To many people holidays are not voyages of discovery, but a ritual of reassurance.

– Phillip Adams

*|FNAME|*, if you celebrate today as a holiday then Happy Mother’s Day. If not, then make sure to enjoy your Sunday as much as I will.

To a certain extent I like the concept of Mother’s Day. What I don’t like is the fact that so much weight is put upon so many, that just to comply with society, they have to get or give an expensive Mother’s Day gift.

I also want to clarify that the women who have influenced me over time, have done so in a positive manner and I wish I could give them a gift every day.

Admiring Women and Mother’s Should be Every day

My biggest concern with Mother’s Day is that we don’t appreciate them enough the rest of the year and try to make up for it on a specific day.

I try to be grateful when it comes to my various mentors who also happened to be moms, especially my mom and my other half Lucy.

I also know many women who are not moms but they nurture those around them and some of them go beyond what some moms, that have kids, could ever do when it comes taking care of others.

I can create a long list of women mentors throughout my life but I would stray away from the main subject here which is why such a holiday is important but sadly too commercial.

My Holidays are…

I personally take holidays as regular days. For me a holiday is any day I get to enjoy time with those I admire, respect, and love.

I guess that not being able to be close to my mom for many Mother’s Day, has made me realize that I have to appreciate her when she is next to me not on a special date.

The past few years my mom was able to spend Mother’s Day here on the Island. Today she will spending time with my brother and rest of my family in Connecticut.

Make any Day a Holiday

So my advice to you is that by taking control of your life and understanding that certain moments happen without planning, you can make the best of your days outside of any holiday.

For those of you that don’t have your mom near you, feel free to take some time to enjoy the positive memories and make the best of your day in their honor.

So are you into holidays? What is your favorite one?

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“As long as the world is turning and spinning, we’re gonna be dizzy and we’re gonna make mistakes.”

– Mel Brooks

Recovering from mistakes is something I wish I could get better at, but over time I feel I have gotten better at it.

Last week while I was testing out a WordPress Plug-in called Autochimp  and did not configure it correctly. My blog ended up sending multiple messages into your inbox. The first one was a previous newsletter, the second one was the correct newsletter ,and the third one was another version of a newsletter.

Before I continue. I want to thank you for not unsubscribing from my list. Experimenting with new things to enhance my newsletter made you receive a few unnecessary emails. I really appreciate and thank you for supporting me even when I make a mistake.

The Fear of making a mistake

Like every other human in this world I am scared of making a mistake that will impact negatively the relationship I have with you  and others I respect.

Overall, I fear making many types of mistakes. But the fact that I am not normal is that with time I have learned that by building enough courage I can overcome most fears.

Your subscription is important to me

Thanks to you this newsletter exists and more importantly the feedback I receive from you and others not only helps me improve it but do better in other areas of my life.

I understand how important it is for you to give me a few minutes to read this newsletter. You have many more options and I am very grateful that you are here reading. There is nothing better than seeing your feedback and replies once the newsletter is published.

With every reply I see a different aspect of the subject I wrote on and more importantly I get to know you better.

Once I saw the newsletter sending the wrong content and having your email inbox receive multiple emails I was a bit worried. Your time is so valuable to me I did not want you to feel that I was sending spam to your inbox.

Once I read a few positive replies and others who asked me if everything was ok offering help I felt a bit more at ease.

Apologizing

One of the first things I did on this newsletter was apologize for last week’s mistakes.  I really want you to understand you’re important to me (Have I written how important you are to me? Sorry when I make mistakes I over apologize).

I over apologize because I don’t like it when someone makes a mistake that impacts me and can’t find the guts to apologize.

Sending a message when you really mean it, makes a difference so we can overcome whatever obstacle we are faced with. Sometimes the biggest issue is not that you made a mistake.  The problem might be your lack of response and accountability of what happened.

Most importantly there has to be a plan to move along in a healthy way for the parties involved.

Moving on

To move on I made sure this newsletter’s topic was on how I think others on the personal and business side should react when the make a mistake.  I also made sure to do research and find a better way to have my blog publish my newsletter and not have last week’s issues all over again.

Making up for it

I want to make up for the mistake by doing two things:

1. Give you a Special  Consulting Rate

I have been offering some coaching sessions and my standard hourly consulting rate is $125.

