Lesson 2: Your GPS; Your Roadmap to the Future

Happiness is when what you think, what you say,

and what you do are in harmony. – Mahatma Ghandi

You are about to participate in gaining greater control of your life. Just as a GPS (Global Positioning System) in your car guides you from where you are to where you want to go, your GPS (Guide to Personal Success) will be your roadmap to the future. Your GPS is the most important document you will create in this class. It is a dynamic life plan that describes who you are and where you want to go—written and then pictorially. The GPS will most likely be the hardest exercise you’ll do in Urban FIRE.

With your GPS, you’ll stay consistent and honest to your values and principles. And each year, you’ll review your GPS to include updates, so that it remains relevant to your growing improvements.

First and foremost, your Guide to Personal Success is a customized roadmap with three objectives:

1. Implementing the genius—your purpose in life—so that you can achieve what truly matters to you.
2. Creating a happy lifestyle based on the principles and values that matter most to you.
3. Building a plan to secure your financial future. Financial security does not happen even if you make a lot of money. It happens because you plan for it and follow through.

Direction With Purpose

The GPS is a combination of your values and principles serving to move you in the direction that will fulfill your purpose and destiny in life. In this case, you’ll be looking ten years into the future because this timeframe can mark significant change throughout the development of your business. It requires you to take action practically every day, but once you get into the habit and you hold that Big Picture in mind, you will be able to fulfill the goals of your GPS. Remember: Either you are working on your GPS, or you are working on someone else’s GPS.

In 2005-2006, Gallup polled 136,000 people in 132 countries to find out what made people happy. Sure enough, people with financial security were happier than people who worried about their money. But having money itself does not guarantee happiness. Human beings are happiest when they are pursuing their life’s passion and even become more productive. As years pass, make your GPS a dynamic document that’s updated and adjusted for new changes—keep it relevant to your life. At the end of ten years, assess your present condition and review how well you’ve done in meeting the goals you established in your GPS.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than

by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor.

Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."  – Mark Twain

 "

Preliminary to Your GPS Project

1. Sit back and draw up a detailed visual image of what your life looks like in 10 years.
2. Become financially literate: track your income and expenses monthly and eliminate your debts.
3. Create your investment plan and choose humane and ecological investments.
4. Master the elements of your genius and make them a priority in your life.
5. Be a great parent to your children and take time to teach them the best of what you know.
6. Be humble and give generously of your time and money to your community.
7. Take the best of humanity and ask: How would Jesus, Buddha, or Mohammed have handled this.

Here are questions to help guide you in creating the detailed description of your life in the next 10 years.

Section One: Who you are today

1. What made you enroll in Urban FIRE?
2. You obviously want more for your future; what are these desires?
3. What are the things holding you back right now?
4. How will you eliminate those things that are holding you back?
5. What are your greatest strengths?
6. How can you utilize your greatest strengths to move you forward?
7. What is the dream that makes you the happiest and for which you desire the most?

Section Two: When you were growing up

1. What were the biggest influences in your life?
2. Who were the most influential people that have molded your character?
3. What experience(s) had the greatest negative impact on you?
4. What positive lessons can you take from your negative experiences?
5. Are you still hurting from the past? If so, what—right now—can you do about it?
6. What experience(s) had the greatest positive impact on you?
7. Generally speaking, how would you characterize the way you grew up?

Note: Sections 3 through 7 are to be written as if you are in Year 10 of your GPS.

Section Three: You’ve implemented your genius (In Year 10)

1. All your life, you had a great love for this passion; now you’re doing it. Describe the feeling.
2. Describe your genius: what’s unique about it, and what is it that you love so much about it?
3. Now that you’re thoroughly involved in this passion, has it opened up new passions?
4. By anyone’s criteria, you’ve succeeded. But for you, is it complete or incomplete and why?
5. When a writer for Business Week asks if you have advice for others, what is your response?

