Saturday's Motivational Videos - Richard Branson

Success Magazine Interview - Paul Zane Pilzer

I just listened to an excellent interview with Paul Zane Pilzer ( an economist, entrepreneur, college professor and the author of seven best selling books), on the CD that comes with Success Magazine. A couple of points he made stand out, he predicted that in the next ten years 10 million new millionaires will be created in America. The latest research states that:"according to this 2005 article from MarketWatch, 8.9% of Americans are millionaires. That translates to roughly 2.6 million people.". His thinking on this is developed in his book "The Next Millionaires".

He also addressed the nature or nurture argument in achieving personal success and puts forward the idea that it is 10% nature,10% nurture and 80% the choices you make it life. I think that is a dead on observation.

Check out the latest "Success Magazine" and his book.

Motivation Speech - Steve Jobs

Some good insights.....

What I'm Reading - Books

Books I'm reading:

Rules for Renegades - Christine Comaford-Lynch (Entrepreneurship)
The Middle-Class Millionaire - Russ Allan Prince and Lewis Schiff (Entrepreneurship)
Old Friend From Far Away - Natalie Goldberg (Writing)
The Greatness Guide - Robin Sharma (Leadership) reading for 2nd time

Reviews will follow.....

What I'm Reading - Magazines

Inc.

The latest May issue has some good articles on "How to Get Rich from a Recession". it's a good resource.



Success Magazine

Success Magazine is back with new ownership and it's first issue is out on the newstands.

Book Review - Ten Successful Start-Ups

For more info:http://www.harrylwells.com/

I'm happy to recommend this book by a good friend of mine. It's an interesting insight into 10 start up entrepreneurs who he counseled and assisted as a Business advisor in New York City. The foreword is written by film director Taylor Hackford.

Book Description
The lure of entrepreneurial freedom and wealth compels many adventurous individuals to try to beat the odds-to become the one in four business start-ups in the U.S. that survives the first four years. And now, with corporate downsizing and deteriorating economic conditions, more than 550,000 new businesses are launched in the U.S. every year. So how does one identify the challenges that await the new business owner, and more importantly, how can you boost your odds for success?

Learn from others who have "been there, done that." In Ten Successful Start ups, you'll discover how these common, everyday people built their businesses into multimillion dollar companies that will sustain them in the future. Let their lessons be your guide as you travel your own entrepreneurial path.

About the Author
Harry Wells is a popular entrepreneurial training workshop leader recognized by the United Nations as a visionary in developing international entrepreneurial training programs. He works in New York City as a Certified Business Advisor for entrepreneurs and small business start-ups, and lives in Brooklyn with his family.

If your are an entrepreneur or looking to start a business check this book out.......

Book Review - The Pope's Children

I picked this book up prior to my 1st trip to Ireland and just finished it on my return. If you are interested in business, economics, culture,history or just want to expand your world I recommend you read this book. This is a thought provoking, funny, entertaining and educational book all wrapped into one. The book shows how Ireland has arrived and become a global nation. Ireland is now one of the richest nations in the world with the largest middle class.

My trip allowed me to see everything from the old rural Ireland on the west to the industrial north to the cosmopolitan Ireland in Dublin. The Pope's Children complimented my trip and opened my eyes to the new Ireland and the new Irish Dream.

Be prepared to learn a bunch of Irish words like craic (fun), as Gailge (in Irish), and failte (welcome) and also a bunch of fascinating terms and descriptions created by the writer including Expectocracy, Stakhanvite, Commentariat, Kells Angels, Deckland and many more. Reading the book in a lot of craic.

What's the most important theme of the book is the amazing economic progress Ireland has made in 10-15 years. Ireland has went from a nation that exported it's young to a nation that the young are moving back and it's an immigration magnet to Eastern Europe. It's a fascinating story of the good, bad and ugly of economic progress but it take a positive and optimistic view of the progress Ireland has made.

The book is the #1 best seller in Ireland but it's a book that will be enjoyed by everyone. Check it out.

Book Review - The Billionaire Who Wasn't by Conor O'Cleary

I just read a fascinating book about Chuck Feeney. I never heard about him before and I'm sure you probably haven't either. I picked up the book because of a quote on the back that talks about his contribution to Ireland. Mr Feeney is an Irish-American born in New Jersey to a working class family during the Great Depression. He made his billions creating the Duty Free Shops you see at airports all over the world.

The story especially resonated with me as I am a first generation Irish-American about to make my first trip to Ireland for a family reunion. His story is one of financial success, great contribution and social significance.

The story of how he made his money makes for a great read. The book tells a great story about how he created tax shelters and protected his identity while becoming the the thirty third richest man in the world.

What he has accomplished in the area of philanthropy is even more interesting. He took to heart the spirit of Andrew Carnegie and has promoted the "Giving while Living" philosophy, He has given away through his Atlantic Foundation over $1 billion dollars and is on track to giving away over $4 billion dollars while he is alive. Mr Feeney not only gave away his money but leveraged it by getting countries to match his contributions. business

If that wasn't enough Mr Feeney got involved behind the scenes in trying to support a end to the violence in Norther Ireland and to create the conditions for peace and reconciliation.

The book is truly inspiring and Chuck Feeney is a role model on many levels.

Some of Chuck Feeney's Contributions:

Education in Ireland: He funded all seven universities in the Republic of Ireland and two in Norther Ireland to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Hotel System in Ireland: He built the first large modern hotel in Ireland since WWII, The The Castletroy Park Hotel

Peace in Northern Ireland: Mr Feeney wanted to assist in taking the guns out of Irish politics. He directed over $30 million through his Atlantic Foundation to worthy projects in Northern Ireland including $2.5 million to help Republican and Loyalist ex-prisoners to move into peaceful politics.

It doesn't stop here he continued to fund education in Eastern Europe to support the move towards freedom there and other social projects in South Africa and Vietnam. His focus on finding worthy projects and worthy people provides a lot to learn from. His uniqueness was doing all this while trying to maintain his anonymity and to give credit to others instead of himself.

Mr Feeney is a truly unique individual and his story is one worth reading.