I made a commitment to visit my now-adult “kids” more often during the year. I travel a lot and so finding time to get together is tricky, at best. Last year, my oldest son, Jacob, had asked when I’d be able to visit him.

I looked at my calendar. I couldn’t find a time to visit him for eight months. I locked that time in. Eight months before I could visit him? Yes, did I mention he likes to call Seoul, South Korea his home?

It’s a big trip to create coming from California. My wife couldn’t break from work and for me, it became an adventure to plan for myself. Sure I was heading out to see my son. I had never been to Asia before.

Last summer when my wife and I went to France, I did okay. The letters are the same. The words can be sounded out. Going to Tokyo, then on to Seoul, challenged me greatly. I was, essentially, functionally illiterate. I couldn’t read, write, or speak the language. The food was new. The customs were nuanced. 

I was open and soaking it all in. Jacob was my tra...

What comes to mind when you think about a Cage Fight? 

Expertise? Fitness? Bloody, non-sensical pummeling? 

What else? 

And why would I be writing about that for you as a theme of growth for you and your business? Because most people put themselves and their organizations in a cage. Then they wait. And sure enough, problems come along. And how are those problems addressed? We “attack” the problem.

What a waste.

We put energy into attacking a problem in a cage we built for ourselves. 

“No, Dr P. No. I didn’t put myself in a cage!” People don’t like to think of themselves as living a “caged” life. Unfortunately, most of us don’t like to look past what feels “safe.” 

If we live a life of so-called safety, we’ll never grow. We’ll follow the rules that have been given to us by somebody else. We’re then living someone else’s life. And, dear reader, what would you call it if you’re not living your own life, but you’re living someone else’s version of how you should be? That, my friend,...

You know, I have you in mind as I sit here at my keyboard. I really want you to see how all of my writing can be applied both in your business life and personally. 

Just for fun, think about how and where your business life overlaps with your personal life. Then, go back, pick a random Wednesdays With Wayne, and see how it applies in both areas of your life!

Okay, let’s dive into this week’s concept. I’ve written about how you find purpose, how you make your identity, and what happens when it’s threatened. 

Your identity feels at risk when you believe some piece of your integrity is threatened. What happens to you when people engage with you, and they don’t know all that you’re capable of. There is some power in being underestimated. 

Here’s where you have an advantage in keeping a secret. YOU know the truth. The other person doesn’t know the truth about you. 

It’s funny. Odd, I mean. There are so many times I’ve seen outrage at the person who has underestimate another person. The...

I’ve never been to Asia before. This past February, on my flight to Japan, I chose the “Asian meal” instead of the “American pasta dish.” I had pre-decided that I wanted to expose myself to different experiences. And that meant saying YES to things I wasn’t accustomed to – even something as simple as an in-flight meal.

(Remember that what you’re reading can be applied to your business and your personal life. I apply it that way and my growth becomes exponential.)

Saying YES to things you’re not used to is the ONLY way to experience something new and then decide if you want to experience it again. When you do that on repeated occasion, surprise! You’ve become accustomed to something “new.” That is, what was once new is now part of a menu of regular options for you.

I decided that I would say YES to as many new experiences as I could jam in. My goal this trip, my first trip to Asia, was to push past the known into the unknown. 

From the meal selection on the plane (which ...

We know what we know, and we make decisions based on what we know. 

Seldom do we make decisions based on what we can envision.

Isn’t that strange?

We have wants and desires and yet most of us fail to choose a path that is aligned, truly aligned, with those wants and desires. Rather than choosing to live from a place – a mindstate – of having the things we desire, we focus on the things we don’t have, things that stop us from pursuing that desire.

Dream Stopper Language is that of thinking from a place of lack:

• If only…
• When I get…

Truly successful people – and I’ll point out that this kind of thing works in your business and in your personal life – think differently. When I shifted from thinking about the things I didn’t have and stopped giving myself reasons for why something couldn’t happen, my life changed. Dramatically.

Being rational and realistic became phrases, and practices, of the past. I began to explore whose voice it was, whose judgement of ration...

