What really has added some more desire of explorations is this video.  This video should be an inspiration to everyone.  What a way to live life.  It is critical to travel the world to be able to understand the different cultures.  Most arguments are nothing more than a lack of knowledge by either or both parties.  A deeper understanding of people is achieved at the level by which someone puts themselves in different environments.  Look carefully at all the countries that Matt visited.  What an awesome experience is must be to put yourself out there and learn from the world.  What could you learn from visiting a third world country?  How would you value where you live in comparison to the places you have visited?  All in all the experiences with people you meet will be what hold’s the highest value to yourself.  Money is great but wiser is the man who leverages money to help him experience the world.  What is the most unique experience you have had in a different country?

A sad day in the world of bodybuilding and in the city of Plano, Tx.  Amanda Savell and David Jacobs were found dead in their home in Plano.  It is a very unfortunate thing to see.  The art of bodybuilding has been flooded with steriods for decades, but when lives are taken it is a huge wake up call to everyone.  One can admire the dedication that Amanda had for the art of bodybuilding.  It is not ever day that we see someone with such discipline.   I personally had seen  David at 24Hour Fitness but would never imagine that a bodybuilder would just flip out and commit  such horrific crimes.  My condolences go out to both of their families.  I had not planned on writing a post today but I think this is a current issue our society needs to address more.

Jose’s Call Pad… I know innovative : ) 

So I have noticed a personal problem that seems to haunt me like a spector in the  movie Scrooge.  I get calls and with my not so great memory I forget to make some critical calls.  I have tried the Palms and PDAS,  but have been good at failing to use them.  I think that with the time I spend checking email and browsing through the forum of www.thefourhourworkweek.com,  I get burned out.  The last thing I desire to do is type my voicemails and action items on an electronic device.  Please double click on the picture so you can see what I wrote clearer.  Sorry for the picture not being the greatest, but I used my cell phone for that picture.  Anyhow, enough about the problem, here is my simple solution:

Solution:

1. Date each page of half page.  Which ever you prefer.  Only do a day at a time.  We are not trying to plan out each and every second of our lives.  
2. On the left hand side write calls or voicemails.   This column is made for incoming calls or voicemails you receive through out the day that require action.    Whether it is the postal client calling you or your ISP calling you they get the left side of the sheet.
3. On the right hand side you will write the action taken.  You will only do this when it is complete.  You will do this so to keep yourself accountable.  Examples: you returned a call, you said NAH! they are not getting called back, or you resolved the issue.  Any of these will be written down.  This is done to ensure that you did follow through.

Chasing the dream, and the rest will follow : )

   This video struck me as one of the best told stories I have ever heard.  It is told by the one and only Tony Robbins.  Tony is the man in peak performance and has studied NLP.  What I really like about this video is that it shares how Sly had a clear vision as to what his muse was.  Furthermore, he pursued his goal and has reaped the benefits of chasing his dream.  It seems much too often that individuals let their dreams slip by.  As we age past our teenage years, we tend to settle for what seems comfortable.  But I think that the lack of comfort really helps us grow.  A simple analogy that crossed my mind today was as we progress from 9th-12th grade( High School) we are challenged by more and more difficult courses.  These courses build on each other to form a foundation for our learning.  In life we must learn to challenge ourselves and build on the successes we obtain.  Though, we must equally learn from our mistakes, as painful as they may be.  

    A mentor of mine, Tom Bailey Jr., once told me that one of the hardest things to deal with as one ages is regret.  I think the regret of not having chased your dreams must be hard to deal with.  As I am typing this,  I am in the process of changing various aspects of my life.  ”One will either endure the pain of hard/smart work or the pain of regret.”  After it is all said and done, doing what you wanted to do will satisfy you better.  Stay focused and define your goals as clear as daylight!  Btw- the quote above is written on the wall of the Pacers locker room : ) 

Friday night and I am uploading pictures of myself.  Hmmm,  I get I am very serious about my diet.  When I was in H.S.  I weighed about 130 pounds and about my sophomore year of college I was up to 205 pounds.  The notion of being huge was always one of my goals, but now after years of being a bit on the heavier side I am through with gaining mass. Alas, my goal is to reach 6-8% bodyfat.  I play lots of sports and have realized that it is better to be strong, quick, and in my opinion lean.  This is a older before pic, but I think it will do the trick.  This diet was started on May 19, 2008, I will follow up this blog on June 30, 2008.  This post is part I.   Dieting has become a more normal thing with each day that passes.  Other than mood swings and a few cravings here and there, I feel leaner.

