witness of a warrior in action

the silver lining in challenges.

Central Phoenix- I had just witnessed a genuine act of kindness of a warrior in the battlefield. Sometimes challenges that we face allow us to adapt and to think outside the box instead of accepting defeat.

In lieu of privacy, I will not elaborate on the details.

I have been calling this world we live in a battlefield. We are always battling one challenge after another another. Either we succumb to these challenges and accept defeat, or we persist and dig deep within to find answers to solve these challenges and to strengthen our character even more. But more importantly, it demonstrates to others that there is HOPE. 

Warriors accept the challenge. Warriors lead the cause. Warriors, in the midst of these battles, step up and model what we all should emulate. Can you imagine a world that when we see someone needing assistance, that we ACT? We just don't watch and see others fail. 

In this situation, this Warrior did not know all the circumstances but stepped up anyway! Paying it forward is not only a slogan, it's a way of life for these Warriors I am proud to associate with.

Like the hymn "I Stand All Amazed!", I am truly amazed with the character of these Warriors that I have aligned myself with. If we all bond together anything is possible. There is much work to do. We all have various roles. But, one thing to remember is that we are all WARRIORS!

This just reminds me that my son, Kekoa, and grandsons, Shayde Makoa and Soljah Makoa all have "Koa" part of their names. "KeKoa" in the Hawaiian language means "The Warrior." While, "Makoa" translates to "Courageous/Fearless Warrior."

What seemed to be a simple insurance transaction turned into a great testimony of a Warrior in Action!

May we be blessed because the work we do build villages of HOPE.

stay forever young

blessings of youth

October 2014...
Central Phoenix, AZ- In our quest for youth in our society, we often look in the media as to what youth is, what beauty is or what fitness is. "Youth", in my humble opinion, is an attitude. 

I just finished a quick workout this morning trying to stay "young" forever as I am reminded that I need to tone up a few areas that I have been focusing on for these past 6 years. In my previous posts, I mentioned that I had written my vision and mission statements 18 years ago. Having worked for FranklinCovey, I had met thousands of people in their quest for productivity, organization and effectiveness. (Originally, the company was founded as The Franklin Quest Institute by Hyrum Smith and his partners. - It has been since 2004 that I had left the company. It then adopted the name FranklinCovey, through its merger with the late Stephen Covey's organization.) It was this quest that people were always trying to improve their lives, their roles and more importantly, their effectiveness. 

Named in part by one of our greatest humankind contributors, Benjamin Franklin, at FranklinCovey we helped our clients (individuals, corporate and others) to identify their governing values and to establish long and short-term goals. We sold the Franklin Day Planner in which people would write down their tasks for the month, the week and the day and to carry out a game plan to accomplish their highest priorities. For 13 years with FranklinCovey, I had helped thousands of people with their productivity needs. Most of them coming to the store that I managed, asking for help because they felt out of control. Appointments were being missed. Conflicting commitments became difficult to choose which task or event had a higher priority to complete. 

Personally, like most people, I had experienced the pain of deciding of leaving work early to attend my kid's activities or to keep working overtime. As a salaried employee, there was no such thing as overtime pay, you know what I mean. You work until the job is done! Employees would call in sick, needed time off for some reason or another. (I'm certain it was for their own priorities.) But, when you are the manager responsible for the overall success of the store, you do what you need to do. My fellow store managers know exactly what I'm talking about.

So, back to youth. Back in 1996, I had written a lot of goals that sounded good, felt good and at that time, were very important to me. For one governing values, I had written: "I live a productive, balanced, championship life." Along with this value, I had written intermediate goals. One in particular was: "Be Physically Fit. Workout 4x a week, V-shaped, Toned Chest and Abs."  One problem with this goal was that I did not specify by when I wanted to accomplish this goal. So, back in 2005, I had written a date "6/5/2005". 

Well, for whatever reason, I did not feel like I accomplished that goal. Fast forward to 2011-2012. I had been trying to "get in shape" for the longest time. Yes, I was not strategic in this goal. I had attempted, perhaps like thousands of other people, many diets that I have done. It was until I was introduced to "Javita Burn+Control" - Weight-loss coffee. Easy right? Just drink coffee. Everyone drinks coffee. I wasn't really a coffee drinker. 

