Morning Cereal

 Start your day with inspirational quotes, followed by a fun journey through nostalgic facts from this day in history. Then, we dive into Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People 
In Part 3, Habit 4, we’ll explore Covey’s timeless advice on building authentic connections, the art of influence, and creating positive interactions in every area of life.
In This Episode:
  • Daily inspirational quotes to spark your motivation
  • Fun historical facts from this day in history
  • A dive into Part 3, Habit 4 of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective
Whether you're a leader, communicator, or just someone looking to improve your relationships, this episode is packed with actionable insights.
Tune in now and let’s grow together!
Resources:
Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people: Powerful lessons in personal change. Free Press. 
 
All photo’s utilized in this video are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported by Wikimedia Commons license and are free to copy, distribute and transmit.  No photos have been altered.

What is Morning Cereal?

Good morning, and welcome to Morning Cereal!
Pull up a stool, grab your favorite cereal, and let’s kick-start your day with a spoonful of inspiration, nostalgia and personal growth. Join your host, Shaen Inglis, as he highlights the music, movies, and moments that made the 80s, 90s, and 2000s unforgettable—kind of like digging for toy at the bottom of the cereal box. Each episode, Shaen also reviews a chapter or so from top wellness books, offering practical insights to help you set a positive tone for your day. Start your mornings right—no cartoons required!

Follow and subscribe to the Morning Cereal podcast and visit our Life Happens, Live Balanced channel and our website at shaeninglis.com to check out and follow our other podcasts. You can also follow Shaen @ShaenInglis on Instagram, YouTube, etc. Feel free to share the Morning Cereal with someone who could use a little fun and motivation to start their day right.

Good morning and

welcome to Morning Cereal.

Okay, good morning and welcome to Monday.

I hope you had a great weekend and if

you've managed to wrestle

yourself out of bed without

needing a forklift this morning and

you've made it through

your first cup of ambition,

also known as coffee, then

congratulations, you're already winning.

But if you're feeling a bit sluggish,

don't worry, we've got

just the thing to sweeten

your day.

Today is National

Chocolate Chip Cookie Day.

The only question is, do you like them

crispy or chewy or

warm and melty and gooey?

That's my vote and with

some cold milk, of course.

Well, to our quote now, someone who likes

his chocolate chip

cookies with walnuts and

dark chocolate, Barack Obama said,

"Change will not come if we

wait for some other person

or some other time.

We are the ones we've been waiting for.

We are the change that we seek."

End quote.

Now, Barack, he's reminding us that we

have the power to make a

difference no matter how

small.

All right, well, today's news, facts and

birthdays are for August 4th.

And we're going to start back in 1958.

That's when Billboard Hot 100 was first

published for the first

time and the number one song

on that date was "Poor

Little Fool" by Ricky Nelson.

And then following that up in 1985, the

number one movie at the

box office was "Back to the

Future," a film that took us on a wild

ride through the

future, which is actually now

in the past.

Either way, happy birthday

if today is your birthday.

You share a birthday

with a lot of people.

I'm going to go through

these ones a little quick too.

Meghan Markle, actress and Duchess of

Sussex, turning 44 today.

Racer Jeff Gordon, he's 54 today.

Retired great pitcher

Roger Clemens, he's 62 today.

Former president of the United States,

Barack Obama, he's turning 64 today.

Billy Bob Thornton,

the actor, he's 70 today.

And the late Louis Vuitton, who was born

on this date in 1821.

And the late, great Louis Armstrong, who

was born on this date in 1901.

Well, the number one song on this date

back in 1981 was "Jessie's

Girl" by Rick Springfield.

Now, this catchy tune not only topped the

charts, but it also became an anthem for

"Unrequited Love."

But the real question is

just who is "Jessie's Girl"?

Well, attempts to find out have actually

happened and failed.

All we know is this.

It's about a guy named Gary, who we've

changed his name to

"Jessie" because that sounded

better.

And he had a girlfriend in a stained

glass class that Rick Springfield was in.

And Springfield really

did have a crush on her.

Simple as that.

But will the world ever find out just who

is "Jessie's Girl" or "Gary's Girl"?

You know what I mean.

Well, I hear that Springfield also had a

thing for Stephen R.

Covey's "The Seven Habits

of Highly Effective People."

So let's talk about that.

Well, today's focus from habit four,

"Think, Win, Win," is on the

sub-chapter called "Character."

Now, Covey emphasizes that win-win isn't

just a quick fix technique.

We know that.

We heard that.

It's rooted deeply in character, which we

learned a little bit

more about yesterday,

but specifically three essential traits,

integrity, maturity, and

the abundance mentality.

Do you remember that?

Well, as Covey puts it, "If you don't

have confidence in the

inner values that give your

life meaning, then you will not be able

to nurture the trust

required in win-win relationships."

All right?

End quote.

Integrity means keeping promises and

aligning your actions with values.

It's not just being honest.

It's not just honesty, but congruence

between what you say and what you do.

Maturity, on the other hand, is the

ability to express your

own feelings and convictions

balanced with

considerations for others, right?

Covey calls it the balance between

courage and consideration.

And the abundance mentality?

Well, that's the belief that there's

plenty out there for

everyone, that someone else's

success doesn't diminish your own

possibilities or your own success, right?

Covey contrasts this with

the scarcity mentality, okay?

Which sometimes I know we all find

ourselves falling into,

which sees life as a zero-sum

game, okay?

People with this mindset, they struggle

with the success of

others, seeing it as a threat.

When your character is rooted in

abundance, you see

collaboration, not competition.

Covey makes it clear

without these character traits.

Win-win approaches will come off as

manipulative or inauthentic, okay?

It's not about technique.

It's about who you are.

And when your character

is sound, people trust you.

Agreements become more

than just transactions.

They become relationships.

Okay.

So the big takeaway, if you want lasting

influence and success,

start with your core.

Build the character that naturally

creates win-win situations.

All right, friends, that wraps up this

morning's serving of morning cereal.

Remember, just like a chocolate chip

cookie, life is a mix of

sweet moments and a few crunchy

bits too.

Thanks for starting your

week with morning cereal.

We'll see you tomorrow.

And as always, have a fantastic day.

Don't forget to follow and subscribe to

the Morning Cereal

Podcast on the One Life Live

It channel.

You can find more episodes and videos by

visiting our YouTube channel and the

website at seaningless

and at seaningless.com, where you can

also follow our other

podcasts, the Mr. and Mrs.

English Podcast and

the Life Happens Podcast.

In these other podcasts, we'll dive

deeper into everyday issues,

self-improvement and

well-being, business and finance, and we

welcome special guests too.

So join us.

It'll be a good time, I promise.

Thanks again for listening.

Have a fantastic day and

we'll see you tomorrow.