Posts by Early To Rise
Honesty, Integrity, and All That
“The measure of any man’s virtue is what he would do, if he had neither the laws nor public opinion, nor even his own prejudices, to control him.” – William Hazlitt (Characteristics, 1823) I like the general idea of honesty and integrity and would like to think of myself as a good person. But I…
Read MoreHow To Invest Safely in the Stock Market: MMF’s Three Rules for Amateur Investors
As you probably know, I have spent a lot of time in the investment advisory business. Not on the financial planning or brokerage side, but as a consultant to investment book and newsletter publishers. I’ve also created, marketed, directed, and spoken at more than 100 investment seminars and conferences. All that experience has taught me…
Read MoreHow to Achieve Moral Perfection: The Ben Franklin Formula
“What is moral is what you feel good after and what is immoral is what you feel bad after.” – Ernest Hemingway (Death in the Afternoon, 1932) Ben Franklin, one of the worlds wisest writers and the thinker upon whose advice ETR is based, began his adult life with a very ambitious goal. He wanted…
Read MoreA Chance For You To Find Your Spot In Paradise
My little bit of heaven in Nicaragua is a community called Rancho Santana — 1,600 acres of very beautiful country, along a remarkably stunning stretch of the Pacific Ocean. It’s about 90 minutes from Managua by car and 25 minutes by helicopter. The weather is perfect. The local people are very nice. And the views…
Read MoreStaying Lean Is Everything
Take it from a 51-year-old — if you want to be healthy and feel young, there is nothing you can do that is more important than staying lean. Yes, I know. You’re thinking that I’m so superficial. That there are many more important things in life than the size of your waistline. That’s how I…
Read MoreMake Important and Powerful People Want to Be Your Friend
“A mighty flame followeth a tiny spark.” – Dante (“Paradiso,” The Divine Comedy, c. 1300-21) There are two things almost all people like to do: 1. talk about themselves 2. talk about something they know a lot about You can put these facts of life to work for you in a big and powerful way.…
Read MoreWhat To Do When You Can’t Do What You Want To Do
A new client that agreed to sign up with you suddenly cancels. A promised promotion evaporates. The deadline your plumber swore to passes without anything’s having being done. When something you are counting on doesn’t happen, it can be such a drag. But it doesn’t have to be. The trick to dealing with this kind…
Read MoreA Basic Success Secret That Many Self-Help Gurus Just Don’t Get
In a recent e-mail article titled “Attitude is a very important word,” Earl Nightingale says that “of all the words in all the languages of the world … ‘attitude’ is the most important.” “More than any other single thing,” he says, “your attitude will determine … what happens to you.” In other words, he claims…
Read More“A Psalm of Life”: How To Make Your Life Sublime
“A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past; he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future.” Sydney J. Harris (On the Contrary, 1962) The mayor of Baltimore thinks I’m a cynic. He pretty much said so when we met. During the lunch conversation that followed, he glanced at…
Read MoreDo You Have Your Crisis Plan Ready?
We’ve talked about this before. Having a “Plan B” ready for action will make success no less sweeter and will make failure a whole lot easier to deal with — and less costly. For specific projects and promotions that you are in charge of, it’s relatively easy to create a Plan B. Simply calculate various…
Read MoreHelp Your Employees Learn From Both Their Successes And Their Failures
We learn from our successes and our failures in equal measure. To encourage learning in your business, reward both. Praise good work and goals met. But also praise mistakes that were “smart” tries. That’s not always easy to do. Failure is disappointing. How do you hide yours when it happens? The trick is to manage…
Read MoreWhen It Comes To Leadership — Real Leadership — Reject The Currently Popular “Soft” Skills
The world is changing for business leaders. So says OfficeTeam, a business that advises other businesses on leadership. To be successful in the future, OfficeTeam predicts, you will have to listen to your employees, share your feelings with them, and keep your mind open to all kinds of ideas, even bad ones. These are today’s…
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