As I started to see some results, I drank more! The caffeine in the coffee caused some discomfort! But, I loved the results, so I drank more. Then, Javita Green Tea was introduced. This, I loved! Less caffeine, more results! So, in my quest to get fit, I had begun to shred off the weight. Problem was, I was not getting the definition I idolized! So, I embarked on a weight-bearing program. Learning from different fitness programs, I had begun to see results. My workouts became more intense!

Earlier this year, I had joined Na Leo O' Ke Kai, the first outrigger paddling canoe club in Arizona. Training sometimes 3x-4x a week on Tempe Town Lake for regattas held here in Phoenix or in California. Intense training and conditioning was required to compete and to be part of a crew. "Six as one!" "Pick up the pace" "Faster!" Competing on the open water had been one of my "Ultimate Experience!" The open water, the wind blowing on your face. The adrenaline of competition was addicting! Never paddled in Hawaii, where I was born and raised. Come out to the desert, and started paddling!... Go figure!

I was introduced to Xooma's Extreme X2O. These sachets help increase the pH balance of the water. I had been made aware that the more acidic the body was, the body would be more prone to illness and other health challenges. The minerals of X2O helped the body fill the void of the lack of nutrients that our food lacked in today's fast-food culture.

I shaved off 25 pounds over a period of two years, but the most definition came the last 8 months! From 167#, 36" waist to 140#, 31", I had seen a drastic transformation in my quest to "Stay Forever Young"!

As a society, we are spending BILLION$ of dollars on fitness programs, beauty - skincare products and other programs to look young, feel young and stay young!

The scale became habitual. I took measurements regularly. Gym visits and swimming laps in the pool became part of my daily routine. I began coaching others in their quest to "Stay Forever Young."  I've incorporated "M.E.D.S." into my presentations with my clients. M=Move (Fitness), E=Eat (Nutrition), D=Drink (Water Hydration), S=Smile (Dental Hygiene). The message had begun to resonate with my audience. I have since shared this message with others who have begun their own quest to "Stay Forever Young".

At the end, "Young" is an attitude as we are not able to stop time from ticking. We will get old. We will age. We will die! It's a fact of life. Perhaps, you know when your time is counting down, when we start to check off "bucket-list" items. The list gets longer. We add to the "bucket-list" those "to-dos" that we feel will be our "Ultimate Experiences!"

My quest to "Stay Forever Young" has just begun as I have embarked on a journey to share M.E.D.S. with others. Along with doTERRA essential oils to address people's healthcare concerns, I see families, individuals and "villages" coming together to prepare themselves for the uncertain - whatever that means to them. The uncertainty of their health, the uncertainty of their food source or the uncertainty of our frailing U.S. economy!

Much work to be done! What is required is an army of warriors committed to help those less fortunate or most fragile and to build villages of HOPE.

top 5 strengths - gallup report

futuristic. connectedness. maximizer. belief. strategic.

Glendale, AZ -While house/pet-sitting this past weekend, I recently completed my "Strengths Finder 2.0" assessment conducted by Gallup, an assignment from a dear friend/coach in the past (Carol Ann Driscol). The results were insightful for a couple of my strengths, the others I knew they were my strengths. Some of the questions caught me off-guard, not knowing I was being timed for these questions forced me to rush some of my answers.

I then questioned whether I started choosing the answers based on what sounded good. For those of you of have taken the assessment may know what I am talking about. Each question, both ends of the spectrum, seemed relevant. However, knowing that the clock was ticking, I would select the safest choice, which was "Neutral". With self-reflection, my answer could have have been more on one side than the other. Hope that makes sense! I'm sure the assessment is designed to take all of these factors in mind. There were similar questions, no doubt. Most likely trying to find congruence and relevance in my choices.

Over the next few weeks, I will work with Carol Ann to put these strengths into a concerted effort to achieve some goals that I have been meaning (perhaps it was mere wishing) to accomplish. I have aligned myself with family, friends and business partners who have begun hearing, seeing and witnessing my intentions and what my personal mission has always been about.

It is my intention to acknowledge my weaknesses and other areas that I need to improve and to turn them into my strengths!

I've coined my strengths into the following: 

I see a future connecting and maximizing my beliefs into a strategic battle-plan of action! 

be the best you can be!

Oftentimes we are tasked at being number one!

