expect that as a given you're like, “Well, that's their job, they should be doing it right and I'm not going to thank them for doing their job, right?” You can be that way. It's true.

The fact that matter is we live in a world where unfortunately more people will complain than praise. Unfortunately the fact that that's why that is why when you have a podcast like I do there's a reason why folks like me and all the others that do podcasts and television shows and all that on demand stuff. That will actually ask you we will say if you enjoyed Today's Show, please leave a review. Because unfortunately, the reality is most people if they have a good experience. They just appreciate that experience in their own heart.

They think oh that was a good experience and I'll go back again, but they don't say anything about. But those who feel that they were slighted that they didn't get a good experience somehow that it was a bad experience or they didn't get exactly what they wanted when they wanted it. Well, they'll complain it seems that the only time you hear from people is when they have something to complain about. Now Morning Mindset is all about leading a positive and productive life and one of the ways to lead a positive and productive life is not just to be a complainer.

That's what everyone does that's the easy default to the world people only speak up when they have something negative to say. Do you want to be that person? Do you want to be the person that only speaks up that only says something when they have something bad to say do you ever have anything good to say have you ever taken the time to let someone know even if it's a complete stranger that they did a good job and that you appreciate it. It's also a sign of maturity. It's also a sign of mental maturity for you to thank people that do a good job and genuinely mean it.

We've had a really positive experience. Since we moved to Wyoming since my family moved to Wyoming we move the entire business up here to Wyoming, and the first year we were here we decided that we wanted to give out a Christmas gift baskets to our friends and family members, and we wanted to do something special something, you know from the West something that represented or the west and Wyoming we found a company called the Wyoming Buffalo company or. IO Buffalo.com, and my wife it was it was her job. It was her job to come up with with the gift baskets and arrange them and you know, send them out and so forth, and she was having kind of a hard time.

She actually tried several different companies and she got really super frustrated. She was extremely frustrated all she wanted to do was send out gift baskets to our friends and family members and. She found out that she was being led down these click-bait sites or that they were their bait and switch in you know, they would say oh, you know, this gift basket is $29.99 you like what seems like a good deal and then you find out that it's $20 shipping or that that gift basket is a limited thing and the actual one is $49.99 and so on and so.

Well, my wife stumbled across this company called the Wyoming Buffalo Company, and what Wyoming Buffalo does is they send out gift baskets and all kinds of Western Americana type stuff like meat that's right and sauces and salsa and all these there's just too much stuff to mention. Well, they took care of her. The woman she called her up and she said hey, I'm having a hard time. I need some help and she said what can I do for you?

This and she was fantastic and so actually during this year my when it was not Christmas time. My wife sent her a card sent her note said hey, I just wanna let you know that I really appreciate all the effort that you put into helping me for going the extra mile. We had one situation where a gift basket got lost in shipping. It would Som something happened the shippers lost. It didn't send it. What have you and the person that we were sick because we send everyone a heads up or like heads up?

There's a package coming. Let us know when you get it and the person said I never. Received anything and they should have gotten it. So we call the folks. My wife. Did she call the folks at this company Wyoming Buffalo Company and she should arms terribly sorry that that happened and she put together and shipped out a replacement basket that day? Wasn't her fault wasn't the company's fault. It was the shipper's fault because they were morons and they lost it, but that didn't do us any good. Matter of fact she shipped it before we even gave her payment. This Christmas season and all year long. Take the time to let people know when they do a good job.

It's a sign of maturity on your part and it'll probably be a relief on their part because let's face facts most of the time if you have a small business if you work in a restaurant or store or shop, the only time you hear from people is when they have something bad to say do you want to be that person do you want to be the person that only speaks up when they have something negative or bad to say? I hope not that's not what this show is all about.

I'm not and I'm not saying to ignore, you know, somebody screws up or does something bad or poor you get bad service. I'm not saying to ignore that but don't let that be the only time that you speak up. Somebody goes a good job. Let him know, tell them that you appreciate it. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, that is all I have for you for today. Thank you very much for joining me. I am your host Paul Markel and I will talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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MM211 - Wear Out Your Shoes Dec 17, 2018

Show notes

Wearing out a pair of running shoes is actually a good thing. If you purchased quality shoes, when they wear out it means that you have actually used them.

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Episode Transcription

[INTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

*Professor Paul*

Hello and welcome back to Morning Mindset podcast. I am your host Paul Markel. Thank you. Once again for being a part of this show for sharing it for listening for applying it in your life. All those good things that today we're going to talk about something that is well. Actually, it occurred to me kind of by accident recently. I was playing my guitar now. I'm not a musician by any stretch of the imagination. I own a guitar and I like to sit down and strum the strings and make some noise and it's just for me.

