If you think you are beaten, you are.
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you like to win, but think you can't,
It's almost a cinch you won't.



The life we live is full of battles. Working to pay rent or a mortgage. Surviving health care crisis. Keeping the doors of business open. Saving marriage. Raising kids. Making the right placement. Juggling. I have become a great juggler. I am sure most of you have, as well.

In 1947, The Apple Pan Restaurant opened in West Los Angeles. In operation for over sixty years. A small business relying on a community to stay in business. But they are good. They have been good. A friend of mine recently told me they had the best hamburgers, the BEST. And the apple pie isn't so bad either. They are close to some big name studios, so every once in a while you might catch a glimpse of a face you recognize. Their customers come back; because they are good, the food is good.

My friend, Gary Kaplan, has been a recruiter for over thirty years. He's good. He has used his skills to keep clients over the years and to score bigger placement fees than anyone I know. His small firm rivals the likes of Witt/Keiffer and Korn/Ferry. He loves his job and it shows. I learn from him every time I am blessed to have a conversation with him. Even simple emails are an opportunity to learn from a master. "You should answer your phone," He said to me in a recent email. His clients come back; because he is good and so is his advice.

Good business isn't easy. If it were easy, those out of business signs would be out of business. Finding your stand. Making it and taking it. Principled working naturally follows the good. Purpose and Intent. Goals and Objectives. It doesn't mean you will survive, but it does mean you have a better chance. I'll take my chances, right next to my stand.

Life's battles don't always go
to the stronger or faster man
But sooner or later the man who wins is
The man who thinks he can.


by rayannethorn


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