Our athletic culture celebrates the winner. We put winners on a  pedestal. We give statutes and spotlight to the best actors. We crown the most beautiful women and praise their talent, beauty and intelligence. We award the best physique and the most defined men.We call the elite our heroes. We pay these elite athletes millions of dollars because they win for their teams! We give them an absurd amount of money for hitting the ball out of the ballpark or for scoring so many points at the goal-line, whether its football, soccer or basketball. I get it, it's corporate and it's entertainment and it's for profit.

Herein lies the challenge: that there is someone in second. Someone in Third. And a loser! Sometimes losing by 1/100th of a second. Who wants to be labeled a "Loser?" 

As a society, have we lost our priorities? When do we stop the time-watch to make our kids go faster, stronger, higher? We push our kids to the limit to get the best grades because the best receives the scholarships, the awards, the accolades.

At the end of the day, we all should ask ourselves: "Have I done everything I possibly could have, to be the best person I can be?" We should be teaching our kids that being the best person they can be comes with effort. The key is effort. Are we making strides everyday to affect those around us to become the best person?!

The best "husband." The best "brother." The best "provider." Whatever your role is, always strive to be better than yesterday. Today, is another opportunity to be better than who you were yesterday. Okay, you get the idea. 

We will have days when we fall back two steps. The courage is to be able to get up, dust ourselves off. And strive forward. So, that's the key. Always striving forward. If we keep moving, do we not end up where we are headed? For some it may take awhile. And for others, it may seem that they have no challenges at all and seem always to get ahead. Is it always greener on the other side? 

The self-talk we hear in our head oftentimes is our number one obstacle. Overcoming the voice that tells you, you are not good enough! You are not fast enough! You are not smart enough! And, you are not tall enough!

ENOUGH!!! Stop beating yourself up because YOU are good enough. If you believe that God created you, are you saying that God erred in creating you? He would not have created anything less worthy of His love and His mercy.

Be the best you can be to share His love with one another, and we will truly witness what unconditional love is!

learn. live. bless.

learn. live. bless. 

June 2016...
Learning....to invest my energy, my talents, my experiences into FULFILLING my mission!
Living...to feel blessed for the abundance around me that sometimes are the intangibles!
Blessing...to help others get what they desire!


   

October 2014...
Eighteen years ago, working for FranklinCovey, I had written my vision and mission statements. In addition, I had identified my governing values and set long and short-term goals.

Along the way, life happened and I experienced a myriad of experiences. They were my experiences, my mistakes, my learning. I have been molded and guided ever since. My path, somewhat unconventional, led me to Phoenix, AZ. Since Sept 2014, I have been expanding my insurance services to the Greater Phoenix market. 

Being and living apart from my wife has had it's challenges. My vision was to grow my businesses so that she would not have to work any much harder. As a registered nurse, Norgen works tirelessly, leading her unit at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children for over 22 years. I thank her for her unconditional love and the sacrifice she bore while I laid the foundation of our future in the middle of the desert.

About six months ago, I had revisited my vision and mission statements to see if they had changed. Resoundingly and absolutely no! What I had written 18 years ago is relevant today. I have embarked with a passion to realize the life I believe I was chosen to do. I have partnered with people that have bought into my mission. Connections and friendships I thought had been long severed, had been reestablished. People and other resources have been brought forward. Speaking my intentions out loud has brought me closer to realizing my mission. 

As I have learned and lived, now is the time to bless others abundantly. I have not been blessed with material abundance and wealth. But, my spirit and beliefs have never wavered.

I implore you all who have come here to read about my journey to take risks! Take Chances! And to allow others to bless you as well. As a dear friend once told me, accept the blessings that have come to you. Now, go forth and bless others too! 

Reflecting on my life experiences, I now know that I have been blessed abundantly with great parents who loved me dearly. With two great kids! And now, grandkids who I adore greatly! I have committed siblings that have inspired me and supported me through my life's journey.

I have been made aware that I have 20 first cousins on my mother's (Arreola Castillo) side and another 27 first cousins on my father's (Cabanting Dalit) side. I may have miscounted a few. There have been a few that I'm sure had passed. I have been meeting some of these cousins through social media.

Through my life-work, I hope to share the message of blessing as a means to heal the world. I don't know where all of this will lead. But, when the day comes that I am at the Pearly White gates, I hope and pray that I am greeted by our Lord and Savior, with the message: "Well done, my faithful servant!"

I GO FORTH NOW TO LEARN, LIVE AND BLESS OTHERS!