Posts by Mike Staver

Over the last few weeks, I have heard several people say they were getting their ducks in a row. I think that is another way of saying they are getting things in order. Nikki is the managing broker of a real estate office in Houston, Texas. She shared an interesting twist on that phrase with…

“Effort is admirable, achievement is essential.” This is what I heard the Fortune 500 CEO, John Chambers of CISCO Systems, say just before I went on to speak. I could have just stood up and said, “Well, that just about sums it up folks. Thanks for coming!” I didn’t, of course, but he did pretty…

I watched the Olympics for the last couple of weeks. Talk about the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat! There is nowhere that the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat is any more evident. I was struck by the focus and commitment the athletes have to their sport. Whether it was…

If you have not been able to break away from your interest in the news, then I am certain you are riding the ups and downs of the geopolitical world we are now living in. There was a time when only my real estate clients were actually experiencing the turmoil. Now everyone is feeling it;…

From the time we are very young, we engage in a game of blame. How many times do parents ask their kids why they did something and get the answer, “Everybody does it” or, “Because so-and-so did it”? How often do we hear adults blame themselves, their environment, the market, their significant other, their heredity,…

These days, you have access to mountains of information. You can discover answers to almost any question by simply typing your question into a search engine. You go to seminars, classes, read blogs, books and brochures. You watch videos, listen to podcasts, attend webinars, Twitter, and join braintrusts and any number of other think tank…

Vacations are ending, summer’s heat is fading, school is back in session, and the days will soon get shorter. The hectic pace of life is returning and as it does, it’s important to maintain focus on the things that REALLY matter. Some years ago I went to the doctor because I was concerned about my…

I saw a commercial over the holidays that had the line, “Sure, you are active, but why?” This month I want to encourage you to be still. If you are like most people, you are very busy. Think of all the times you have been asked how you are doing and you have answered, “Busy.”…

The number one New Years resolution is about losing weight. I was on a cruise recently and made the mistake of having a toxicity evaluation. They measured my body fat, metabolic rate, lean body mass, etc. Why I would do that on a cruise is beyond me. But what I found interesting was the amount…

A should is simply an expectation imposed (emphasis on imposed) by us on another person or circumstance. The worst kind of shoulds are those imposed on ourselves. The reason they are so bad for you and your family and work is that they are usually irrational or worse. Now before you go getting all uptight…