Moreover, I have been following the advice of 2 individuals, Tim Ferriss has some awesome suggestions on his site, and my best friend Stan Newton.  Cheers to living leaner and I am looking forward to my cheat day, aka calorie freeforall.

I ran into this site not too long ago.  Asksunday is a service provider of virtual assistants.  Basically, what this means to you and I, is that we can create more time by having an assistant at the touch of our fingertips.  I was considering posting this next week after I had tested the four free requests that they offer.  But, after some considerations, I am posting my results thus far.  Asksunday has got me hooked on the buzz of virtual assistants.  I outsourced looking for a good dentist that I was looking for.  Sure, I could have done the research myself but during the day I rather be working or working out.  Next, I decided that calling the customer service line of at&t was a headache that would only raise my blood pressure.  So how did Asksunday fair on this tedious task?  Awesome.  Though they missed a few details, they had the forethought to call me within a few hours so they could recollect any missed data.  Today, AT&T called me and had a service tech come to my apt and handle the issue.  This would have taken me at least an hour on the phone to get this squared away.  I have them preset to number 7 on my mobile.  Yes, you do give up some of your personal info, but you do that in almost any transaction.  They were very cordial and their english was impeccable.  I don’t want to write a book in this blog, so thats all I have to cite…………… I will keep everyone posted!!!!!!!

What you see here is salmon grilled on a small bed of brown rice and broccoli.  I had this meal with a small side salad and a glass of Chardonnay.  This meal is very balanced and a healthy dinner time choice.  Salmon is considered some of best protein you can take.  The brown rice contains complex carbs which are used more efficiently by your body.  The broccoli is key for fiber and has lots of other benefits.  The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition stated that broccoli is the number one food to help prevent colon cancer.  Some other benefits included prevention of cataracts and strokes.  These are enough reasons for me to be motivated to consume this funny and odd shaped green veggie.  The wine has its own benefits also, but I just enjoy it with salmon.

As I continue my trek through the world of health I recommend these simple 3 things to follow:

1. Eats tons of greens, spinach, broccoli, and dark green lettuces.  
2. Drink lots of cold water.  I personally like room temp but cold is better.
3. Focus on complex carbs and avoid all white carbs.  Try not to eat any carbs after 5pm if at all possible.  

     You may be asking, why did I choose the $50 bill over the $100 bill?  The answer is simple, a hundred dollars feels like a fifty dollar bill today.  This speaks for how $100 dollars just does’nt buy you what it could 6-8 months ago.  For example, I it used to cost $28( 7 months ago) to fill my tank and now takes $54.  This is an astounding number if you consider how the price of most things have gone up.  You can further confirm this by noticing the price elevations on simple household items at your local grocery store. 

     Is the U.S. economy going to the sewer?  I would beg to differ.  Though times are tough for many of us these times present us with golden opportunities to invest in.  The housing market has suffered the most and I would still be weary of purchasing real estate.  But, you can bargain so much better now than before.  In some scenarios I have seen home owners be able to get bargains on renovating their homes.  This is caused by the fierce competition our economy is experiencing.  Furthermore,  outsourcing has become more popular than ever before.  Elance offers exceptional services at prices that would be near impossible to match here in the states.  

My Notes:

• Invest in your company(s) 
• Make a weekly budget and stick with it(much like a diet, if you don’t stick with it you won’t get results)
• Price Shop: with so many competitors worldwide explore your options and spend wisely.
• Write where you need to go before going.  This is simple but is commonly ignored.  I have tested this and saved about 25%-40% in fuel not to mention time, I value the latter more.  More to come on how writing saves you so many many headaches.  

Lake Nicaragua

Nicaragua,  has not been credited enough.  This comes mainly because of the political unrest that has plagued this country in the past decades.  Though far from perfect, Nicaragua is due international respect. Here are a few facts about Nicaragua

• Nicaragua at one point supplied most of the meat to McDonald’s
• Nicaragua is considered the safest country in Latin America, check with homeland security if you have doubts.
• The cost of living is cheap.  It is a good experience to see and feel the culture.  
• The people of Nicaragua may be very poor but they will give the shirts off their back to any guest at their home.  Yes, I do consider this a fact.

Ok, so if you are reading this you know im about to chop the hair off.  Its too hot outside and I need to take a break from messing with it for awhile.

How is everyone else doing?

Best

Jose