We all have wishes. 

We all have dreams. And yet, the “what if” possibilities that waft like light breezes through your mind don’t stick. They’re fanciful dreams of “someday.”

Whether for your business or your personal fulfillment, daring to dream, to desire, and declare takes a special intention. 

I have dreams. 

I have big dreams, and yes, my dreams are so big that they scare me. 

That’s where intention – and action – come in. Every day I must ask myself whether what’s on my calendar and what I’m doing in the moment is bringing me closer to—or further from—my dreams. 

Your dream demands something more from you.

You could go along to get along. You could live a life of getting by. 

“How’re you doing?”

“Oh, fine. I’m getting by.”

Survival isn’t health. It’s sub-optimal. And you might even say that mere survival can be likened to a disease state. You were meant to thrive. The problem is that while most people ache for something bigger, they choke themse...

You know that “crud” that was circulating for a while. Yeah I, too, was a host to a virus. My assistant, Rachelle, said that she hoped I could get some good rest and wake up feeling like a new person.

I joked with her that I’d choose who I was going to be, as a new person, in the morning. 

And then it struck me. I wasn’t joking. 

We get to choose who we wish to be every moment of every day. When I’m sick, which happens so rarely – I made it through 2024 without an illness – I never say that I caught a cold. I say that my body is hosting a virus right now. I certainly didn’t “catch” it. And I’m not happy that my body is hosting it. I do know that my body is doing whatever it needs to do to right itself. 

My body gives me signals about what to eat and how much (more) sleep I need to allow this thing to work through its process. I just need to pay attention. 

Don’t we all.

Don’t. We. All. 

Okay, back to that Becoming A New Person concept.

It’s this simple. 

You can...

If you choose each of those words and add “what you want” to them, you’ll get some very clear directives for an amazing life!

Decide what you want. Most people don’t do that. They wait for approval. Even in business, most businesses lag because they’re waiting for some sign that what they really want is going to be approved of. Be bold. 

As an individual human, be bold. What is it you want?? What is it that you really, truly desire? Be bold. Want it. Own it. 

Decide what you want!

Explore what you want. What you want comes in so many different varieties. Explore your options and if none exist, make them. Want a car with a water feature? Want a stereo with a sandwich press? Your options for what you want are only limited by you limiting your imagination. Explore! Go to the weirdly impossible.

I led a group in a brainstorm around marketing and had them come up with the oddest ideas for getting their name out there. Hire the blimp. Use skywriting. Employ gorillas for sing...

Choreography stands out as a pretty special art form. It requires feeling and understanding rhythm, anticipating changes, and translating all of that through form and expression in a spatial three-dimensional plane. 

There’s rhythm in everything we engage in or create. There’s rhythm to our day, to our bodies, and to the world. From winter to spring to summer and fall, we enjoy the sense of “season.” 

Today, you awakened, found some form of fuel, and might have had an interaction or two with other people. If you haven’t yet, then you’re gearing up to do so. This is all part of choreographing your day’s success.

You’re good at it.

You’ve rehearsed it.

And you’ve performed a version of that choreography every day for a while. Yes, there are times that you switch it up. The rhythm of the day, or maybe the health of your body, demands that.

So where does all of this lead us? The choreography of success demands that you’re both deliberate and fluid. These work hand in hand...

If you ever want to know what someone truly believes, look at the life they’re leading. That includes yourself. Look at the life you lead, where you put your money, how you treat your loved ones, how you spend your 1,440 minutes of each day. 

Your actions reflect your beliefs. 

Someone on a prolonged spending spree might believe that money will come in at the last minute and everything will be fine. They believe in rescue. And at the polar opposite of that is the person who dares not spend anything extra, clips coupons, and scrimps at every move. They believe there’s not enough or won’t be enough, living in a constant mindstate of “lack.”

Neither of these examples show agency, or the true ability to feel truly in control of your life.

Feeling in control does not equate to being controlling. And think about this: being controlling reflects feeling out of control.  

Not long ago (last week, was it?) I wrote about living on the edge of uncertainty. Do you know what makes ...