ROOSEVELTJEANFRANCOIS

Leadership • Language • Justice • Purpose

Haitian Creole Legal Language Specialist, storyteller, and community builder helping you communicate clearly, lead confidently, and create meaningful impact.

Tag: LIFE

  • A #leadership, #perseverance & #determination lesson from #Walmart founder Sam Walton taught by@Orrin Woodward

    Orrin Woodward discusses how Sam Walton was so successful at turning his dreams into reality because he was one of those people who hated to lose. “A person either hates losing enough to change (and, therefore, win), or he hates change enough to lose. Those who hate to lose never use losing as an excuse to give up,” he said.

    Sam Walton’s story is one of perseverance and determination. He never even dreamed of giving up through all kinds of adversity. He set the standard high and led by example, relentlessly tracking the scoreboard and making whatever changes were necessary to succeed. And he expected and encouraged others on his team to follow in his footsteps and achieve greatness.

    Be like Sam Walton and refuse to accept defeat. Go with your gut, keep your own score, and WIN!

  • Leadership & Communication tips in this new information age from leadership guru Chris Brady

    Leadership expert Chris Brady posted on his blog (chrisbrady.typepad.com) an interesting article on how to communicate in this new information age dominated by  too much of every kind of information: emails, texts, phone messages, instant messages, links, news, announcements, requests, solicitations, spam, social networking updates, and invites to just about anything.

    Here are some learning lessons Chris Brady  shared  with us  to better join into the conversation.

    1. Keep it short. 

    More than ever, being concise is critical.

    2. Be interesting.

    If you’re going to say something, be sure you have something to say!

    3. Be authentic.

    The most effective tool for getting noticed is your own, authentic personality. Be who you are. Nobody else can, and that’s probably your biggest advantage.

    4. Be creative.

    As Maximus said in Gladiator, “I’ll win the crowd. I’ll give them something they’ve never seen before!”

    5. Be clear. 

    There is nothing worse than a message or communication that doesn’t make any sense.

    6. Use a call to action.

    What do you want to happen as a result of what you are saying? Make it clear and obvious. “Tell us what you want, what you really really want.”

    7. Have fun.

    It’s refreshing to deal with people who are comfortable enough in their own skins to allow fun to seep into everything they do.

    These are seven lessons for Chris Brady, leadership guru and New York Times best-selling  author. Go out there, and have some fun to communicate your message.

    http://www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com

     

  • Some principles of success and personal leadership development

    I just watched business leader Mark Millitello on a webinar about success and personal leadership development. He presented 13 principles that have worked for many successful people from different walks of life. Let me share with you the notes I took from his talk.

    #1.- Show up

    Whatever you need to be successful in, just show up when you need to. Show up, no matter what is happening in your life, no matter how is the environment. 50% of success is show up.

    #2.- Be consistent

    Pick something in your life and decide to show up and be consistent. Start with something small. This will give you confidence to build something bigger.

    #3.- Embrace the FUNK

    You got to know what life is in the funk. Yes, it’s F.U.N.K. Just for you to know. This is life in the valley, at its lower level. There are things you can control, and things you can’t control. Embrace that and move on.

    #4.- Begin with the end in mind

    Just understand where you want to be before you start the journey. You need to picture what it may look like at the end.

    #5.- Talk to the winner

    How do you talk to yourself? What’s your self-talk? Talk to yourself better. Focus on the quality you have. And talk to the winner.

    #6.- Surround yourself with winners

    Surround yourself with people who are successful in the field you choose to excel at. Read about them, listen their audios, and watch their videos.

    #7.- Take responsibility.

    Have an “if it’s to be, it’s up to me” attitude. Look in the mirror and give responsibility to the person you’re watching. Let your efforts rise above your excuses.

    # 8.- Take your goals seriously. But not yourself.

    Set some goals in different areas of your life. take them seriously. Life is short. Enjoy it. Write your goals down and know for sure you’re going to accomplish them.

