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Beyond the Rhetoric: Why are Times getting Better – Thank God!

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National Black Chamber of Commerce Holds Annual Conference in Houston

by Harry C. Alford

I attended an Economic Summit at the White House two weeks ago.  It was an uncommonly joyous event.  We were all there to celebrate the actual changes that were going on in our great country.  It was summed up by saying, “Deregulation and Tax Reduction”.  Those are the reasons for our economy to start turning upwards. Like it or not, this nation is economically growing suddenly, or at least during the last two years.  It is clear – the numbers don’t lie.

 

We worked feverishly during the last ten years to bring a halt to a landslide of regulation and taxation.  I chair the Government Oversight, Regulatory and Consumer Affairs Committee at the US Chamber of Commerce. It has been one of the most rewarding activities of my life.  It recently cumulated into the passage of the Regulatory Accountability Act. This is essential to growth, it makes it easier to perform business without costly regulations and permitting to adhere to.

 

Equally important was Tax Reform.  This will go down as one of the best pieces of legislation ever passed.  Wages are increasing, investment is increasing, jobs are expanding by the thousands.  We now have our lowest unemployment figures in more than forty years.  It is most notably detected amongst Blacks and Hispanics. It is historical and undeniable. The stock markets support that charge with all-time high breaking records.  We were told by the previous Administration that some jobs weren’t coming back.  Guess what? They are coming through the “door” like never.

 

Our steel industry has been on a decline for many decades.  However, it is bouncing back with a vengeance.  Remember when they used to call Gary, Indiana “Steel City”?  That moniker may be returning.  US Steel just announced that it is putting an investment of over $750 million to refurbish previously “mothballed” facilities.  In fact, steel plants all over the nation are being refurbished and that is a sure sign of increased manufacturing for our nation equating to exponential increase in high paying jobs.

 

Our past rigid high taxation caused investors to put trillions of dollars off shore.  Those trillions of dollars are starting to come back in terms of investment and job creation.  Good times are sure to come in the following years.  As the old saying goes, “Cotton is high, the fish are biting, and the bosses are paying!”

 

A next determinant has been a sudden change in our international trade balances.  America has been on the losing end in trade.  In fact, we have been bullied by China and the nations of the European Union.  That has all changed now.  The fact is the strongest economy in the world is the United States.  However, we have been acting as a weakling.  No more!  We are dealing eye to eye and settling for nothing less than “fair ball” when acting with our trading partners.  The international rip-offs are over.

 

China has more than 2 billion persons to feed. That is a permanent problem for them as we have a little more than 300 million and have proven to manage that challenge quite well with a Gross Domestic Product that is the greatest in the world.  Russia has a decreasing population, a depressed population and a Gross Domestic Product that doesn’t rival that of the state of Florida.  All other nations, even the united groups of nations called the European Union, are miniscule to our economic might.  Thus, we are finally acting like it and resisting any attempt to bully us on international trade.

 

Times are great!  Look at your IRA’s, or stock investments and you cannot deny that growth is here like never.  You must go back decades since good times from an economical point of view were being blessed on the United States.

 

If you reflect on the past decades, the liberal point of view has not been beneficial to our nation.  The conservative approach is yielding dividends like never.  This is reason for the progressives to be upset with our progress.  Let them cry as we march on with economic growth.  Let them protest, resist, obstruct like going south with a bullet.  America is being blessed for standing by its capitalistic principles and following our U.S. Constitution. It works!  Why try and fight against it?

 

For some strange reason, political discussion is quite “dicey”.  My people, we are turning things around for the good.  The economy is growing like never. We are the envy of the world – free and un-free.  There is no need to fight it!  It is a good thing.

 

Our resurgence is historical.  Oddly, there is a certain segment of our population that is incensed about that.  They need to take a “chill pill” and look around.  Things are looking good and getting better.

 

Mr. Alford is the Co-Founder, President and CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce®.  Website:  www.nationalbcc.org  Email: [email protected]

Study: US teens prefer remote chats to face-to-face meetings

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stux / Pixabay

Article courtesy of Voice of America via “The Rundown”

American teenagers are starting to prefer communicating via text instead of meeting face-to-face, according to a study published Monday by the independent organization Common Sense Media.

Some 35 percent of kids aged 13 to 17 years old said they would rather send a text than meet up with people, which received 32 percent.