Section Four: When you paint your picture in broad brush strokes (In Year 10)

1. Where are you living and what can you see outside your window?
2. Describe your home and the surrounding community.
3. What makes you feel comfortable, cozy, secure, and safe?
4. Who are the people living in your household and/or the people who matter the most?
5. What does financial security look like to you? Be realistic.
6. What are things that are making you happy? Be specific.

Section Five: The business has matured (In Year 10)

1. What is the business you own? Describe it in detail both in actuality and conceptually.
2. What role do you play in your company and why?
3. Who are the most important people in the business with you (if any)?
4. What is the unique character of your company? What are its most important traits?
5. What do your business associates say about you? How about your clients?
6. It has been rewarding for you. What life lessons has it produced for you?

Section Six: You’ve reached your financial goal (In Year 10)

1. At what point did you declare that you’ve reached your financial goal?
2. Describe in detail what your top financial goal is and its value?
3. Your business profits created an income stream. You then diversified into what other streams?
4. Finally, you’re able to buy some nifty toys for yourself. What are they?
5. Have you become altruistic or optioned for a quiet life to enjoy the fruits of your hard work?
6. How are you teaching your children and/or relatives about financial literacy?
7. Since you can’t take it with you, what plans for the money have you set up upon your death?

Section Seven: The person you’ve become (In Year 10)

1. Have your values changed? If so, what are these new values?
2. Will you retire from your business? If so, what does your business exit plan look like?
3. How do you spend your days to remain productive?
4. Now you can do the things you’ve not had time or money for. What’s at the top of your to-do list?
5. What matters the most to you now? Faith, health, family, personal time, philanthropy, etc?
6. What is the legacy you want to leave behind?
7. Beyond your legacy, what do the people who matter the most remember about you?

Returning to the Present. So ask yourself:

1. You really do want to start a business, but in the back of your mind, you’ve been conditioned to fear such action, so define your nightmare. What’s the worst thing that could happen if your business fails?
2. If you started your business and things are not going as planned, what could you do to correct the problem?
3. The probability of your nightmare will most likely be less than feared. So by defining your nightmare, and realizing there are solutions, what might the real scenario look like and how would you deal with it?
4. Okay, you’re still working and it’s tough to give up that regular paycheck, but you’re unhappy and you know it’s time to move on. What if you were fired or laid off? What plans could you make to keep your financial situation from collapsing?
5. We all have fears. Some deal with them with better results because they realize fear is a temporary state of mind. What are you putting off out of fear right now?
6. You’ve probably felt some frustration by procrastinating towards your real desires. What do you think it’s costing you to hold off on your decision—financially, emotionally and physically?
7. What is the one most important factor that keeps coming up for you as to why you need to start your business now?

I am an old man and have known a great many troubles,

but most of them never happened. – Mark Twain

Lesson 2: Bushido - The Way of the Warrior

(Note: after writing about my Uncle Hiromichi and his hair-raising ride through the tsunami in Japan's devastating 9.0 earthquake in March, I've been asked by numerous individuals to republish my piece on the Bushido. Focused on the concepts of the Bushido, Uncle Hiromichi, was able to keep his wits and flow out of harm's way)

Introduction

In today’s global business environment, entrepreneurs are faced with a multitude of challenges because of the tumultuous climate of business in our communities and across the planet. American businesses understand that competition has been equalized worldwide through technology and innovation and that ethics in our relationship to our partners and clients must be clear and honest if a business is to live a long, prosperous life. Unfortunately, we have been witness to, and victims of, a business environment gone wildly out-of-control in the United States with Wall Street leading the way.

What we need to do is look at examples of best practices.  In this case, we will examine a way of life that has been practiced in Japan for ten centuries. The lessons from these principles are worthy considerations for entrepreneurs in conducting their businesses consistently and not wandering to the whims of the moment. Note that these principles are not the tales of words but of conduct. It is to say that people trust what we practice and not what we say. We can fool some of the people some of the time, but when we don’t come through with our promises, it is nothing more than a lie. We not only lose their trust, we lose their business and worst, our reputation – affecting all future business.

