Today I joined the Mile High Club (no, not THAT Mile High Club!). I am no longer a virgin internet user at 35,000 feet as I am writing this on my way home from Denver on the plane. 

On my flight to and from Denver, I experienced significant travel delays. On the flight home, all passengers boarded and then deplaned due to weather in Atlanta. I watched people behave badly acting like children as the news unfolded. Some people sighed, many complained, some phoned friends and family with all sorts of comments like “Can you believe this?” or “It always happens to me!”. Of course there were the few who chose to take it out on the airlines (as if they could change the weather). As I stood in line to rebook my flight, I had a conversation with another passenger  - a man who, like me, wasn’t going to make it all the way home tonight to see his wife and children. I found out he had been gone for three weeks. He was an attorney who was coming back from a retreat where he had learned how to be a better court room lawyer. He told me that attorneys are known to be confrontational in the courtroom and sometimes even antagonistic. The  judge and jury don’t like this he explained to me. I asked him what the biggest take away he gained from his several thousand dollar retreat. He told me that his biggest lesson was the importance of being real. He said that attorneys who used their normal style and personality were much more effective in the courtroom. As I thought about it, I almost couldn’t believe it - 3 weeks and thousands of dollars to learn a lesson about being real. Hmm… perhaps there’s a life lesson for you and me too. Trying to be someone or act like someone you aren’t isn’t natural. In fact it’s stressful and stands in the way of living a rich life. Be who you are. Be real. Live rich.  

Inspirational speaker Tim Richardson speaks about how giving increases employee morale, lowers employee turnover, increases customer loyalty and creates higher profits for Fortune 500 companies, associations, healthcare, and financial services. He is founder of the Bill Walter Melanoma Research Fund. For more information on Tim, go to www.TimRichardson.com

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