The last time the media and technology-focused nonprofit conducted such a survey in 2012, meeting face-to-face hit 49 percent, far ahead of texting’s 33 percent.

More than two-thirds of American teens choose remote communication — including texting, social media, video conversation and phone conversation — when they can, according to the study.

In 2012 less than half of them marked a similar preference.

Notably, in the six-year span between the two studies the proportion of 13- to 17-year-olds with their own smartphone increased from 41 to 89 percent.

As for social networks, 81 percent of respondents said online exchange is part of their lives, with 32 percent calling it “extremely” or “very” important.

The most-used platform for this age group is Snapchat (63 percent), followed by Instagram (61 percent) and Facebook (43 percent).

Some 54 percent of the teens who use social networks said it steals attention away from those in their physical presence.

Two-fifths of them said time spent on social media prevents them from spending more time with friends in person.

From the Projects to Flying a $30 Million Dollar Aircraft

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ANTHONY FISHER — AFRICAN AMERICAN PILOT, AUTHOR, AND REGISTERED NURSE — WANTS TO INSPIRE BLACK YOUTH ACROSS AMERICA

Anthony Fisher, author of Against the Odds

Jacksonville, FL (BlackNews.com) — The first African American to become Director of Undergraduate Skills Lab at a private university seeks to give back to communities. Our youth are crying out for help! Many of them are at a disadvantage due to single parenting; poor educational systems; and role models who are not giving back to their communities. Usually children emulate what they observe but if they don’t see a positive role model in their local community, it’s difficult for our youth to believe that they can achieve success.

Learn how this poor African-American country boy, who was raised in the projects, was given the privilege to fly a $30 million-dollar aircraft. But not only did he become an esteemed helicopter pilot-in-command, he also became an author, registered nurse and motivational speaker. He has a remarkable story and wants to impart his knowledge into young African American males so they can believe in their dreams even if they are Stacked Against the Odds. In his new book, entitled just that, he wants to share his story and inspire our youth.

He believes nothing can stop you. Having a positive mind-set, coupled with the right attitude can propel anyone to greater heights. He shares his incredible life story of perseverance and being raised on the farm to becoming one of the best pilots in America. His story has changed the lives of many young men across America.

He has received numerous awards to include: Senior Aviation Badge, two-Air Medals, a Meritorious Service Medal, and numerous others awards and decorations.

Mr. Fisher was featured on the WJXT Channel 4 Morning Show in Jacksonville, FL to tell his story of triumph.

His book is available for purchase on Amazon.com

The African American Business Project

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The purpose of the African American business project is to promote African American Economic Empowerment and Independence in the United States of America for present and future African American generations. Volunteers needed.

African American collectively earn approximately 1.3 trillion dollars annually here in the United States of America, and over 80% of what we earn and spend goes into the hands, pockets, and bank accounts of another race of people. It is time for a change.

As a follow-up from newsletter number 81, in regard to my proposed nationwide urban revitalization project, the goals are: 1. rebuild urban environments, 2. build low-affordable housing, 3. help eliminate homelessness in America, 4. create employment and employment training, 5. reduce criminal recidivism.

After many years of extensive research in the area of homelessness, I wrote the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development from Trenton, NJ in the year 2010, and Augusta, GA in the year 2012.

Both times I received similar responses that were not in favor of poor and unemployed American citizens. Now here in the year 2018 the ball is still being passed around, when I write one elected official they send my proposed urban revitalization project to another one. It is almost as though poor Americans have been forgotten about during the times of disparity and desperation.

We need a New Deal today. The New Deal was a series of programs, public works projects, financial reforms and regulations enacted in the United States between 1933 and 1936 in response to the Great Depression. The United States Housing Authority was a federal agency created during 1937 within the United States Department of Interior by the Housing Act of 1937 as part of the New Deal. It was designed to lend money to states and communities for low cost construction units for about 650,000 low-income people, but mostly for the homeless. The states in America with the highest homeless rates are; California, New York, Florida, Georgia, Texas, etc.… Homelessness, poverty, drugs, unemployment, crime and gang violence have plagued many of our African American communities for too many years, and these situations don’t seem to be getting any better, and will not get any better if we sit back and do nothing positively about it.

I encourage you to write our Congressional leaders and share with them that we need a New Deal in America today. (ASAP) It is time for a change.