The Entrepreneurial Warriors

For a thousand years, the “Bushido” or the Way of the Samurai (Warrior) was practiced by a class of entrepreneurs in Japan whose business was maintaining peace and harmony. The samurai was a niche group of independent contractors who served regional lords (or Shogun), enforcing the laws and keeping order in their kingdoms. While their skills with swords and archery were legendary and deadly, they also were fine masters of tea ceremonies, flower arrangements and poetry. Their greatest strength came from their daily training in martial arts to improve their discipline and just as importantly, their understanding of social relationships. This way of life was called “Bushido” (Bu = martial arts; Shi = Warrior; Do = the way.) While the society was a male-dominated structure, women were welcome under the Bushido code and appropriately referred to as “women warriors.” They followed these seven essential principles:

            1. “Gi” = Integrity and Rectitude

2. “Yu” = Courage and Bravery

3. “Jin” = Compassion, Universal love

4. “Rei” = Respect and Courtesy

5. “Makoto” = Honesty and Utter Sincerity

6. “Melyo” = Honor

7. “Chugo” = Loyalty and Commitment

In addition to these seven principles, the samurai also remained cognizant of the following three virtues:

1.     Love of Parents and Ancestors

2.     Never-ending Quest for Knowledge

3.     Care for the Elderly

Decisions Based on Principles

By following this code of ethics, the samurai were able to make decisions based on their principles and act accordingly. They were respected by their communities for their commitment to doing the right thing without ulterior motives of money or personal glory. The greatest samurai are still revered today as models for trustworthiness, honesty and bravery without compromise of their pure intent. Perhaps the most famous, Miyamoto Musashi, and the author of “The Book of Five Rings” (circa 1645) is still studied today as the greatest swordsman in Japanese history and a master battle strategist. (The Book of Five Rings has become a bestseller among business readers because of its strategy applications to business.) His popularity was heightened by the present-day use of his name and likeliness in video games and comic books. 

One of Musashi’s key concepts was that in order to be a great warrior, it was imperative to learn through practice, not merely through reading. He believed that it was imperative that students engage in the physical performance in order to truly understand what was required of the mind, body and soul. Today, his theory has proven itself with the scientific discovery that neural transmitters reach out to all parts of the body and that knowledge-based intelligence is reinforced through physical acts that engage the various components of our body. In our entrepreneurial transformation, it is important for new business owners to take this lesson with utmost responsibility in order to improve our performance. In other words, the act of performing a business transaction helps you to improve your business transaction know-how.

The Greatest Entrepreneur in Japanese History?

As entrepreneurs, the samurai had to find contracts to fulfill in order to stay in business. Their ability to win these jobs was based on their reputation and skills. Because the standards were set in part by the cultural norms of the society, it was imperative for the samurai to understand his social environment and the needs within it. While his martial arts skills (including his skills with weapons) were valuable, the greatest of all the samurai was a short, unskilled, uneducated, floppy-eared peasant named Toyotomi Hideyoshi. He earned the nickname of “Monkey” because his face reminded people of one. While he had no skills with weapons, he succeeded by learning human nature, outwitting his competitors, using an opponent’s strength against them and solving problems using people’s desire to succeed. He conquered one obstacle after another using this formula and eventually advanced like no other peasant before him – advancement so profound that one would call him the greatest entrepreneur in Japanese history. As he rose to power, he became known as the “Monkey King” and the military ruler of Japan. Recently, an English version of Toyotomi’s exploits were published entitled, “The Swordless Samurai” by Kitami Masao and translated to English by Tim Clark. (Published by St. Martin Press, 2005)

Having been born to poor farmers, Hideyoshi was destined to work in his village caring for the rice crop year after year. But unable to withstand the cruelty of his stepfather, he ran away at the age of 12 taking odd jobs and vowing to come back in triumph, saving his mother and brother. All along, he dreamed of some day becoming a respected samurai. His passion and powerful desire maintained his course through good and horrific times because Hideyoshi taught himself the concepts of the Bushido. But recognizing his inability to master any weapons or the physical strength to win any battles, Hideyoshi turned inward to discover his two greatest assets: the ability to understand human nature and to think outside-of-the-box. With these skills, he realized that people wanted to be respected and recognized for their abilities. He also showed that getting people to work together as teams was far superior in achieving the outcome than individual efforts. Through his organizational triumphs and innovative solutions, Hideyoshi rose in status placed upon him by appreciative Shoguns. He continued to climb until he had united all of Japan and he became the first Shogun to rule the entire country.

