On this trip I'm reminded why Napoleon Hill and so many others after him
have suggested so strongly for one's success, a MASTERMIND GROUP!

After a "COOL $chool" speaking event outside Birmingham, I was invited by a friend & CEO to spend the night at his home. Which is a bit ironic to me in that it was the second such invitation on this trip, and something I almost never do (spend the night in someone's home),
outside of maybe a close friend on occasion.

But I caved in to the pressure (OK, I resisted half-heartedly).

2 invitations...and both were refreshing, entertaining
(small dogs & small boys), good food/good conversation,
and easily more enjoyable than just another hotel night.

I also had the opportunity to join in on a CEO roundtable breakfast the following morning downtown on one of my favorite subjects...sales & marketing.

A lively discussion moved around the room from one captain of enterprise to the next,
as I worked to restrain myself from leaping to the head of the room and launching into my "Winning in Today's Economy" seminar. I was asked to join in on this spirited session of entrepreneurial swordplay as we engaged one another with the mettle of real business ideas.

It was too, a great lesson in listening in this room filled with sharp minds.

All too often in group discussion the common urge is to want to TALK...
(Hey, I've got something to tell/add/rebut/etc.), when the most valuable course of action is to let the Master Minds make deposits into your personal account with their intellectual capital.
And when it comes to intellectual capital, much like the spendable kind,
profits are better than wages.

Thanks to Mark, Mike, Max, Martin, Stewart, Allen, Kevin, Tom, Ralph, and Jeff
(go go on the Nike deal). My new CEO friends. COOL times in Birmingham.