I am a strong and firm believer that in order for African Americans to obtain our economic independence here in America we must gentrify every dilapidated urban environment across America, and we must create revitalization and employment and training programs which support everyone.

Education and degrees is a plus sign towards employment in certain fields, but, the merchant will be challenging here in America and from across the world to obtain our economic independence uses the two simplest tool in the world known as “common sense” and “unity” to economically excel.

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Most foreigners in America only speak enough English to say, “Hello and goodbye” but have good skills at the cash register and know very little about mathematics, and unfortunately we walk in their stores and give them our money freely without thinking about the next generation of African Americans.

Myself along with many other African Americans alive today deeply love and appreciate the work of the civil rights movement, and civil rights laws. From equal employment opportunities to fair housing and educational opportunities, and the right to vote. But, there has never been within our race a strong movement to unify ourselves nationwide economically. Within our race more emphasis have been put on getting along with other races of people than with ourselves and God-Almighty.

There is 200 countries in our world, 2,400 different religions and over 6,800 different languages spoken, it is totally impossible to love everyone. We need to practice loving those within our race first every day.

The Earth is still 93 million miles from the Sun, the Earth still orbits around the Sun at 68,000 miles per hour and rotate on its axis at 1,000 miles per hour. I was reading my Bible and in the book of Hebrews 13:8, it states that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever. Everything God made related to our survival here on Earth is the same and in perfect condition. The only true situation that needs to be modified on earth is the way African Americans treat each other nationwide, so that we can move forward spiritually and economically.

After 155 years of freedom from slavery in the South, the KKK and the other 900 Caucasian hate groups in America continue to relapse regarding our freedom in America. While foreigners from across the world treat African Americans as though we are inferior to them while flooding our country with drugs.

These other races of people from across the world know we are not economically united and that is how come they are able to financial take the advantage of us economically, neighborhood by neighborhood, community by community, city by city, and state by state. It is time for a change.

Some of the most violent cities in the world are; 1. Los Cabos, Mexico, 2. Caracas, Venezuela,

  1. Acapulco, Mexico, 4.Natal, Brazil, 5. Tijuana, Mexico, etc.… with approximately 10,000 African Americans killed yearly through Black on Black crime we are not too far behind them. With over 1,000,000 African Americans locked up within the American Prison System, we need to take a close inventory pertaining to what is going on within our race presently, and make the necessary changes in favor of future African American generations. What we do today will definitely affect the future of African Americans in America tomorrow.

 

African Americans operate approximately 2.6 million business in the United States, and 85% of them are of sole proprietorship.  We must build and re-build a better economic future, 80% of 1.3 trillion dollars equal 850 billion dollars. It is alright to be friends with foreigners, but let’s keep that money circulating among ourselves. Let’s build our own manufacturing companies, including our own banks and banking system collectively from New York to California. It is time for a change.

Is the Democratic Party Drifting Away from Capitalism?

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Beyond the Rhetoric

By Harry C. Alford

The rhetoric coming out of the mouths of various Democratic leaders is becoming more and more disturbing.  They are beginning to propose a platform that has no resemblance to American principles.  Our founding fathers would be shocked to hear terms like “Medicare for everyone” or “free college tuition for all students”.  There seems to be a reasoning that follows no “real world” logic.  It is frightening and dangerous to our future. Let’s look at the three main economic systems that exist in our world today.

 

According to Wikipedia, Capitalism is an economic system based on private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Characteristics central to capitalism include private property, capital accumulation, wage labor, voluntary exchange, a price system, and competitive markets. In a capitalist market economy, decision-making and investment are determined by every owner of wealth, property or production ability in financial and capital markets, whereas prices and the distribution of goods and services are mainly determined by competition in goods and services markets.

 

The above is what our nation is based on.  It works!  We are the most economically successful nation on earth.  It comes through our constitution, love of democracy and our capitalistic economy.  But for some reason a growing number of the Democratic party such as Bernie Sanders, Keith Ellison and others are starting to tout this form of economy even though there is not one good example to compare it to.

 

Wikipedia defines Socialism as a range of economicand social systems characterized by social ownership and workers’ self-management of the means of production as well as the political theories and movements associated with them. Social ownership may refer to forms of public,collective or cooperative ownership, or to citizen ownership of equity. There are many varieties of socialism and there is no single definition encapsulating all of them, though social ownership is the common element shared by its various forms.

