Kevin W. McCarthy

Is Your Life Getting Better?

Are you or is someone dear to you the proverbial "victim of circumstances"?  Don't be!  You have a much better option.  In this On-Purpose Minute, we'll be looking at how you can order your life around a different, healthier perspective of managing your life.

Are you ready to finally know your purpose in life - in two words!  Yes, your life will get a whole lot better by being on-purpose.

I'm just launching The On-Purpose Leader Teleseminar.   The introductory one-hour program can be viewed by CLICKING HERE.   Four more webcasts are scheduled over the next four Thursdays at just past noon Eastern.  Enrollment closes Wednesday evening (3/10/10), so enroll today.

Embrace Life

Image via Wikipedia

All I can say is, "Wow!" 

Thank you Sussex Roads Partnership for sharing this message of seat belt use safety.  This adds a whole new meaning to buckle up, family love, and the guardian angel nature of seat belts.  

Are You Prepared To Lose To Gain?

How do you deal with loss?  What is loss? 

Could it be that loss and, more importantly, learning how to deal with loss are simply as organic to life as the vegetable section at your local Whole Foods store?   In The On-Purpose Person, I reference fighters, floaters, fleers, and flitters as "styles" for dealing with stress and life. Learning to navigate loss is important to our health, well-being, and finances.

In today's On-Purpose^® Minute, let's explore the gains to be found in loss!  You might be surprised just how effective loss can be to our long-term benefit.

Click here to subscribe to The On-Purpose Minute which is published every Tuesday morning.

What's Your Valentines Day Advice?

What's your greatest advice for keeping your marriage together?  Let me hear from you on this one!  With Valentines Day fast approaching, it would be great to gather some insights - serious and humorous alike.

The "best advice" I ever got was from a man married for 39 years.  I was in college at the time and his daughter was a dear friend of mine. As he drank his morning coffee, I asked, "Mr. Collier, to what do you attribute the longevity of your marriage to Mrs. Collier?"

Immediately he answered, "Early in our marriage we came to an agreement that I would make all the big decisions in our marriage and my bride would handle all the small decisions.  Amazingly, in 39 years of marriage there has been nothing but small decisions."

I can remember laughing as he shared that advice.  After over 25 years of marriage to my bride, I fully appreciate his humorous wisdom even more.  If only I had listened better...

Be On-Purpose!
Kevin

PS: Photo is the McCarthy Family:  Charles, Judith, Anne, and Kevin

Are You In A Critical Condition?

Image via Wikipedia

Looking around it can get pretty discouraging.  Honest skepticism and discernment is always at a premium, yet as of late with bad news abounding, I find myself (and others) falling prey to being hypercritical and running into a negative streak.  The effect is compounding and self-fulfilling.  

Today's On-Purpose^® Minute offers some hope and a couple suggestions for turning your critical condition into a healthy state of being.  It isn't easy, but it outshines the alternative.

Click here to subscribe to The On-Purpose Minute.  One is published every Tuesday morning.

Related articles by Zemanta

• When Your Inner Critic is on Steroids (passingthru.com)
• Is Money Mastering Your Life? (kevinwmccarthy.com)

Is It Right To Pray For Your Business?

Image via Wikipedia

Many of us grew up with a compartmentalized view of life.  The wisdom of the day went along these lines: "Your personal life is your personal life.   Your business life is your business life.  Don't co-mingle the two." 

There is a measure of merit in this.  As we advance from the industrial age to the knowledge age and head into the age of purpose and meaning, integration, not separation, is becoming more the norm. Central to each person's personal life is their faith.  If you are inclined to pray in your personal life, perhaps the role of prayer in your business life is a concept you've never considered. 

This On-Purpose® Business Minute explores the power of being "on the job" and praying for owners and employees alike. 

What do you think?  Is it right to pray for business?  Please post your answer in the comment section below.

Click here to subscribe to The On-Purpose Business Minute.  One is published every Thursday morning.

How Is Your 2020 Foresight?