Applying the Bushido

Leading your business in a principled manner is not only the right thing to do; it will build the one thing that is the most treasured jewel with customers, vendors and employees: trust. It will be critical to apply each of the principles in a holistic manner; that is, each one complements each other. They do not work in isolation; they only work when working together in synchronicity. By practicing these principles conscientiously on a daily basis, they will become second nature to you. But you must have their meaning in front of you each day, and you must perform them without fail in order that they become a part of who you are. It is your training as an entrepreneurial warrior.

“Gi” is your integrity; your relentless effort to stand behind your word.  It is the first step in establishing a solid relationship with others. It is your promise to carry forward with what you say you will accomplish. You cannot consider anything less because a slip of your integrity will damage the reputation of not only your business, but of you personally. Too often, we hear the phrase: “I’ll try to get that done.” There is no integrity in making such a statement. We know this only mean to lower our expectations because most likely, it’s not going to get done. Gi is about honoring your commitments, increasing your standards and standing behind each word we speak.

“Yu” is your courage to stand up and do what you believe is right even in the face of fear especially fear that has lived within you for a long time. It is your empowerment to start your business knowing that it has been your life’s passion; that it will improve your life and of those you love. It is the courage to follow your heart and succeed against what once felt like impossible odds. Yu is your awakening to explore the unknown with an optimistic courage to becoming a stronger, better person. Then, once you’ve launched your business, the consistent application of yu will give you a growing legacy to build upon because the future will always bring more unknown elements for you to conquer.

“Jin” is your compassion, your universal understanding of the need to improve our world through your business. It is the idea that all things are interconnected and to neglect one will have a negative effect on another. It serves as your compass to assure that what you contribute will always move your community forward while serving to meet your personal goals. Jin means that you will take the time to walk in the shoes of others and to understand the world through their eyes. Your own world perspective will broaden and build a concrete understanding of why success comes through compassion and interconnectedness.

“Rei” is your respect for others and the environment in which you live. It is your understanding of the relationship between your actions to the results. Rei reflects the courtesy you place on your interactions with each person and situation in your business. It is showing the courtesy and respect that all people deserve in order for you to succeed in your business and more importantly, in your life. True respect and courtesy is practiced without regret even as hostilities surround you. When you honor and respect your enemies as well as your allies, your enemies may very well become your allies.

“Makoto” is your uncompromising commitment to honesty. It is not only a principle but a way of life that dictates your respect for those you affect. It is your utter sincerity in making sure that you and those in your relationships are progressing clearly without concern for doubts and mistrust. Makoto means that your courtesy for others builds lasting relationships and integrity that will translate into rich, permanent successes . Honesty may hurt at times, but it will never deteriorate the respect others will have for you. In the end, your honesty will leave a legacy of your brilliant reputation. And that will always be good for your business.

“Melyo” is your honor. In business, we rarely speak of honor as if it’s out of context. It is not a flashing neon sign to display to your customers and vendors to attract their business. It is a way of personal conduct that establishes itself as the culture of your business.  Honor means integrating all the other Bushido principles and assuring their proper practice. It means that your business represents who you are and those that you love in the best way possible. It means that you honor your commitments, your clients, your vendors and your competitors so that the integrity of your business is never compromised or questioned.

“Chugo” is your loyalty and commitment to fulfill your destiny. In business, loyalty has numerous hands including loyalty to reach your goals, to those that work for you, with you and benefit from you. Loyalty places a foundation for your activities and gives your business a stabilization that is cherished  by your clients, vendors and employees. Through your commitments, you are saying that you will always do what you state. When you succeed each time, the loyalty to those you most affect will be reinforced by your actions. Loyalty is always based on your performance, not by your words alone.