 

There is one thing that is true.  Whenever a nation switches to socialism, the economic status of that nation heads “south with a bullet!”.  Look at Venezuela.  This nation has as much oil reserves as Saudi Arabia.  However, since its switch to socialism it has lost its ability to produce or manufacturer anything with a basic success.  Inflation is out of control; their banks are bankrupt; their hospitals are inoperable, and chaos is everywhere with a large portion of the population fleeing the nation as refugees.  Socialism leads to failure and why is the Democratic party entertaining the idea? There simply is no decent model for socialism anywhere in the world.

 

Van Jones, a principal in democratic causes, admits being a communist. Communism is like socialism on steroids. Here is Wikipedia’s definition:  In political and social sciences, communism is the philosophical, social, political, and economic ideology and movement whose goal is the establishment of the communist society, which is a socioeconomic order structured upon the common ownership of the means of production and the absence of social classes, money and the state.

 

All we must do is look at Russia.  Communism drove this once powerful nation into bankruptcy (USSR). It had one of the strongest nuclear arsenals and largest navies and armies in the world.  But economically it became a basket case.  It has no manufacturing prowess and relies pretty much on its array of natural resources.  The general population is depressed by the low quality of life.  As a result, Russia has a very low fertility rate. Plus, its healthcare delivery system is inferior, and its lifespan is shrinking.  As a result, the population of this nation is shrinking by 600,000 persons per year.  It has a large percentage of alcoholism.  Its gross domestic product is less than that of the state of Florida.

 

Another example of how Communism doesn’t work is the Korean Peninsula. North Korea chooses a communist system while South Korea embraces capitalism.  South Korea is an economic giant with a booming economic highlighted by its prowess in technology and electronics.  North Korea on the other hand is in adjunct poverty existing on the aid of China and Russia.  This system just does not work.  Socialism is no better.  As British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once said: “Socialism only works until you run out of other people’s money.”

 

When you look at world history it is irrefutable.  Capitalism is the best form of government.  Experiments with collectivism and various forms of socialism and communism will lead to failure every time.  Our Democratic Party had best beware.  Playing around with these dangerous systems will lead to failure and an election landslide by the Republican Party.  Nobody wants to be poor and helpless.  Why anyone would campaign for it is beyond me.

 

Mr. Alford is the Co-Founder, President/CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce ®.  Website: www.nationalbcc.org

An innocent man 24 years behind bars

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AT 19-YEARS-OLD, DONTAE WAS WRONGFULLY PROSECUTED AND INCARCERATED FOR A CRIME HE DID NOT COMMIT. Despite the lack of evidence and a recantation from the prosecution’s star witness, for over two decades Dontae has been separated from his mother, brothers, and loving community.

We had the honor of spending some time with Sarah Blakely, Dontae’s mother, to tell us her story about fighting for her son. WATCH OUR VIDEO OF MS. SARAH, DONTAE’S MOTHER, TELLING HER STORY HERE.

In 1994, Dontae was accused of killing another young man in Pitt County, North Carolina. The prosecution’s case relied heavily on the testimony of A KEY WITNESS, WHO LATER ADMITTED TO LYING UNDER OATH in order to appease the leading detective on the case. Furthermore, no physical evidence ever linked Dontae to the crime.1

Local organizations including the North Carolina NAACP, SpiritHouse and Forward Justice have JUST FILED A MOTION INTRODUCING NEW EVIDENCE THAT COULD FREE DONTAE. The medical examiner who testified on behalf of the State during Dontae’s trial has recently concluded that THE STATE’S EXPLANATION FOR THE MURDER IS “MEDICALLY AND SCIENTIFICALLY IMPOSSIBLE.”2

NORTH CAROLINA GOV. ROY COOPER, NC ATTORNEY GENERAL JOSH STEIN, AND DISTRICT ATTORNEY KIMBERLY ROBB ALL HAVE THE POWER TO RECTIFY THIS HORRIBLE SITUATION.

WATCH OUR VIDEO WITH DONTAE’S MOTHER SARAH, AND THEN SIGN OUR PETITION TO DEMAND THESE LEADERS #FREEDONTAESHARPE!

