Bernie

I have had many influences in my life.

Some have been good and some have been not so good.

Every now and then I think of my friend Bernie. He passed on many years ago --but his influence still echoes in my thoughts and actions to this day.

His influence was good and it is long lasting.

Bernie was the father of my best friend from high school.
He was a fire man who worked for many years in the City of Toronto.

Kindness, empathy, reliability and honour were traits that could easily be associated with him.

And, he was old school. In every sense of the word.

If you promised to do something-- you had better do it. Especially if it involved Bernie.

As a kid I was rebellious, foolish, and somewhat of a clown... Hahaha.

I laugh now, but Bernie set me straight.

My father was a good man and provided great opportunities for me. Bernie was also a strong father figure to me.

I remember I had a committment to meet Bernie at a agreed upon time and location. My partying and wayward youth often got in the way of my promises.

I was 45 minutes late in meeting him.

As I said, Bernie was old school.

I can't exactly remember what it was that he said to me, or how he said it (I wouldn't be allowed to use the words he used on air without contravening the CRTC rules and regulations), but I will never forget the look he gave me.

It put the fear of the Almighty into the deepest part of me.

He taught me to be a man of my word. He very effectively conveyed how disrespectful it is to be late, unreliable, and flaky.

He made it clear, as an older lion would to a foolhardy cub, how important it is to be someone you can count on.

Every boy needs a strong male role model.

I will always be grateful for Bernie.

Sometime teachers come into our life and can leave a lasting legacy in what makes us what we are.

Often times, the priceless value of that influence isn't fully appreciated until the passage of time and experience creates the hindsight necessary to understand the motivation and love that prompted that influence.

Thanks Bernie.

The Value Of Your Word

Ugh.

Your word is your bond.

Not everybody buys into that.

Admittedly, I have broken promises on more occasions than I care to admit to in my albeit boring but storied past.

Thankfully I have made measurable strides to improve upon that.


But think about that. I mean really think about it.

When I make a promise, it is very important to me that I keep it.

It matters.

Why? Because the way I keep promises to others is a direct reflection of how I keep promises to myself.

I've learned a few things with this whole topic.

Here are three simple tools I use to add value to my word:

1. I don't make promises I can't keep.

2. I'm not afraid to say "NO" to any request that is not in line with what is important to me.

3. I hang out with friends and colleagues that equally value the importance of their word.


It works. Try it.

5 Traits Of A True Friend

Been thinking a lot lately about what aspects are evident with a true friend.

This is what comes to mind:

A true friend is

1. Honest with you- meaning they tell you what you need to hear as opposed to what you want to hear.
2. Reliable. A promise made is a promise kept. You can count on them.
3. Inspiring. They up your game to the next level. They bring out the best in you.
4. Someone who celebrates with you. When you win, they win and they share in your joys with encouragement.
5. Someone who keeps you accountable. Your values are reinforced and kept up to par with their association.

If any of those traits are missing, maybe the level of friendship is not as strong or as valuable as it could be.

What do you think?

Shogun vs Machida... WOW!

Watching the rematch between these two warriors was incredible.

WOW!

Like most other armchair pundits, I believe Shogun won the last encounter even though the decision was given to Machida.

When a second chance is provided at redemption, its a great idea to give it your best shot.

Indeed. That is what Shogun did.

His first round knockout of the Dragon was mindblowing.

It reminded me of the stunning knockout Antonio Tarver handed the then invincible Roy Jones in the second round of their rematch of a few years ago.

Like Jones, Machida was viewed to be invincible, unique, and impossible to beat.

But both are human. Both were beat.

Hats off to Rua who deserves to wear the Light Heavyweight Championship Belt.

WOW!

Well done!

Mayweather Prevails

Well, I called it soooo wrong.

I thought Sugar Shane would have been the first to beat Money Mayweather.

Floyd is just too good.

Mosely did cause some fireworks in the second round with a hard right-- but that's about it. Perhaps if Mayweather would have stood and fought instead of just boxing, it would have been a far more competitive fight.

Once Mayweather opted to use his far superior boxing skills, Mosely looked beaten for the remaining 10 rounds.

Floyd Mayweather is the best boxer pound for pound.

But what about Pacquiao?

After seeing last night's impeccable performance against Mosely, I think Mayweather will have no problems in defeating the amazing Fillipino boxer. And, I don't say that lightly.

Pacman is one of my favourite fighters.

I think that Mayweather is just that good.

Just that good to have little difficulty in handling the world class calibre of the Pacman.

We will just have to wait and see.