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
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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.