It is not unusual for police officers to manipulate evidence in order to lock Black people away. WE HAVE SEEN POLICE OFFICERS AND PROSECUTORS COERCING FALSE CONFESSIONS, TAMPERING WITH EVIDENCE, AND LYING UNDER OATH ALL TO KEEP BLACK PEOPLE IN CAGES. This blatant abuse of power needs to be addressed immediately.

Dontae lost so much. At the young age of 19, the possibilities were endless. The racist criminal justice system in North Carolina essentially stole his adolescence and most importantly, robbed him of his future. Worst of all, DONTAE’S MOM HAS BEEN DENIED HER RIGHT TO LOVE AND NURTURE HER CHILD. Instead of getting to see her son grow up into an independent adult, she has been tirelessly fighting to secure her son’s release. Too often, the impact of mass incarceration on loved ones gets ignored. IN THIS FIGHT TO FREE DONTAE, WE MUST HONOR AND CENTER THE LABOR AND LOVE SHOWN BY DONTAE’S MOM.

WATCH MS. SARAH, DONTAE’S MOTHER, TALK ABOUT HER FIGHT TO FREE HER SON IN THIS VIDEO, THEN SIGN OUR PETITION TODAY!

Let’s create a huge groundswell of support and pressure North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, NC Attorney General Josh Stein, and District Attorney Kimberly Robb to act for Dontae. IT IS TIME FOR NORTH CAROLINA’S POLITICAL LEADERSHIP TO FINALLY INTERVENE IN THIS GROSS MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE.
LISTEN TO MS. SARAH’S WORDS IN THIS VIDEO, AND THEN SIGN TO DEMAND NC OFFICIALS REUNITE DONTAE WITH HIS FAMILY.

Until justice is real,

Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Enchanta, Clarise, Marybeth, Leonard, Siera, Anay, Kristen, Marena, Tamar and the rest of the Color Of Change team
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References:

1. “Dontae Sharpe did not kill George Radcliffe.” Slate.com. 22 May 2017.

2. “Lawyers: New evidence in case to free Dontae Sharpe.” WITN.com. 28 June 2018.
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Color Of Change  is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Help keep our movement strong.

The toxic behaviors of (some) Parents

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A Letter to Black Parents by Princess Byers

Dear Black Parents,
I am not writing this letter to judge or look down upon anyone. I have simply had one too many discussions with other Black children where we have laughed off or talked out the toxic behaviors of our parents. Furthermore, I know one too many people who have gotten to adulthood and completely cut all ties with their parents because of these toxic behaviors.
As a community, we have normalized these behaviors and physical violence as “good parenting.” But decades of empirical international research that crosses economic and racial lines, all have the same conclusion. That conclusion, according to an article published on the website of the American Psychological Association titled, “The Case Against Spanking”: hitting children as a form of discipline is an ineffective parenting method that creates more long term behavioral/ mental health issues than it solves in the short term. In addition- use of physical violence as a primary means of discipline is most common in socioeconomically impoverished and under/uneducated communities.”
The point of this letter is to inform Black parents of some of their toxic behaviors in hopes of preventing the creation of more broken Black families because of those behaviors. Let’s start, shall we?…
Parents, if what you are doing is not appropriate for your child to say or do to you, it’s probably not appropriate for you to say or do it to them. I know you’re grown and you pay the bills, but that’s not an excuse to do unto someone what you don’t want done to you. You are a parent, not a dictator.
While we are on the topic of parental dictatorships, parents: please stop hanging your responsibilities as a parent over your child’s head. Your child knows you feed them! It became your job to feed them when you became a parent! They know you provide shelter! It became your job to provide shelter when you became a parent! They know you go to work every day to provide for them! It became your job when you became a parent! Your parental responsibilities are not you doing your child a favor. It’s you doing what you are supposed to be doing since you decided to procreate. Moving on…
Please parents. I beg you. Stop undermining your child’s traumas and negative experiences because they’re not—you believe—as bad as the traumas you experienced growing up. Traumas are different for everyone. Just because you don’t think something your child has or is currently going through isn’t all that traumatic, doesn’t mean it wasn’t traumatic for your child.
According to an online article from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network titled: “Complex Trauma In Urban African-American Youth and Families”: “African American children and youth, who are among the most likely members of our society to be exposed to trauma, are also among the least likely to receive the services that could prevent the development of trauma-related emotional and behavioral difficulties.”  Listen to your children.
Be mindful that you don’t put off onto your children the frustrations you experience daily. Bad days happen. They get that. However, a bad day at work, bills, relationship issues are not your child’s fault. According to Tru Parenting.com, a website where parents network and talk about parenting issues, this is not an uncommon issue. Often your children are the closest and easiest “target” to take out your frustrations on. Don’t do it!
Please remember you chose to have children, your children didn’t. It’s understood that you get tired and busy and you need help sometimes. But your older children have no obligation to your younger children. It is your job to help with homework, go to parent/teacher conferences, and discipline your own child.
Your children can have questions. They are humans just like you. Sometimes they need or want clarification. There is nothing wrong with that. Your children are not dogs; they aren’t programed to sit-down, shut-up, and take directions, sorry! According to pro-Black, pro-woman, and pro-child blogger Cleopatra Jones in her article: “The Accidental Toxicity of Black Mothers:” “being aggressive, abrupt, and dismissive of this natural childhood curiosity and natural childhood desires is denying Black children of their innocence and right to childhood.”
Last, and most importantly: “check on yourself.” Your children can see when you are not okay, and it wears on them. Take the time out to make sure you are mentally and physically okay.
Your children know and understand you were raised in an era where it was okay (when it really wasn’t) to be treated and looked upon as lesser because you were a child.
However, we also know and understand it is not okay; and should not be considered okay. Your children are human beings, just like you are! They have feelings, questions, and the ability to understand and comprehend things just like you. You do not need to scream at, nor beat your children for them to understand you. Again, they are humans capable of “communicating,” just like you.