    #9.- What can you do, others can’t.

    What are your strengths?  Don’t let life happen to you. Be pro-active.

    #10.- No pain, no gain

    Success is hard. “I don’t promise easy, I promise worthy”, said leadership guru Orrin Woodward.

    # 11.- Be hard on yourself, easy on others

    You have to hold the bar high. Don’t lower it down to get over it> Be an example. D the right things. Give others time to grow. Don’t lower the bar for them neither.

    # 12.- win-win or no deal

    When you get in a relationship with someone, is this a win for each of you?  Ask yourself what  can you give and what  can you get from this relationship.

    #13.-  Be an encourager

    Be a life enhancer. Be a magnet others. Give genuine compliments. be specific in telling the good about others.

    These principles are not for tomorrow. Start applying them now and prepare for the successful results for tomorrow.

    http://www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com

  • Leadership & Freedom: Reading Oliver Demille’s “1913”: a leadership education book on freedom

    I read over this week-end Oliver Demille’s recent book: “1913”. It’s a book on leadership education to restore and preserve freedom. In 1913, three critical events made the greatest world shift turning point away from freedom in the US and abroad. 100 years after, modern times are still under that shift.

     

    The first major turning-point event of 1913 was the passage of the Sixteenth Amendment to the US Constitution. As a result, the United States became less of a federal system and more a national model moving from indirect taxation of the states to direct taxation of the people to fund the national budget. “The power of taxation and how it is collected has a direct and lasting impact on freedom,” Demille stated.

    The second shift is the Seventeenth Amendment of the US Constitution. Senators got to office by popular vote within the states rather than by state legislatures. The states lost their control over the Senate , and as a result, the federal government slowly but surely took over many states power.

    The third turning point was the creation of the Federal Reserve Bank. President Woodrow Wilson who is the architect of these turning points moved away from Jefferson and Madison limited government philosophy to adopt a Hamilton mercantile approach.The Federal Reserve Bank gave power to Washington to print all kind of money which increase inflation and the national debt.

    “Together,  these three 1913 events caused an increased desire to Washington to spend, eliminated roadblocks to massive spending, and created easier mechanisms for taxing, borrowing, and printing money,” Demille mentioned in his book.

    He added another world-shifting event  which is the United States v. Butler case dated 1936.   This case was about agricultural policy. Before this case, the federal government was limited to spending money only on the things explicitly outlined in the Constitution and other things necessary for the “general welfare” of the nation. After the case, the government could spend money on anything it thought would be “good” for the nation.

    Demille also outlined three solutions to start the decline. The first lesson is that the whole citizenry must understand freedom. “Unless the people know the laws, freedom will suddenly decrease,” he said.

    “Without a wise populace that understand how freedom works and takes an active part on maintaining it, no free society has ever lasted… Liberty cannot be preserved without the general knowledge among the people.” 

    Demille called for a small group of committed citizens to engage themselves in the freedom operation.”Turning points are led by a few committed people rather by the mass of society. The masses are nearly always focused on other things while the key events take that the change history,” he said.

    Solution Number 1 Entrepreneurship

    Entrepreneurship always fights back and optimistically seeks to overcome all challenges. We desperately need an innovation generation-an entrepreneurial revolution that brings a return to a true spirit of free enterprise. Leaders of freedom for ahead should become successful entrepreneurs.

    Our nations need a return to a focus of free enterprise. Free citizens are innovative, independent and giving. If the people are forced to innovate creativity shuts down. Forced independence is dependence. And forced giving without the value of real charity is a force of enslavement.

    “Without an independent and giving citizenry, no nation can long remain free or generally prosperous,” he said.

    The Second Solution that qualifies a leader in the coming turning point is becoming a voracious reader and an independent thinker. “Together wide and deep reading along with innovative thinking creates not only readers but the kind of readers who build freedom.” Oliver Demille said.