A new year brings a rebirth of possibilities.   What then does a new decade bring?  Let's look ahead to 2020 to plan what can be.  Too often I find myself looking a day, a week, or even a few months, but too rarely ten years ahead.  The calendar change to 2010 offers a natural opportunity to peer into the future and plan what could be.  

New Year's Resolution Weight Loss Solution

As the New Year / Decade approaches, like many you're probably pondering this fresh start with an eye toward the bathroom scale and losing those accumulated excess pounds.  I called this condition "my fat suit" - an extra layer of Kevin over the top of my inner athlete.  

Weight loss for many of us is a place in our lives where we're out of control by some fraction or even into integers of complexity.  Refusing to be resigned to the extra pounds is one thing; raising the bar on what it is costing you is another.  Awareness and goal setting are important, but a system makes all the difference for success.

A Weighty Conversation is a short presentation I put together for my wife's health coaching practice.  Please invest the 3 minutes to watch and consider all you have to gain by losing weight.

Judith offers an affordable solution to help you keep your New Year's Resolution to lose that 10, 20, 30 pounds or more... and keep off the weight.  She heads a small and dedicated team of health coaches, who come alongside of you, so you can experience weight loss success using the Take Shape For Life system.  For most people, this approach is cost neutral relative to your current food intake and the coaching is free.

Judith is offering free 25 minute consultations.  Call her at 407.927.1642 or drop me an email via this blog and I'll forward it to her.  I lost 50 pounds on this program so I endorse it fully.

So as the Waterford Crystal Ball in Times Square begins to fall, be sure to have your plans in place for a truly healthy New Year in 2010.

Be On-Purpose!

Kevin

PS: The music is from Dan Lewis, a musician friend in the Hendersonville, NC area.

The Benefits of Having My Birthday on Christmas

Most people think having a birthday on Christmas is really awful.  Here are some of the benefits of having my birthday on Christmas:

1. Fewer presents means fewer thank you notes to write.

2. I don't have to work on my birthday. Instead, I get to prepare for days in advance, cook, clean, wash, put away, do it all over and over. Whew! I get to go back to work Monday.

3. God cared enough about me to give me an annual reminder that no matter how important or impressive I think I am - Im not. Then, God allowed me to be married - another reminder where I stand. Then God allowed me to have children - two more reminders. Finally, God allow me to have a dog so at least someone would love, admire, and respect me provided I clean up after he poops.

4. Most people forget it is your birthday which they would probably do anyway so I at least you can blame Christmas on being forgotten.

5. I get to go to parties where everyone is festive and joyful on my birthday and they're not faking it for my birthday. For those of us who tend toward introversion, it gives us relief from having to be the uncomfortable center of attention.

6. My family is always around for my birthday. That's a good thing, right?

7. I get to buy and give presents for other people on my birthday.

8. There is something really special about sharing this special day with Jesus. Hard to describe, but it is humbling.

Be On-Purpose!

Kevin

How Would You React?

My daughter, Anne, is a 16-year-old competitive soccer player.  She serves as a junior captain of her Trinity Prep high school soccer team as well as a player on the Football Club of America (Kumba Soccer) located here in Orlando.  Her Kumba team was having a car wash fund raiser in late September.  An accident occurred where one teammate's foot slipped off the brakes and the car pinned another teammate against a wall.  Bree McMahon's legs were crushed.  Anne was one of many who sprang into action.  She called 911 and provided a towel for Bree's head as she lay on the ground awaiting the arrival of paramedics. 

Initially, we anticipated broken legs and damage to Bree's knees.  The severity of the accident came to light a few hours later when Anne's text from the hospital said, "Bree's legs might have to be amputated because the blood vessels were crushed."  Judith and I immediately headed to the hospital to be and pray with the girls. 

Jenna Bush Hager (George and Laura Bush's daughter) of The Today Show did a feature on Bree.  The clip below tells the story.  You'll also get to see and hear a brief comment from Anne from behind Bree's hospital bed. 

Bree and Chelsea (the driver involved in the freak accident) are young Christian girls whose faith is serving them both well in terms of forgiveness given and received.  The character of both young ladies is remarkable.

If it were your legs crushed that day, how would you respond?  My hope would be that I would have grace and understanding like Bree.