Signed,
A concerned “former” child.

Princess Byers is a student at Marquette University majoring in journalism, with a minor in African Studies. She is interning at the MCJ and has already produced several videos for the newspaper that can be seen on the MCJ website, milwaukeecommunityjournal.com

Telephobia: Are you afraid of using the phone?

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An attractive young businesswoman having coffee while working at her office desk

Article courtesy of B2B News Network via “The Rundown”

There’s a funny disconnect I experience every semester:  One hundred percent of my Marketing students want to be employed when they graduate (duh).  But when I ask them what type of job they hope to land, almost none of them say sales.  Why is this a disconnect?  Because the very large majority of them will in fact wind up taking a sales position when they graduate.

But they’re not happy about it.  When some of them tell me about the job offer they just accepted, they look like they’ve received a prison sentence instead of gainful employment.  Apparently my students are typical; young graduates do whatever they can to avoid the dreaded sales position.

A Canadian firm reported in one study that employers were taking an average of 41 days to fill sales positions compared to 33 days for all other jobs.

Why the long faces?  Most of these young people equate salespeople with stereotypes like the famous character Willie Loman in Death of a Salesman. Loman (as in “low man” on the totem pole) is a pathetic peddler who leaves home for the road on Monday morning and returns late Friday evening selling “on a smile and a shoeshine.” Or, they think about the sullen retail salespeople they encounter at the mall, and wonder why they need a college degree or an MBA to sell blue jeans to tweens.

Most B2B salespeople will immediately (and correctly) object that this dismal picture applies only to transactional selling, and not to relationship selling that is at the heart of many professional sales jobs. Ironically, Millennials are all about relationships, so they should eagerly rise to the bountiful opportunities that await them: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates job growth of about 3 percent for sales representatives across fields between 2016 and 2026.

Perhaps part of the problem is that the relationships they are about don’t really exist so much in face-to-face encounters as they do onscreen.

How to Reinvent Yourself When Life Demands Change

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Change can be difficult, uncomfortable, and frightening. But sooner or later, most of us will have to reinvent ourselves (or risk getting left behind in today’s fast-paced world). Successful businessman and author Paul G. Krasnow shares tips to help you embrace change and start moving in a better direction.

EDWARDS, CO (June 2018)–In these fast-paced times, it seems like change is the only constant we have. Some people accept change gracefully, while others hold on kicking and screaming. But today it’s more important than ever to embrace change and be able to reinvent yourself. Why? Because innovation is changing markets daily, because our global economy has leveled the playing field and introduced more competition than ever before, and because life occasionally compels us to move in a new direction–like it or not.

Whether you’re switching jobs in a competitive market, starting a new career, or experiencing a transition in your personal life, upheaval can be really frightening. But according to author and successful businessman Paul G. Krasnow, it’s also a priceless opportunity to reinvent yourself.

