Good morning and
welcome to Morning Cereal.
Okay, good morning and
welcome to Wednesday.
And if you can make it to lunchtime
today, then you've made it
halfway through the week,
which is kind of a big deal if you're
like me and you like the weekends.
Well, if you're also like me and I'm
guessing 99% of the rest
of the world, you also like
root beer floats.
So celebrate.
Today is National Root Beer Float Day.
Now I realize there is a
cousin to the root beer float.
It's called the Coke Float.
My family used to make
those as well, so I'll allow it.
But either way, the leftover liquid after
you've eaten all that
ice cream, that's the
best.
Well, just keep it in
the back of your mind.
Maybe a root beer float is a good
suggestion to get everyone
through that early afternoon
meeting.
Let's float from fizzy sweetness to
thoughtful inspiration
with our quote of the day from
David Robinson, who said, "Commitment,
belief and positive
attitude are all important if
you're going to be a success."
Now leave it to the Admiral
to remind us of the basics.
That triple threat mindset might be
exactly what you need
to win this morning.
Well, today's News Facts and
Birthdays are for August 6th.
And we're going to start back in 1985.
That's when the iconic pop duo, Wham!
They performed their final concert
together at Wembley
Stadium in London, marking the
end of George Michael and Andrew
Wrigley's chart-topping run.
But they left us with
some unbelievable songs.
Then in 1991, the first website went live
on the World Wide Web.
It was created by a man
named Tim Berners-Lee.
Here he is right here.
And his first website helped lay the
groundwork for the
internet as we know it today.
And finally in 1996, on this day,
Independence Day starring
Will Smith, it was the number
one movie in the US for the second week
in a row, proving that
Americans love an alien
invasion wrapped in
an American flag drama.
Well, happy birthday to you.
Today is your birthday.
You share a birthday with Vera Farmiga,
actress from the Conjuring series.
She's 51 today.
Ginger Spice of the
Spice Girls, Jerry Halliwell.
She's 52 today.
Filmmaker known for
The Six Cents and others.
M. Night Shalaman, he's 54 today.
And former NBA player, the Admiral David
Robinson, he's 60 today.
Also the late Andy Warhol pop art legend.
He was born in 1928 on this day.
He would have been 96.
And the late Lucille Ball, iconic
comedian and actress.
She was born on this date in 1911.
She would have been 113 today.
Well, the number one song on this date
back in 1996 was The
Macarena by Los Del Rio.
Now, what started out as a humble Spanish
dance track, it was
transformed into a full-on
cultural phenomenon thanks to a remix
that added English
verses and a dance club appeal
to it, right?
It spent only 14 weeks, which surprises
me a little bit, at
the top of the Billboard
Hot 100.
And it inspired countless
awkward wedding dance floors.
Admitting you just did the hand motions
in your head, right?
Well, with that in mind, let's go ahead
and dance our way into
our book review segment.
We're reading through Stephen R. Kobe's
The Seven Habits of
Highly Effective People.
And today we're diving
into habit four still.
Think win-win with a focus now on this
sub-chapter called agreements.
And Kobe emphasizes that win-win is not
just a philosophy, but
a practical framework.
And nothing makes it more
tangible than a clear agreement.
Kobe describes five elements that form
the backbone of
effective win-win agreements,
okay?
Number one, desired results.
Number two, guidelines.
Number three, resources.
Number four, accountability.
And fifth, consequences.
Okay, so first, desired results.
They outline what needs to be achieved.
Clear, specific, and
mutually understood goals.
Guidelines define
those parameters, right?
And the rules of the road so that there's
freedom within a structure.
Resources identify the people, the funds,
or the tools that are
available to get the
job done.
And accountability is about how progress
will be evaluated and when.
And finally, the consequences.
Both good and bad, they help motivate
performance and reinforce responsibility.
Kobe already highlighted some of these
early on in the book, right?
And Kobe explains, quote, "Win-win
agreements are a vital part of any
interdependent relationship
because they help define expectations and
promote mutual understanding."
End quote.
Now, this isn't about
micromanaging or coercion, okay?
It's about clarity and empowerment.
When people feel involved in shaping
their goals and
responsibilities, they're more likely
to own them.
And Kobe adds this, quote, "With win-win
performance
agreements in place, people are
not managed.
They manage themselves."
End quote.
And that's the magic.
Instead of chasing people down or
checking boxes, you end
up creating a system where
accountability is built in.
It's trust with structure.
And that's how relationships, projects,
and organizations,
that's how they thrive.
Okay, here's your takeaway.
If you want to build stronger
relationships at work or
at home, don't just wing it.
Make an agreement.
Be clear about what you want, how you'll
work together, and what happens next.
Win-win isn't soft.
It's smart.
And it all starts with knowing what
success looks like for everyone involved.
All right, well, that's our bowl of
morning cereal for this fine Wednesday.
Whether you're raising a root beer float
or rewriting your
performance review, make today
count.
Hey, thanks for tuning in.
And as always, have a fantastic day.
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It'll be a good time, I promise.
Thanks again for listening.
Have a fantastic day.
And we'll see you tomorrow.