    The third solution is to become tribal leaders or community leader “We need to build many new communities to bring back real freedom and prosperity to our society,” Demille said. Tribal leadership is leaders who build communities by setting the example of successful entrepreneurship, voracious reading and independent thinking and helping others do the same. Leaders of the future have to learn leadership by leading through involvement by business organization that trains leaders and encourage more community actions.   

    Demille explained and left details in the concept of freedom through classic philosophies that go back to Aristotle, Plato, Montesquieu, Adam Smith and others.

    I had the opportunity to meet Oliver Demille at the summer leadership convention last month. I read his previous books on leadership education. However 1913 is by far his best work. 1913 is foreworded by leadership guru Orrin Woodward, New York Times best selling co-author of Launching a Leadership Revolution, who described Oliver Demille’s book as ” masterpiece on freedom.”

    I could not have said any better. I agree with Orrin Woodward that if you care about future of prosperity and freedom, you should read and apply this book.

    http://www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com

    Special thanks to Axel Jean-Francois for typing and editing.

  • Leadership, Reading & self-directed education!

    One of the most powerful tools people have is the ability to gain knowledge. By picking up a good book, one can position himself a step ahead of the average Joe.

    Unfortunately, many people rarely take the time to sit down with a good book and acquire new information and learn new concepts. But through daily reading, contemplation, and the development of new ideas, one can expand his knowledge, wisdom, and creativity and gain the capacity to engender a rewarding and prosperous life. Pick up a good book today and explore the possibilities!

    Leadership guru Orrin Woodward posted on his blog lessons learned from business leader George Guzzardo  who has become a professor of history over the last 18 years along with one of the top business builders in LIFE. He went from not reading at all, to reading the Team Top 5 books in order to build a huge business and now reads many of the classics.

    What happened to George? The same thing that will happen to anyone who starts a self-directed education through the LIFE Business.

    The Mental Fitness Challenge is a 90-day kickstart to get your brain off and running on a new course of growth and change. If a physical therapist from Ironwood, Michigan can make the change, so can you! Enjoy George’s latest video.

  • Leadership, liberté et pouvoir !

    C’est Henry David Thoreau qui disait que le meilleur gouvernement est celui qui gouverne le moins. Je vous invite à réfléchir sur des idées relatives au leadership, la liberté et le pouvoir dans le contexte de la fondation des Etats-Unis et de la République d’Haïti.

    Je viens de terminer 1776, un livre extraordinaire sur la révolution américaine, écrit par l’historien David Mc Collough. Je prends aussi plaisir à lire au même moment des passages de Thomas Madiou sur la révolution de Saint Domingue pour comparer les faits, les hommes et le contexte du leadership global de l’époque.

    Les deux  révolutions n’ont pas été un « diner party », pour reprendre  Lao Tse. Les deux, chacun dans leur grandeur, ont abouti à la rupture de l’ordre ancien et créer un nouvel ordre.

    Mais l’ordre nouveau créé aux Etats-Unis et celui créé en Haïti a donné lieu à des systèmes et des communautés de gens très différents. Et les résultats aussi. La grande différence serait le fossé du leadership.

    Orrin Woodward, auteur et 7ème top leadership guru du monde, a partagé ses réflexions, récemment, à travers un blog, sur la meilleure façon, de délimiter les pouvoirs coercitifs de l’État de la liberté  des communautés à influencer la société.

    Deux grandes tendances traversaient la société américaine au lendemain de son indépendance. Le fédéralisme poussé en avant par les écrivains de la Federalist Papers James Madison, Alexandre Hamilton et John Jay ; et l’anti-fédéralisme défendu par des hommes comme Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, John Hancock.

    Les deux groupes avaient leur propre vision  de l’Amérique et vendaient leurs idées à travers les journaux, des prises de parole. Et la communauté avait à choisr à travers l’exercice de la constitution et le vote des élus.

    Parallèlement, dans le contexte haïtien, la communauté ne s’est pas vraiment exprimée à travers un débat contradictoire. Mais, le nouvel Etat a s’est exprimé par la force l’octroi du pouvoir aux nouveaux chefs. La communauté avait deux choix : soumission ou conspiration.