“When you face a setback in your life, you have two choices,” says Krasnow, author of The Success Code: A Guide for Achieving Your Personal Best in Business and Life (J & K Publishing, 2018, ISBN: 978-0-692-99241-8, $24.95). “Remain stuck or move forward; it’s that simple. Life is too short to spend it stuck and miserable. Take action now to change your life or get ready to watch life pass you by.”

Krasnow speaks from experience. Thanks to bad timing and hard luck, Krasnow, a former clothier, went bankrupt early in his professional life. This failure could have derailed his future, but, instead, Krasnow decided to fight for his life with everything he had. The Success Code tells the remarkable story of Krasnow’s journey–from his modest beginnings in 1940s Los Angeles, to starting over again after business failure, to his epic career rise as a financial representative at Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company.

“Reinventing yourself demands change,” says Krasnow. “No matter how dire your circumstances, you can make changes today that will prepare you for a better tomorrow. You may have to find a new way to make a living, or start over in a new city, or take a big risk that terrifies you. Still, you have to be willing to change. It may not always be easy, but it sure beats staying stuck for the rest of your life.”

Keep reading for Krasnow’s tips on how to embrace change and reinvent yourself today.

REALIZE IT’S NEVER TOO LATE. During the course of your lifetime, you will be called upon to reinvent yourself, time and time again. Don’t let yourself stay stuck in what you know. Make the most of the resilience you now have under your belt with overcoming previous challenges and strive for new horizons. As you envision this new version of yourself, what are some steps you can take today to put that new self into action?

TAKE AN HONEST LOOK AT YOUR LIFE. Muster the courage to look at your life and figure out where you’ve gone wrong, and the changes you need to make to get back on track. Own up to the mistakes you have made and take responsibility for the part you played in getting yourself stuck. Krasnow points out that this kind of brutal honesty is not for the faint of heart. It requires courage to take full responsibility for your life and most importantly for the failures in your wake. But if you can sit down and face your own mistakes, you will free yourself up to learn from the painful consequences you are facing today.

MOVE FORWARD; JUST DO IT. “Change is not rocket science,” says Krasnow. “We all have a tendency to make life so complicated when it doesn’t have to be. Simply make a decision to move forward. Don’t try; just do it. People say they’re going to _try _to change. Try? There is no such thing. There’s doing it or not doing it. ‘Try’ is a word that you should eliminate from your vocabulary right now.”

DREAM BIG. The only real challenge in creating the life you’ve always wanted is your inability or unwillingness to free up your imagination to envision your dream in all of its glory. In other words, you are only as successful as your perceived limitations. How often do you limit yourself when envisioning the success you are capable of achieving? Don’t settle for the limited vista of your present-day life. Instead, allow yourself to be willing to travel well beyond the bounds of the landscapes you may not be able to imagine today.

STAY FOCUSED. “Once you decide to make a change in your life, it’s time to get serious and focus on your goals,” says Krasnow. “Think of life as a journey in a train that travels on a track. Each track leads to a specific destination. Make a point of staying on the track of your choice, without getting distracted and switching tracks. If you stay focused, you will certainly reach your desired destination.”

PACE YOURSELF. Making a major life change requires a steady pace. You work at it each day and keep at it (and then keep at it some more). Remember that extraordinary creations are not built in a day through occasional bursts of effort, but rather are crafted over long periods of time with daily, steady tasks. It’s a marathon; stop exhausting yourself by sprinting from place to place. Instead, stay on course with your goals and remain consistent.

KNOW THAT FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION. “When you realize that failure is not an option, it becomes clear that there is no stopping at the first obstacle you encounter along the way,” says Krasnow. “There is an opening, even in the most stubborn of barricades. Where is the opening in your current wall of obstacles? Is there a secret passage you had overlooked but is now emerging in front of you? Take that hidden path and forge ahead. Just keep your eye on where you want to go and you might find that a setback along the way was actually a shortcut to your desired
destination!”

“We all know that change is not the most comfortable part of our lives,” concludes Krasnow. “But know that the process of transformation is a gratifying experience, providing you find the courage to do it. You can adapt. You can take a new path in your life. And you will undoubtedly be better for it in the long run.”