For VIP like you  I will be offering a  phone call (minimum 45 minutes) where we can discuss any idea or business topic you want my advice in the areas of technology, business, web development, or online communications for the special newsletter subscriber rate of $49 (limit of 10).

I will not offer this again for the rest of the year so if you are interested this offer it will be valid until Tuesday.

If you feel I can help anyone with this feel free to forward the email to him or her and have them mention you.

2. Showing you how I configured my WordPress post to publish to MailChimp

I will  also point you towards Chris Lema’s Blog where he explains how to get your WordPress blog to publish to Mailchimp.  I would have written down the steps I followed but he does such a better job explaining I thought it would be worth it.

How do you handle yourself when you make a big mistake? Any thoughts on how we can all grow from this opportunity. Hit Reply I am waiting on the other side for your email.

PS: Today is a special day for my friend, business partner, and artist extraordinaire. He publishes his 100th Daddyknows Cartoon over at Papaheroes. So if you can spare a few more minutes congratulate Rick by leaving a nice comment on something he does to share his experiences as a dad.

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“Knowledge may give weight, but accomplishments give luster, and many more people see than weigh.”

~Lord Chesterfield

The past two months I have gotten a better at staying away from the bad habit of weighing myself every day.

I have scale in my bathroom and when I started my latest fitness transformation, I got hooked with stepping on the scale and looking at variances of my weight.  The problem is that your body weight is similar to the stock market; it tends to go up and down during the day and even after the market closes.

I remember reading the book by Stephen Baker The Numerati (affiliate link) and how he explained the value for people of old age with certain illnesses to measure their weight daily to capture variances in their bodies that could be a flag for immediate medical help. In my case, I just turned 33 this past week and I seem to be in good health so I have no excuse of weighing myself that often.

Weighing yourself everyday might be a problem

Last week I shared how I feel when people waste lots of time focusing on the wrong metrics and things that are not important. I can relate that to how our weight is only a miniscule factor in our body’s composition and we spend so much time thinking about it.

It’s easier to stand on top of a scale

Instead of going to the gym and training, it’s easier to stand on top of the scale and wait for results. If you don’t know what you should be doing when it comes to fitness, there are many factors that can make you think you are on the right track. But in the end, if you are standing on the scale and not taking action, you are only tricking yourself.

Unproductive Habits

Many people get into the habit of doing something unproductive. Some look at the analytics of a website, clicks on a Facebook ad, watch the value of stock fluctuate and look at how much a real estate property is valued to figure out net worth. Right now a 30 year old is spending unproductive time checking his 401k and thinking of his retirement.

It will take a while for that 30 year old to be able to recover his 401k (without any penalties).

Focus and Take Action

Past experiences have taught me that if I focus and put my energy into what I can control, it will lead to better results. Focusing too far ahead in the future without thinking of the present moment, was a gradual change I made after reading the book that changed my life.

Remember to live in the now and enjoy what we have at this particular moment. I want to thank you for giving me a few minutes of your day and would love to hear your feedback

PS: If you need help organizing what needs to be prioritized in your personal projects or business, feel free to take advantage for one more week of this coaching offer where we can both focus on getting you to enjoy now.

This past week I started on my second project coaching Luis Maymi, a newsletter reader, on how to make the best of his talent. I learned lots from him and some of the great stuff he is working on.

Cool thing is I landed the project using this newsletter. I can also help you establish a useful newsletter. 

Extended Offer
Business Starter Online Coaching Package

If you want to launch an idea or enhance a current business project I set up a few online coaching packages let me know. Since you are a subscriber of the newsletter I will extend my offer a few more days.

• 4 Week Package  (Regular Value $450 - Special Offer $99)
• 6 Week Package  (Regular Value $675 - Special Offer $324)
• 12 Week Package (Regular Value $1175 - Special Offer $824)

Any questions can be answered by hitting reply.

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Post originally published as part of Sunday Newsletter feel free to sign up here.

“I can try to define “being normal” as (consciously or unconsciously) not being yourself in attempts to act under more socially-accepted means. ” – Marcella Chamorro

Over 20 years ago, on June 6, 1992, my family and I where on a plane moving back to Puerto Rico. I was born on the Island but my parents moved on two separate occasions.

On the second occasion we lived in Connecticut for approximately 10 years. This marks a milestone in my life where the big change in environment helped me realize, I was not normal.

My Experiences with Gang Violence

In Bridgeport, CT, gang violence surrounded me and the city was known to have one of the highest crime rates in the United States.

