Who Do You Want to Meet?

One of the goals that I encourage my clients to work on is to create a list of people they wish to meet.

What kind of people?

People who inspire them! (a religious leader)

People who they admire! (a person who gives with all their heart!)

People who they would love to interview! (a newsmaker)

People whose books they've read! (who is YOUR favorite author?)

People who they'd love to cook dinner for! (a famous chef maybe?)

When I heard about this technique I wasn't really sure I believed it, but I thought it couldn't hurt to try - so I made my list. I won't share the whole list with you - but I will share three people who were on it that I have met, had time to speak with in depth, and who I really learned from and was inspired by!

The first one was an American P.O.W. (Prisoner of War) during the Vietnam War named Dave Carey. I had read about Dave when I was a teenager and was amazed by his story of survival as a prisoner for five years in Hanoi's infamous "Hanoi Hilton" prison camp. He created mind games, and intellectual tools of survival that allowed him to come out of that situation as an inspiration to millions of people. Today he is an author, speaker and consultant.

How did I meet Dave? When I began my own speaking career I was asked by the Sacramento Speakers Bureau to speak to the Sacramento Chamber of Commerce about "Doing Business on the Internet". I was excited to be in California, and even more excited to find out that Dave Carey was also there, and he would be speaking too! The morning of our event I came to the dining room for breakfast, at the hotel where the event was being held. It was fairly quiet as I had gotten there early. I got a plate of food from the buffet table, and sat down by myself. Just as I took a sip of juice, a man asked, "mind if I join you?" You guessed it! It was Dave Carey! We had a wonderful breakfast together - sharing conversation about our families and our lives. He was a true hero, and a real gentleman.

When I came home from that trip I was able to put a check mark beside Dave's name on my list of "People I Want to Meet". You can find out more about Dave at his website www.DaveCarey.com

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Two of the other people on my list I got to meet on the same day!

I'm sure many of you know about the VERY famous "Chicken Soup for the Soul" books (one of the most successful book series ever created). The creators - Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen were also on my "List of People to Meet" because, like them I love to write - and I want to inspire people with what I do!

Every year, the United States book industry has two large events to highlights it's newest offerings - one is held on the East Coast, and one on the West Coast. In 1998 I got a call from a client who asked if I would go to Los Angeles and interview authors about their newest books at the book show happening there.

Would I go??

Of course I went!

I'm someone who usually reads 1-2 books a week, and at these events you get FREE books, besides getting to meet the authors. I did get to meet BOTH Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen - they were both great men - they were very kind - answered all my questions and even gave me some tips on getting my own books published!

I carried home as many books as possible, and was happy to add TWO MORE CHECK MARKS to my list of "People I Want to Meet".

SO WHO'S ON YOUR LIST?

Wendy McClelland is a motivational speaker, marketing innovator and Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach who specializes in teaching people to "think without boundaries!" She is a past nominee for "Canadian Entrepreneur of the Year" and her clients have included software developers, an Olympic athlete and a wide range of business organizations. She has spoken to 10,000+ conference attendees, about Marketing, Internet Business and Motivation. You can contact her through her website ? http://www.thinkwithoutboundaries.com

In The News:

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President-elect Barack Obama is welcomed by President George W. Bush for a meeting at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009, with former presidents, from left, George H.W. Bush, Bill  Clinton, and Jimmy Carter.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)AP - President-elect Barack Obama hailed a rare Oval Office gathering of all U.S. presidents as an extraordinary event on Wednesday as the current occupant, President George W. Bush, reminded his predecessors and successor that the office "transcends the individual."



President-elect Barack Obama names Nancy Killefer, left, to the newly created position of chief performance officer, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009, at his transition office  Washington. (AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson)AP - President-elect Barack Obama said Wednesday that reforming massive government entitlement programs — such as Social Security and Medicare — would be "a central part" of his effort to control federal spending.



Illinois U.S. Senate Appointee Roland Burris smiles as he meets with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nev. on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)AP - Roland Burris said Wednesday he should be able to join the Senate "very shortly," after talking to newly supportive Democratic leaders and working on lingering legal obstacles.



Bundles of one dollar bills at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington, DC. The provisional US budget deficit in 2008/2009 will balloon to a record 1.2 trillion dollars, the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday.(AFP/File/Shawn Thew)AP - The federal budget deficit will nearly triple to an unprecedented $1.2 trillion for the 2009 budget year, according to grim new Congressional Budget Office figures.



Palestinians read leaflets dropped by an Israeli aircraft over their houses in Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. Residents on the Gaza-Egypt border say Israel dropped leaflets in the area, urging them to leave, presumably because of planned air strikes. Israel TV's Channel 10 said residents were given until 8 p.m. Wednesday to get out. Hamas' weapons smuggling tunnels are located in the area, and Israel has already destroyed dozens of them in repeated airstrikes. (AP Photo/Eyad Baba)AP - Israeli airstrikes and Hamas rockets resumed after a brief pause Wednesday to allow food and fuel to reach Palestinian civilians in Gaza, where an Israeli warplane dropped leaflets urging some residents to flee because of imminent attacks.



AP - Heavy rain across the South on Wednesday caused flooding, school and road closures and a landslide that destroyed a home in North Carolina.