In addition to these seven principles, the samurai also practiced the following three virtues:

1. Love of Parents and Ancestors – our DNA and personal characteristics are the result of not only our parents but our grandparents and great grandparents. Within our cells are the ingredients from past generations, and we share a direct kinship to this genetic makeup. While it is our responsibility to improve upon who we are, we must keep in mind our inherited histories and honor the achievements and legacy that our ancestors have left for us.

2. Never-ending Quest for Knowledge – if we are to succeed, there is no end in sight to our thirst for knowledge. Without this mindset, we will stop challenging our ability to succeed while the rest of the world continues to progress. Without continual knowledge, we will fall behind much of the world and our businesses will suffer. The status quo must be on-going knowledge and applying that knowledge to the way we live. There is an absolute guarantee that unknown factors will arise. Our approach must be to first understand and intelligently take action. To reject it because we do not understand it will push us back into ignorance and sheltered lives.

3. Care for the Elderly – we are where we are because of the contributions and sacrifices made by those who came before us. Now it is our turn – through Bushido – to honor and support those who have helped to open the road for us through their hard work, devotion to us as their children, and their commitment for a better world. Too often, we get involved with our own daily lives and look to the future as our salvation – our brighter day. When we consider the future, we must remember that it was the past that has brought us here now. We must continue to value our elderly because their wisdom and experiences will help guide us into the future.

How Tracy Did It

"I have AIDS," Tracy said. She wanted to know if she could enroll in Urban FIRE. She had just been released from prison for stabbing her husband, a drug dealer. For three years he had viciously abused her. One night, the police came knocking on the door. To save his own skin, he accused Tracy of being the drug dealer. In that moment, Tracy reached her tipping point. Without thinking, she grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed him in the chest right there, in front of the police. He survived and Tracy went to prison for three years.  She was one of 12 students who made up my first class in 1999.

As a 24-year-old mother of two, Tracy had never touched a computer nor finished high school. But after all that she'd been through, she promised her children that life would get better. She kept that promise and while success didn't come right away, she took the lessons of entrepreneurship and stubbornly kept improving her skills. Two years later, she told me she had become quite proficient with the computers. Another two years and she had become a web developer and within another year, she had launched her own business with enough work to hire four employees.

Entrepreneurs are made not born. Learning to think like one is the critical key. 

Many people have asked me why I haven't expanded Urban FIRE beyond what it is today. It's true that we will soon have a national rollout but the main importance of Urban FIRE isn't to get big, it's to get better and work with students like Tracy. Every week, we conduct research and constantly make improvements to our curriculum. It's for people seeking their spark, maybe not when they enroll but when they discover what's possible through the lessons we go through together and honoring our roles as thoughtful students, as sharers of experiences and information; as respectful teachers and as people who learn to care about each other.  

Today, there are millions of us deposited into situations of no value. A national survey released this week showed that more than 33 percent of us hate our jobs. Some of us have given up and some of us are trying, hoping that things will change. But the reality today is we need to become our own brand - Brand Me. What do I really want to be and what principles and values do I bring? How will I fulfill my destiny? It's a bit scary and it requires a notion of courage. In the back of our minds, we know it's a journey we must take.

If you or someone you know wishes to embark on that journey, there is no better time than now. And the final session of Urban FIRE for 2011 begins Saturday, April 9 - 12 weeks of discovery and taking action. The final orientation for those on the fence will be this Saturday, April 2 at 10am. Both the orientation and the class will be held at 935 Union Street (at 10th Street) in West Oakland. 

You can talk to me at 510.655.1304 or go to our website: www.urbanfire.org

As Gandhi said: "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." 

