Part 1: What advice would you give to future generations in your family?

When I think of the decisions I have made in my life that have brought me to where I am today, I can think of so many things to send to future generations. ?I will share through personal experiences as follows:

1. DON’T RUSH: ?The times I’ve made the best decisions in my life are times when I have slowed down to pray and meditate about a critical decision, then analyze all aspects of a decision prior to deciding. ?Decisions like decisions like purchasing a company or a property, embarking in a business relationship, joining a new company or taking a position, ?traveling to a country, ?being introduced to someone, making a presentation to an organization, etc. ?

When I was younger, I wanted things quickly. ?That fire in my belly that has fueled me every since I can remember, is the same fire in my belly that I have allowed to prevent me from slowing down enough to see the inter-connections of a critical decision (there are always many), or the higher purpose in my “Why” of a specific decision. ?As a result, I entered into personal and business relationships too soon without taking enough time to learn about the person at a deeper level: their core values, history, past relationships and big decisions, their guiding principles - not through their words, but through their actions, etcetera. ?Taking time to make critical decisions pays off in the long run.

2. ?HONOR YOURSELF AND YOUR VALUES: ?The way I’ve done this is, putting boundaries around me to ensure others honor me and who I am. ?In my life this has been a struggle as my mother didn’t honor herself by allowing my father to beat her and not standing for herself. ?She played the victim so I did the same for many years, making myself miserable. ?Today I stand tall, and choose who I allow into my life. ?Things now go well because I catch the “takers” easily and either hold them accountable or move them outside my inner circle. ?I wish I would have known how simple it is to live a tranquil life before; my life would have been so much easier. ?I’ve always said: ?Dime con quien andas y te dire quien eres. ?That is one of the wisest pieces of wisdom I can pass along to each of you.

3. ?SURROUND YOURSELF WITH LIKE-MINDED PEOPLE - Tonight I had the pleasure of working with a business CEO who has similar values as mine: ?creating win-wins, the employees come first, living and leading with higher values, etc. ?At the end of the session, he begged me to send him an invoice, as he felt guilty getting so much value from me without returning value in the form of payment.

Last week I had a session with a previous client who tried to get as much value from our conversation as quickly as possible, that I had to cut them off. ?They were trying to create a win-lose, as the call was free of charge already. ?This individual was trying to get me to agree to provide value in return for what he called “a partnership.” ?I quickly fired this client.

Being “equally yoked” is not only a biblical term for marriage and relationships, but also for life. ?With an employer, client, partner, life partner, you name it! ?The more “equally yoked” people we have around us, the easier life seems.

4. ?EXPECT NOTHING BUT THE BEST FROM YOURSELF AND OTHERS - This weekend I staffed a “Basic Training” called “Booktcamp” with my brother Carlos and his company Compass Trainings (www.compasstrainings.com ). ?At the beginning of the weekend I told everyone I live life in what we call “Level 5” commitment. ?By the end of the weekend my small group kept commenting how I truly do live in Level 5 commitment. ?All I did is show up at 100%. ?Pretty soon, my group was showing up at 100%. ?I didn’t have to ask them to show up 100%; all I did was go deep fast, shared from the bottom of my heart, not the surface, and gave 100% of the very best of me to them. ?They ended up doing the same for one another.

5. ?TAKE YOUR TIME MAKING DECISIONS - This is BIG. ?I made the big mistake of rushing Juan Carlos to marry me before the girls went to college. ?That is because JC asked me to wait; he said the girls are still young and we have the rest of our life to be together as man and wife. ?He knew it was better for the girls if we wait, but I couldn’t wait. ?I wanted to be married to him and didn’t see what would happen if we got married right away. ?We ended up in a place where separation was the only answer, according to my marriage therapist. ?

That whole situation alone taught me to take my time making decisions; especially when they will affect other people we care about. ?