It's not for anyone else, but. I looked at my guitar pick a pick that I've had for I don't know several months and it had the original company logo or brand on it and I looked at that pick and I realized that there was just a tiny tiny little bit of the original. I can't remember which brand it was is a black pick and it had a white logo on it. But the logo is basically gone now it's worn off and I realized obviously that. The reason that the logo is worn off of the pick is because I've used it because I've had it in my you know held in my right hand and I've been using it quite a bunch and I was also looking at the guitar and I thought I'm probably going to have to replace these strings pretty soon now from a financial standpoint.

You might be thinking. Oh, I don't want to have to do that. I don't want to have to replace strings on a guitar because that cost me money, but when you replace them, what does that mean? Well, it means that you've actually been using right. Let's think about other aspects in our lives other areas such as Fitness, whether its strength training or cardiovascular training or what have you how often or how many times have you worn out your workout shoes your training shoes your running shoes your Crossfit shoes, whatever. How often have you worn those things out?

If you haven't worn out a pair of running shoes yet, then guess what that is a really easy simple indicator that you're not doing what you should be doing or at least not what you have planned to do. You should actually look at having to buy new running shoes as an achievement. If you have to buy new running shoes or whatever type shoes athletic shoes, if you have to buy new shoes, that means that you actually use them that you wore them out because you use them so much that now you need new ones, and again from a financial standpoint, you're like, oh man, I gotta buy new ones, but it actually from a psychological standpoint.

You should be pleased with yourself. You should be pleased that you have to replace your running shoes your training shoes your workout shoes because that means that you actually put in enough work to wear those suckers out because they don't wear out by themselves. Do they know they don't I was looking at my gym equipment and I was looking at my knee wraps and my wrist wraps and so forth and I was wondering how soon I would need to replace those wraps and I don't want to have to replace those wraps because they're not cheap. But the reason I would have to replace them because I'm using them.

Unfortunately, many of us fall into the Trap that we decide we're going to start something doesn't matter what it is a hobby, fitness routine, what have you, and we purchase the gear, and then we never use it when we sell it on eBay or we sell it on Craigslist or we sell it at a yard sale at for a greatly reduced price and it's in great fantastic condition right now. You can go to eBay or Craigslist or what have you and you could probably find Fitness Gear and it'll say, you know, Barely Used or lightly used or like new condition and why is it in like new condition?

It's in like-new condition because the person who originally purchased it, they spent the money and they made a well a fragile commitment. They spent the money. They said they were going to do it. They used it. Once twice shoved under the bed put it in the closet and forgot about it. We see this with Sporting Goods gear all the time. How many times have you picked up a set of skis or tennis racket or what have you, and it's just like new used but like new and why is it used but like new it's used but like new.

Well, we never followed through with our commitment. If you're going to make a commitment to yourself whether it is to start a new hobby or whether it is to learn a new skill or you're going to get fit or stronger or what have you make that commitment and one of the ways that you can gauge your dedication to that particular commitment is how often do you have to replace that gear? You say "Paul, I don't want to spend a bunch of money on stuff." You already spent money on stuff. Why don't you use that stuff where that stuff out where it out and get new that is how you know that you have actually made them.

So my challenge to you as the new year is approaching and I know that many of you out there are looking at the calendars and you're looking at a fresh new year. The Year 2019 is I speak the words into this microphone and you may be sitting there thinking I'm going to do it this year. I'm going to get fit going to lose weight. I'm going to you know, do whatever I'm going to start a new hobby a new recreation and learn a new skill. What condition will your shoes being in March and April and May will you need new shoes or your shoes be sitting in the closet in used but like new condition?

My challenge to you is, wear out your shoes. I want you to do it. I want you to wear those things out. I want you to use them so often that they wear out and they have to be replaced, and if you do that, then you know that you are on the right track. Alright, folks. Thank you very much for joining me. Thank you for all of the reviews that you have left over this last year. We're coming up on a year next month. It will be one year since we've launched the Morning Mindset podcast.

Holy cow, this year is gone fast. I hope you've enjoyed it. I hope you appreciate it. I hope you share this show with someone else and if you're feeling dedicated or if you're feeling like you want to pick up a coffee mug or a poster or the book an autographed copy of the Morning Mindset book, then you can go to MorningMindsetPodcast.com. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, I am your host Paul Markel and I'll talk to you again real soon.

[OUTRO]

♫ Trenches by Pop Evil ♫

*Alex*

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If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

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If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

Episode Transcription

If you like the show, please check out our Official Morning Mindset Merchandise!

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