Welcome to the new year! Don't miss the chance to make it your best year ever. Thanks to your support 2008 was a great year and 2009 promises to be even more exciting for me - and hopefully for you as well.

Activity will continue to be light around these parts as I enjoy the final few days of the holiday season. But then, look out....

The Christmas season will always bring to mind the Christmases I spent away from my family during my Army career. If you're fortunate enough to be spending Christmas with your family this year please take a moment to remember and give thanks for those members of our armed forces who are away from theirs.

The Soldier's Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, he lived all alone,
In a one bedroom house made of plaster & stone.
I had come down the chimney with presents to give
And to see just who in this home did live.

I looked all about a strange sight I did see,
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.
No stocking by the fire, just boots filled with sand,
On the wall hung pictures of far distant lands.

With medals and badges, awards of all kind
A sober thought came through my mind.
For this house was different, so dark and dreary,
I knew I had found the home of a soldier, once I could see clearly.

I heard stories about them, I had to see more
So I walked down the hall and pushed open the door.
And there he lay sleeping silent alone,
Curled up on the floor in his one bedroom home.

His face so gentle, his room in such disorder,
Not how I pictured a United States soldier.
Was this the hero of whom I'd just read?
Curled up in his poncho, a floor for his bed?

His head was clean shaven, his weathered face tan,
I soon understood this was more than a man.
For I realized the families that I saw that night
Owed their lives to these men who were willing to fight.

Soon `round the world, the children would play,
And grownups would celebrate on a bright Christmas day.
They all enjoyed freedom each month of the year,
Because of soldiers like this one lying here.

I couldn´t help wonder how many lay alone
On a cold Christmas Eve in a land far from home.
Just the very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to my knees and started to cry.

The soldier awakened and I heard a rough voice,
"Santa don´t cry, this life is my choice;
I fight for freedom, I don´t ask for more,
my life is my God, my country, my Corps."

With that he rolled over and drifted off into sleep,
I couldn´t control it, I continued to weep.
I watched him for hours, so silent and still,
I noticed he shivered from the cold night´s chill.

So I took off my jacket, the one made of red,
And I covered this Soldier from his toes to his head.
And I put on his T-shirt of gray and black,
With an eagle and an Army patch embroidered on back.

And although it barely fit me, I began to swell with pride,
And for a shining moment, I was United States Army deep inside.
I didn´t want to leave him on that cold dark night,
This guardian of honor so willing to fight.

Then the soldier rolled over, whispered with a voice so clean and pure,
"Carry on Santa, it's Christmas Day, all is secure."
One look at my watch, and I knew he was right,
Merry Christmas my friend, and to all a good night!

Merry Christmas to you and yours. And for those of you who may be interested, here's the story behind this revision of a holiday classic.

To all my friends in the United States, Happy Thanksgiving. And to my friends from around the world, I hope you're able to take a moment and join us in giving thanks for the good in your lives.

Here is some of what I'm thankful for -

• I'm in amazingly good health for someone with such amazingly bad health habits.
• After all these years my wife still loves me. And I her.
• That I came through a military career relatively unscathed. Physically and emotionally.
• I am not forced to do work I don't love in order to put a roof over our heads and food on the table.
• I have friends who can see beyond the thorns.
• I learn something new every day.
• I like turkey and all the trimmings.

Finally, I'm thankful that you have chosen to make me a part of your life. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy a blessed Thanksgiving and a wondrous holiday season.

I considered coming up with a clever tie-in between St. Patrick's Day and one of my 3 favorite topics (Team building, leadership, and communication skills) but then I decided that that wouldn't be in keeping with the spirit of the day. So let me simply wish you a happy St. Patrick's Day and share with you a bit of Irish philosophy -

There are only two things to worry about: Either you are well or you are sick. If you are well, then there is nothing to worry about.
But if you are sick, there are two things to worry about: Either you will get well or you will die. If you get well, then there is nothing to worry about.
But if you die, there are two things to worry about: Either you will go to heaven or you will go to hell. If you go to heaven, then you have nothing to worry about.
But if you go to hell, you'll be so damn busy shaking hands with all your friends, then you won't have time to worry!

Start with a commitment to produce content for this site on a regular basis, add in a serious case of writer's block, shake well and - voila! - conflict. The challenge now is figuring out how to get past the blockage and on to unique and interesting content.

I'm open to any ideas you'ld like to share....

...not as I do.

Trust me - I know all the 'rules' when it comes to building a successful blog.  And rule #1 is that you have to be consistent.  Consistent with what you write about and, probably more important, consistent with how often you write.  But just because I know the rules doesn't necessarily mean that I will always follow the rules. 

Always keep 'em guessing - that's what I say.

 But you?  You need to be consistent so that you can turn your blog into the highly regarded source of information in your niche that you want it to be.

Trust me on this.