# # #

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Paul G. Krasnow is the author of The Success Code: A Guide for Achieving Your Personal Best in Business and Life. He is a financial representative at Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, where he has been a top producer for 40 years. Early in his career, Paul suf¬fered a financially devastating bankruptcy with a line of clothing stores he owned, but went on to join Northwest¬ern Mutual, where he has cre¬ated an impressive financial portfolio and a strong network of clients, many of whom have become lifelong friends. Paul regularly speaks for multiple life associations in the U.S. and has given seminars for law firms and CPA firms in the Southern California area.

3 Tips For Keeping Your Moral Compass On Course

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Are there useful moral lessons in the latest Barr vs. ABC or Trump vs. the world Tweets?

The news cycle is often rife with controversy involving public figures. And sometimes a fall from grace – from Hollywood to politics, the corporate boardroom, etc. – brings closer  examination of the root causes. Dr. Christopher Gilbert, an international ethics expert, thinks such events and social media skirmishes reflect a lack of ethics that plague many levels of American society – but that they also provide an opportunity to strengthen our own moral pathway.

“The important issue isn’t in arguing over which schoolyard bully is the most unethical,” says Gilbert, author of There’s No Right Way To Do the Wrong Thing and senior consultant/speaker at NobleEdge Consulting (www.nobleedgeconsulting.com). “The roots of the problem are not only in misplaced, society-influenced priorities but in a widespread belief that ‘good’ people make the good decisions and ‘bad’ people make the unethical ones.

“We need to start a national conversation about what it means to do right in business and in life, despite the constant personal, social, economic, and other cultural and societal pressures to ignore what is right in favor of success. A growing awareness and practice of ethics is in essence also a profound transformation of our character, and it often comes as we navigate the most dramatic or challenging events of our lives.”

How do we overcome the pressures and temptations to flout ethical practices? Gilbert provides three tips to making good ethical decisions while holding ourselves and others accountable.

  • Trust “lighthouse moments.” Gilbert believes these can be subtle or indelible experiences that make us decide a course of action and shape our future choices. “Ethics serve as our lighthouses,” Gilbert says, “providing us with a reference point – enlightened guidance along the pathway of our best decisions. They warn of danger as well. Some believe that ethical choices are relative to whom and what you know and when you know it. But this is akin to the idea that ‘ignorance of the law is an excuse.’ Ethics are far more about what we do, sometimes despite what we know.”
  • Stay away from the edge. While a few risk the drop over, most drivers are cautious when navigating a mountain curve or a bridge without guardrails. “Our best choices for ourselves and others happen when we navigate dos and don’ts within a predictable pathway bounded by right and wrong,” Gilbert says. “Ethics form our guardrails. Imagine a world of intermittent guardrails that move? Ethics aren’t iffy or gray or relative; they exist under all driving conditions for all drivers. Right choice-making happens best on a pathway guided and protected by ethics that are constant.”
  • Keep moral standards universal. So many of the highly-publicized scandals, shootings, and tragedies that could have been avoided, Gilbert says, can be traced to people disregarding our common moral standards. “An impersonal world full of disunity, divisions, and exclusive, tribal-like ‘us versus them’ mentalities breeds an atmosphere that becomes self-perpetuating,” Gilbert says. “If our ethical choices are defined not by a set of universal moral codes owned by everyone, but by standards individuals or groups apply to themselves, there are no wrong choices, because all choices become right.”

“Universal moral principles,” Gilbert says, “provide solid reference points for establishing values, behaviors and ethics that create trust. And, despite popular belief, they are attainable – we already have quite a few.”

 

About Christopher Gilbert, Ph.D.

Dr. Christopher Gilbert, the author of There’s No Right Way To Do the Wrong Thing, is an international ethics consultant and senior consultant/speaker at NobleEdge Consulting (www.nobleedgeconsulting.com). Having spent much of his career focused on the study of human moral development, Dr. Gilbert has over 30 years of experience in organizational development as a strategic facilitator and leadership and operations consultant. He has served an international clientele, including Fortune 1000 companies and government agencies in the U.S., Canada, Asia and Africa. Dr. Gilbert completed work for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on a sustainable food-security program across four nations of sub-Saharan Africa, and he has been a professor of business ethics who taught at universities on four continents. He earned his doctorate in Organization, Management and Leadership Ethics at Capella Universit