- Boku

Information Is Only Two Dimensional

I've been asked why I put my curriculum online for everyone to see, even if it isn't students from my own class. If the information is already on there, why would anyone want to take the class? There are two reasons:

1. I believe the information is important for us to equalize our social inequalities. If we are to put our words into action, then the act of my placing this information for all to see is my commitment to my own beliefs of social and economic justice. Information is always the first step in lowering the divide that exists between the haves and the have-nots. 

2. Information is only good to a point. It's like being on a two-dimensional plane with a limited view of what's over the horizon. The third dimension that makes for the best views is the interactive communication that happens when people congregate. A whole new dimension enriches the information and brings about greater understanding. By sharing ideas and hearing other perspectives, our ability to truly understand the information is broaden to that third dimension. Without these conversations, we can stagnate and forget what we've just read. Dialogue - interpreting, explaining, debating, defining and applying - with like-minded people reinforces and strengthens our conceptual understanding and makes it real. That then allows us to memorialize the lessons as permanent fixtures able to reside in our brain cells. 

Our class environment cannot be thought of as the traditional classroom. Instead we need to consider what makes for the most conducive environment for learning. We must make it so that the passions of what we want to do and who we are fully embraced. We need to have a place where our students can feel confident about their abilities - which in this particular case, is establishing the entrepreneurial mindset and creating a business that speaks to their soul. 

Nothing less should be expected; otherwise, all we are doing is exactly what Theologian Ivan Illich stated: "schools teach the need to be taught." Our goal is: teach to make improvements in our lives. When that happens, our desire to learn takes an upswing. We start using knowledge as practical tools and apply them to our daily lives. Then we can reposition Illich's statement with a whole new - and progressive - meaning.  

As a great body of research has shown; even in our Internet world, the greatest attribute to our understanding of each other still comes from physical presence when we face each other and talk. 

That's why it's important for me to hold open the third dimension and why, those who want to make that true leap into qualitative change, need to enter and join the dialogue. 

TED: Ads Worth Watching

Check out these ads and think about the SUCCESs formula. When you're working on your marketing video next semester, keep these ads and the SUCCESs formula in mind.
http://www.ted.com/initiatives/aws

You Are An Employer, Like It Or Not

I'm sure you've heard of the saying that "showing up is 90 percent of succeeding." That is one of the great truths of life. When you read the interviews and biographies of highly successful people, they all speak of constance; of building the discipline to show up, learn and do. Go back to the readings on deliberate practice and the Science of Success, and it shows through the research that showing up regularly forms the brain's acceptance towards higher standards and naturally, resulting in higher achievements. 

If you continue doing what you've always done, then you'll not challenge your own ability to perform at a higher level. It's like exercising: the only way you continue to improve your physical condition is to intensify your effort and change your exercise routines regularly to challenge yourself both physically and mentally. 

The vast majority of us tend to wander in our status quo no matter how we dislike it. The question you must ask yourself  is: "Are you where you want to be, if it doesn't work?" The lessons of entrepreneurship are there exactly for that question.

But we also have come under the spell of a societal malady that Albert Einstein quipped: "It is, in fact, nothing short of a miracle that modern methods of instruction have not entirely strangled the curiosity of inquiry." 

Perhaps Theologian and Educator, Ivan Illich, had the answer to Einstein's statement: "Schools teach the need to be taught."

We've been conditioned to wait for the answers, relying on those we pay in our social systems to solve the problems for us. By a lack of advocacy or action, we victimized ourselves as unpaid employers - yes, employers - of a system that keeps you standing exactly in the same spot as always: "Institutions will try to preserve the problem to which they are the solution." - Clay Shirky, author of Here Comes Everybody.

So if you're going to be an employer, get paid, and the only way to do that is to keep moving forward and execute your evil plan to take back control of your own world. You free yourself by becoming an entrepreneur - being your own employer - whether you have your own business or just want to think like an entrepreneur.

Don't make excuses, make stuff happen!  

Helping You to Take the Initiative

This is an in-class assignment we'll be doing in PODs:

http://www.thedominoproject.com/2011/03/poke-the-box-the-workbook.html