CHANGES all percentages to rates per thousand; map shows the teen birth rate for 15- to -19 year olds for 2006 by state ; 1 c x 3 1/4 in; 46.5 mm x 82.55 mm; 2 c x 3 1/4 in; 96.3 mm x 82.55 mmAP - Mississippi now has the nation's highest teen birth rate, displacing Texas and New Mexico for that lamentable title, a new federal report says.



In this Oct. 15, 2008 file photo, rapper Jay-Z performs at the grand reopening of the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles.  (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)AP - Jay-Z isn't performing at President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration, but he is planning to make a big splash on the eve of the event.



In a  photo provided by the 'Tiergarten Nuremberg' zoo in Nuremberg, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009 'Flocke', the young female polar bear left, seen with a young, nameless male polar bear from Russia. Nuremberg's celebrity polar bear cub, Flocke, has a new friend: a Russian bear. The city's zoo says it introduced the male polar bear Wednesday to 1-year-old Flocke, who was raised by zookeepers after her mother rejected her. (AP Photo/Tiergarten Nuremberg) * EDITORIAL USE ONLY * NO SALES *AP - Nuremberg's celebrity polar bear cub, Flocke, has a new friend: a Russian bear.



In this April 6, 2001, file photo, Oakland Athletics' Jason Giambi holds the American League MVP trophy over his head in a ceremony prior to the Athletics' baseball game against the Anaheim Angels in Oakland, Calif. Giambi might just finish his career where it began more than a decade ago. The free-agent first baseman was nearing a deal Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009, to return to the Athletics nearly 14 years after making his debut with the club, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File)AP - Jason Giambi is returning to his professional baseball roots with the Oakland Athletics.



Trails of smoke are seen after the launch of rockets from the central Gaza Strip towards Israel January 6, 2009. (Gil Cohen Magen/Reuters)Reuters - Hundreds of embattled Palestinians ventured outside to shop for food on Wednesday during a three-hour Gaza truce, a first step toward an Egyptian-proposed ceasefire under discussion by Israel and Hamas.



President Bush greets President-elect Barack Obama at the White House, November 10, 2008. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)Reuters - The U.S. budget deficit will swell to a record $1.186 trillion in fiscal 2009, congressional forecasters said on Wednesday, presenting President-elect Barack Obama with a daunting economic challenge.



Illinois Senate appointee Roland Burris during a new conference at Midway Airport in Chicago, before leaving for Washington D.C., January 5, 2009. (Jeff Haynes/Reuters)Reuters - In an abrupt switch, Senate Democratic leaders began talks on Wednesday about swearing in former Illinois attorney general Roland Burris, nominated by embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich to replace President-elect Barack Obama in the Senate.



A man walks past a store advertising a sale in Virginia, November 28, 2008. (Larry Downing/Reuters)Reuters - Job losses and plans to lay off workers hammered the struggling U.S. economy in the final month of 2008, according to private reports that could foreshadow surprisingly grim labor market data from the government on Friday.



A door gunner on a U.S. Army Chinook helicopter keeps a watch on the terrain during a resupply mission in eastern Afghanistan December 25, 2008. (Bob Strong/Reuters)Reuters - Defense Secretary Robert Gates has told Congress that a planned buildup of U.S. forces in Afghanistan could add $5.5 billion to U.S. war costs in the current federal fiscal year, officials said on Wednesday.



Bernard Madoff is escorted in a vehicle from Federal Court in New York, January 5, 2009. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)Reuters - One of the packages accused swindler Bernard Madoff sent in violation of a court order contained about 13 watches, a diamond necklace and other valuables worth more than $1 million, prosecutors said in court papers released on Wednesday.



A local worker controls a gas valve and the gas pressure at the gas-main center of FGSZ Natural Gas, in Vecses, Hungary. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday laid down terms for a resumption of Russian gas shipments via Ukraine to Europe as tens of thousands of Europeans suffered heating cuts amid freezing weather.(AFP/Attila Kisbenedek)Reuters - Russia shut down all gas flows to Europe through Ukraine on Wednesday and told Kiev it would restore supplies only after it had agreed to pay full market prices.



Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran, December 25, 2008. (Morteza Nikoubazl/Reuters)Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama should seek tougher sanctions against Iran, which will be his biggest Middle East challenge, outgoing White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley said on Wednesday.



Smoke billows following an Israel air strike in Rafah near the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt. Top Israeli ministers on Wednesday approved an even tougher war on Hamas despite warming to a new ceasefire initiative and briefly silencing its guns to let Gaza City residents hunt for food and fuel.(AFP/Said Khatib)AFP - Top Israeli ministers on Wednesday approved an even tougher war on Hamas despite warming to a new ceasefire initiative and briefly silencing its guns to let Gaza City residents hunt for food and fuel.



An employee makes a routine check at a natural gas control center of German E-On Natural Gas Storage Closed Company Limited in Hajduszoboszlo, more than 200 kms east of Budapest, Hungary. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday laid down terms for a resumption of Russian gas shipments via Ukraine to Europe as tens of thousands of Europeans suffered heating cuts amid freezing weather.(AFP/Attila Kisbenedek)AFP - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday laid down terms for a resumption of Russian gas shipments via Ukraine to Europe as tens of thousands of Europeans suffered heating cuts amid freezing weather.




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