Millionaire Mentorship with Kip Herriage

I was going through some old photos and I found a few from waaaay back in the day from when I met Kip for the first time.  When people ask how I "know" Kip and Karl I get a good giggle because it's this industry that brought us together a very long time ago. My typical answer to the question though, has some spiel to do with Kip recruiting me and then mentoring me when I was fresh out of college. A couple of week's ago someone asked me a great follow-up question: "Why did you mentor under Kip and what did you learn?"

I love it when people ask me good questions (:

Well first, I mentored with Kip because from what I could tell, feel and confirm through 3rd party validation, was that he was a respectable guy, a leader, a solid guy with a family and history of success in the business world.  In my mind, those were all things I wanted to have and who better to follow than someone who has the same "stuff" you want to have?  And let me clarify- when I refer to "stuff" I'm not talking about material wealth, though that was definitely part of it. I meant I wanted the great reputation- to be known as a person of high integrity, the pride of looking back on my youth and seeing a pattern of success in all that I do, and the business savv that Entrepreneurs wear.  Over the years, I've been able to pick up on some things from Kip that have definitely contributed to where I am today.  I'm going to narrow a few of them down for you here, so you can learn from them too!

1. Never complain, criticize or condemn. The "Three C's" is what he called them. Not that I was big on either of those to begin with, but you had better believe that it stuck with me even more and in life, in all things, if you'll never do those 3 things, you will do your business and your relationships a world of good not just for you but for others too.  Think about it a minute, if you never ever complained or criticized your spouse or significant other again, how would this change the dynamic of your relationship?  Would they feel more accepted and loved? Would it add a peace to your relationship that didn't exist before? What if your spouse/partner never criticized YOU ever again? What would that do for you? Your kids? Your family?

2. Give people a hand-up, not a hand-out.  Many of us are guilty of trying to "rescue" people. And why? Beacause we think we're going to save them from a painful lesson. However, some lessons are meant to be learned and we ruin the experience a person can gain by interfering.  We all know how curious kids can be and what it's like to want to keep them from danger. How many of us have stopped our own kids from touching the hot stove because we don't want them to get burned?  If we repeatedly told our kids that they would get hurt if they touched the stove, and they never did do you think it has the same impact as when they touch the pstove and feel the hot on their hands for themselves? A lesson doesn't have to be painful, but sometimes that's where we gain the value of a personal experience. I'm not saying that you should let your kids suffer burns for the sake of a lesson about a hot stove, but you get my point.  When Kip gave me this nugget of advice he gave it to me so that I would remember that there are alot of people out there who are going to need help, and it's important that I sort through the ones who need help I can give them that they can learn from versus those who are looking to get something from me by taking advantage of the situation. (Whatever the "situation").  It's important to help people but make sure that you aren't doing them a disservice by stealing the experience from them.

3. The third thing I learned, and definitely at the very top of my list of what has helped make me successful through the years was this last nugget.  Get your pens ready, cause you will want to write this one down.  It's a big one. It's a gem...no, it's as good as gold-

Buy low, sell high.

Nuf said (;

Life's a Beach

It's been a super summer. I can't complain about anything...not even the humidity in Houston :)

I woke up this morning to a beautiful Florida sunshine and enjoyed the soft, still morning and salty air.  We headed down to the beach and it felt so good to stick my feet in the sand and collect little momento's from the shore...on my way I played with a small crab, picked up a sand dollar and threw it back in to the ocean hoping to extend it's life just a little bit longer, and found a neat little rock that was shaped like a heart. All my favorite things God delivered today...seafood, dollars and love ;)

Bend with a Friend

To everyone who attended the m3 Private Wealth Group in the Dominican Republic...thank you for being part of our second m3 and I hope to see all of you in Las Vegas for the Wealth Conference in November! Every time I get the opportunity to mingle with our Members I am reminded about the amazing people that surround us and make up our WMI Family and I always look forward to "the next time."

Have you seen the photos from the event? Go check them out! Karl and I bent rebar together and I flew it home with me, and now it hangs up on the wall at the WMI Home Office. We made alot of memories and experienced a ton of breakthroughs. May this be one step along the journey to a life that is lived not ordinary, but amazing and full of love and adventure!

http://www.wmitoday.com/gallery/gallery.php?galleryName=140

Evenly Unwritten

I was on facebook last night and I took one of those infamous quizzes..."Which side of your brain is dominant?"  Result: I use both sides evenly. Go figure. Does that make me logically creative? Hmmm...

"What is the theme song of your life?" Result: Unwritten, by Natasha Beddingfield. I always knew I liked that song. Ironically MYspace page has her song "Pocket Full of Sunshine" as the theme song. (Note to self: must edit song preferences.)

Do you facebook? You should. It's fun. You get to see what everyone is up to. However, don't be one of those people who post every 5 minutes...we know you are breathing, it's not necessary to tell us. Once or twice a day should do! It's been nice reconnecting with old friends as well as new. In this day and age, I'm bound to read about what my nephew has done recently before I get a phone call about it. 