    L’État qui détient le monopole de la force s’exerce par  le pouvoir  tandis que la société  constituée des communautés libres  avance à travers l’influence. Le leadership de l’Etat s’exerce par la force et celui de la communauté s’acquiert par l’influence.

    Les guerres de religion ont dominé les 16ème et 17ème siècles. Les formes de gouvernement et les structures politiques ont dominé les courants de pensée des 18e et 19e siècles. Le 20ème a été dominé par le conflit Est-Oust.

    Aujourd’hui, cependant, la guerre des idées a changé de domaine.

    Peu importe  la structure gouvernementale d’un pays, la question clé concerne la perspective économique du pays. Les structures économiques peuvent produire la liberté ou le despotisme. Ceci que ce soit dans une monarchie, république ou une démocratie.

    Les idées ont des conséquences.  La séparation entre la liberté et le pouvoir est directement proportionnelle à la création de richesse économiques des prochaines générations.

    La liberté spirituelle ajoutée aux  droits civiques conduit au despotisme, si les gens ne sont pas économiquement libres pour entreprendre, réussir et échouer tout en assumant leurs propres responsabilités par rapport à leur succès et leur échec.

    Dans un texte que j’aurai à publier bientôt, je dis qu’il faut surtout ouvrir Haïti à l’éducation au leadership, pour renforcer la liberté et l’influence dans la communauté qui sera plus apte à faire du business et plus apte aussi à décider de son avenir à partir d’une vision donnée.

    www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com

     

  • Leadership & Systems thinking

    A leader cannot reach his potential without a systems mindset. Chris Brady, top leadership guru and co-author of the best selling book Leading a Leadership Revolution,  shares several excellent examples of systematic solutions in the following video. Essentially, when a person accurately identifies the system he is a part of, he can learn to leverage the system for bigger results. Systems thinking is crucial for long-term success. In fact, Orrin Woodward,  in his recent outstanding book, RESOLVED: 13 Resolutions for LIFE, one of the thirteen resolutions is resolving to learn systems thinking.

    Here is Brady’s video.

  • Leadership, Life & Death

    I just grabbed one of my daughter’s book : Tuesday with Morrie. It’s about a dying old man teaching life’s greatest lessons to a young man. It’s a must read book from her school.

    I also googled this title and watched an interview Morrie Schwartz had with Ted Kople, former NBC Nightline  anchorman.

    I was watching the video, then pushed pause to read some passages, then closed the book  watch the video. I did that back and forth.

    “Dying is only one thing to be sad about”, Morrie said. “Living unhappily is something else”, he added.

    “The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. We’re teaching the wrong things. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn’t work, don’t buy it”.

    Let me leave you with this video. Enjoy it. Think. Meditate. It’s about Leadership, Life and Death.

     

  • Leadership education and the pursuit of happiness!

    Let’s start with a simple question: what is the purpose of the study of leadership? Why leadership education matters? A simple answer  to this question is happiness. Yes, the real purpose of the study of leadership is to discover happiness by influencing others in a positive direction. The result of applying principles based-leadership in your life is happiness.

    I’m sitting home and I’m happy. My son Jonathan just told me he listened to 4 leadership CD’s for the last two days. He told me what he learned from leaders like Claude Hamilton, Mark Hass, Mark & Jen Paul -top leaders from the Life Leadership Business- about fitness, relationships and making a difference in life.

    He just earned 20 dollars. This is the way I compensate my three kids to earn money by being a consumer of leadership education. They  earn  5$ to listen to a leadership/ life CD, $ 10 to read a leadership book; and more to post their own thoughts on their own  blog. I’m happy to connect them to great ideas and to teach them to create their own content and to be part of the leadership revolution.

    I was in Columbus, Ohio, last week-end for the the  Winter Leadership Convention. I had an opportunity to listen to a presentation from blogger and Life business co-founder Georges Guzardo about the purpose of the study of leadership.

    Guzardo said that if “you take leadership qualities and you apply them in your life, the result is happiness in your life”.

    He asked the audience to jot down 5 qualities of a leader. I will ask you the same question. Take a moment, grab a pen and a piece of paper and write down 5 qualities you think of a leader.

    I’m pretty sure each and every one of us could come with a different set of qualities. For me, the  5 top qualities were the following:

    1.- Character

    2.- Vision

    3.- Responsibility

    4.- Commitment

    5.- Trust

    I know yours will be different from mine. But, can you apply any of these qualities in your family, business, marriage, friendship, community, church, team etc. If you take some of these qualities and you apply them to your marriage, you will have a successful relationship. And what’s the result of a successful marriage: happiness. Happy wife, happy life. Happy spouse, happy house.

    the main product of leadership education is one and foremost happiness. Leaders make people happy by influencing them in the right direction.

    The most important component of learning is doing. There are two ways of learning: instructing and discovering. The best instructor teaches how to discover and the true discovering is wisdom, Guzardo said.

    Instructing leads to a vocational career to earn a living. Discovering leads to a classical liberal education which prepares for LIFE. When we say you are a student of leadership, we mean you allow yourself to have self-discovery, you develop a learning culture, you absorb history and global studies.

    Roman philosopher Cicero said historical leadership is the teacher of LIFE.  Historian Carlyle penned that all  is a variety of study of recorded human history.In ancient times, when the Greeks had free times in the afternoon, they met, and called it agora, which is what we call today school. The agora was to generate ideas.

     The best way to access to history and global studies is through reading. Reading helps us to gather information. New information inspires us for hope, life. Then, from inspiration we develop groups of thinkers who create ideas. Ideas lead to innovation and creation. Innovation transforms and creates commerce and prosperity.

    Innovation and Commerce travel hands in hands. They create opportunities and prosperity which change living conditions, said Guzardo.

    At the end, the result of prosperity is happiness. But, it starts with leadership education, self-discovering, reading, thinking.

    It starts with you!

    http://www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com

  • Living a Life that counts!

    I read the editorial of Haitian journalist Frantz Duval Living Life (Vivre la Vie). I like reading Duval and he’s definitely my favorite Haitian journalist for these days.

    But, I am also reading the 7th leadership guru Orrin Woodward recent book Resolved: 13 resolutions for life. This helps me put into perspective Duval’s edito. And it’s not enough to just live life. You and I need to live a life that counts.

    Leadership expert John Maxwell quoted Ben Franklin who  once wrote, “I would rather have it said ‘he lived usefully’ than ‘he died rich.’” More than just words, it was the way Franklin lived his life. One example of his useful nature was the invention of the Franklin stove. Instead of patenting it and keeping it to himself, Ben Franklin decided to share his invention with the world.

    According to Dr. John C. Van Horne, Library Company of Philadelphia: “Franklin’s philanthropy was of a collective nature. His sense of benevolence came by aiding his fellow human beings and by doing good to society. In fact, in one sense, Franklin’s philanthropy, his sense of benevolence, was his religion. Doing good to mankind was, in his understanding, divine.” Even his position as a printer fit this philosophical bent. He did not hoard his ideas, but shared them, and everyone benefited. He had an “abundance mentality.”

    Maxwell also reported that instead of seeing the world in terms of how much money he could make, Franklin saw the world in terms of how many people he could help. To Benjamin Franklin, being useful was its own reward.

    Maxwell talked on his  perspective on the illusion of wealth and status as forms of fulfillment.

    “I don’t want my life to be measured by dollars and cents, or the number of books I’ve authored. Rather, I want to be remembered by the lives that I’ve touched. I want live a life that counts”, said John Maxwell who is a leadership bestselling author.

    With each day that passes, we should  feel a greater sense of urgency to make sure our time and energy are invested in developing leaders and others to live a life that counts.

    http://www.rooseveltjeanfrancois.com