And hey, don't forget to add me!

All Dogs Go To Heaven

My husband (at the time) tried to give me diamond earrings for Valentine's day, but all I wanted was a puppy. He finally said, "Fine! Take back the earrings and go get yourself a dog."

And that's exactly what I did.

I still remember the first time I laid eyes on him in that cage. He was playing with 4 other puppies and he was the spunkiest one in there. I had predetermined that I was going to get a small dog, but give it a big name. The options were Zeus or Maximus (think Gladiator!). They explained to me that he wouldn't get very big and that he was a "long haired" chihuahua. Who knew? And I thought they all looked like the Taco Bell dog! He was such a good puppy.

Tough to houstrain, until I got a dog door put in...that was the key to potty training.  Before that, it was "treasures" under the bed until he was too big to slide under there anymore. I also purchased one of those super expensive vacuum/carpet cleaners from those door to door salesman because it got the pet stains out of the carpet.

 He favored me. He must have known my ex husband was my nemesis because he used to spray the corner of the bed skirt on the side where my ex slept. When we went to bed at night, Maximus slept in the middle, curled up in the small of my back. Once, he was walking on top of the couch and started to lift his leg on my ex's head. I look back now and chuckle. He was such a smart dog.

He made the drive out to California with me after my divorce and I remember pulling up to the rest stop and a lady next to me got all excited, pointed at him, and said "Hey, your dog is smiling at me. He's really smiling at me!"

My mom called him "Grandson-4-legs." Everyone loved him. He was sweet and playful and I'm pretty sure he thought he was just one of the kids. He was definitely one of the family.

I traveled alot and I had to drop him off at my Mom's for some long term babysitting one year. I returned from my trip abroad and phoned up my Mom to tell her I was coming to get him. In her cute little broken Asian accent she said "Ummm. You get another dog?" And then she convinced me that her and my dad had fallen in love with him and he was such a good fit for them, and they should keep him. She's my mom...of course I said okay :)

She walks him regularly, spoils him terribly and talks to him like he's just another person in the room. I remember visiting for Christmas one year and I could hear her from down the hall. She said "Would you like some toast?" Silence. "Would you like some jam on that too?" Silence. "Eat it all now." Silence. Who the heck was she talking to? I peek around the corner and I see her holding out the piece of toast to Maximus.

Toes. He loved to lick Stephen's feet. My nephew is a stinky footed kid- and Maximus would sit for hours under the covers licking his ingrown toenails. I know, gross, but hey, he liked it. It's no wonder that dog's sniff butts.

One time my Dad was really sick. Maximus crawled up in to bed with him for a couple of days. It's like he knew. He would lick my dad's face, as if to say "I can feel the heat of your fever, let me cool you down." Dogs really are little angels sent to make us feel better.

He knows my Dad gets home at 3:30 every day. So by 3, Maximus takes his place about 5 feet in front of the front door in the middle of the living room and he looks up at the glass window above the door. He waits. He knows Papa will be home soon. It must really screw him up on those days when my Dad doesn't come straight home.

My Mom comes to visit me often. My Dad would talk about how Maximus looks around the house for my Mom. He searches every room, every day, until she finally comes home.

Last Friday my flight was delayed out of New York and I missed my connecting flight to Houston in Dallas. I decided to spend the night at my Mom's and just fly home the following night (gratis American Airlines.) Maximus greeted me with his usual friendly tail wag. He curled up on my lap on the couch and put his head down on my arm. Later on, he crawled in to bed with me and stayed all night. Same old Max. My son-4-legs. I took pictures. He's so cute.

My parents called me last night from the vet hospital. It was late, around 10:30 p.m. Maximus was in the living room and he had collapsed. They rushed him to emergency, the vet ran tests and found that he had fluid around his heart, caused by a tumor combined with congenital heart failure. His tongue was blue and he was weezing. The vet said she could try to remove the fluid, but because it was so close to his heart, there was a likelihood that she could puncture the heart and kill him. He was suffering. My Mom was crying in the back ground. I heard her tears, and my own began to flow.  It was time to say good bye to my old buddy.

Thanks for 7 great years Maximus. Maxipoo. Mack-a-doo

You were faithful, you were true

It's so sad that now you're away

We keep looking around for you to play

You saw us through the ups and downs

The laughs the giggles

The weeps the frowns

Fly up to Heaven and wait at the gate

And I'll join you one day if you'll just wait

Howl with the angels, bark at St. Mark

Walk, run and play in God's dog park

My first companion, you knew unconditional love

And God must have wanted you for Himself up above

I can't say I blame Him, He knows a real friend

But let Him know it's just a loaner until I ascend!

R.I.P 06-01-09

Update on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 02:15PM by Mary Dee

Well, all is good in at Mom's house. The day before her birthday she went and picked out a new chihuahua and named him "Maximum."  He adores her, follows her everywhere, and is already using thd dog door. All calls from Mom this week have been giggles...