For me it was normal to throw myself on the ground every time we heard gunshots fired or run for safety every time we saw something that might pose a threat.  I can continue with a laundry list of situations that I don’t wish any adult, much less a child, to experience.  Good or bad, these situations helped me form who I am today.

Some of the courage I have today is tied to those experiences where as I kid I had to dig deep and be street smart to make sure I was not harmed. I was not successful all of the time but then I had my Dad (Don Tito), Mom, my older brother Luis and my fearless brother Javier, who would step in and stand by me to diminish any possible threat. I was blessed with such understanding, balanced, and forward thinking parents who also let me attempt to figure things out and would step into help if I could not do it on my own.

A Better Place, Sort of

Upon my arrival in Ponce, Puerto Rico, my parents made a huge sacrifice and put me in private school.  We lived in a better neighborhood and I can say the quality of life increased for all of us. Personally, I felt like I was an outcast especially at school.

It took me years to finally feel somewhat part of the group because I used to live in a neighborhood full of violence.  Most of my peers would have never understood want I went through and might have even thought I was making fake stories of my horrible experiences.

Kids can be Cruel, but even one kid can make a big difference

In 10th grade, I remember becoming friends with Carlos Pacheco. He was new to the school and most of my female classmates thought he was cute. We quickly became friends with Carlos and thanks to him I became closer to my high school classmates.

Carlos and I are from different backgrounds but him being the new kid in school with an awesome attitude (which was not normal with my high school classmates) helped me get over many of my own issues. I am grateful that in just a year, Carlos taught me many life lessons and I also understood that it was ok not to be “normal”.

Not a Normal Adult Life

As an adult, I am not normal compared to many living in Puerto Rico. Since I am not a fan of drinking, partying, or eating meat much less pork, I am once again looked upon as an outcast. On most occasions I reject meals because they are not vegan friendly. I am given strange looks as if I was from Mars or Jupiter.

I also don’t have the normal work hours many people my age believe they need to have. I don’t have a boss to report too; the only person I am accountable too is my daughter Daniela who pretty much decides part of my day.

Having many responsibilities, I have to be accountable to my clients and business partners, but I don’t have to worry that a decision will impact me in my next performance report (like the good old days when I worked at KPMG where performance was a popularity contest). My performance report is gauged by how happy my clients are and not how happy I made my boss feel.

Not being normal also leads to a harder explanation how I make a living.

My background like your background, differentiates us from everyone else in this world. I am sure nobody has experienced what you and I have. For that reason I don’t understand why so many people fight so hard to fit in and be considered normal.

Why Fit in?

So next time you are fighting to fit in or trying to be normal, please, stop and think if your real friends, family members, and those around you, who enjoy your presence, would embrace you instead of rejecting you.

I can surely say I accept you the way you are and yes we might have differences but I am ok with both of us not being part of the norm.

• When was the last time you tried to be normal?
• Why did you do it?
• Was it worth it going through all that trouble to reach your objective?

Feel free to hit reply and share your experiences I might have a few more to share via email also. You all know where to find me.  

PS: Big thanks to Marcella Chamorro who helped me define what “Normal” is to her. Like Marcella, I am also alerting others that I am not normal by wearing some not so normal Vibram Shoes even to client meetings.

What do you do to let others now your different?

By the way, if you know of any other people who would like to read a not so normal newsletter like this, feel free to forward this newsletter and ask them to subscribe.

New York here I Come

I will be speaking at Jeff Pulver’s 140 Conference in New York in June.  I am very excited and thankful that my proposed topic “Changing Fitness Habits One Update at a Time” got chosen.

I have not been to New York in a few years and I have many great memories of working in the city.

If you will be in New York and want to attend the conference, register today for a price of only $199 (good only until April 26th.) Afterwards the price will be $495.  Jeff is in the process of curating the conference schedule and confirming the remaining speakers for the event. Click HERE to register.

Let me know if you are interested by hitting reply.

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April is a special month for me because I am an April baby.

It’s also special because many people I love and that have been part of my life for a long time were born in the same month. Once April comes around, I am counting the days to my birthday and also making sure I don’t miss those that celebrate their birthday in the same month.

Before Google Calendar & Facebook Birthday’s

For some reason I have always been good at remembering birthdays. Before Google Calendar or Facebook reminding us it’s someone’s birthday, I would remember that on that particular day, it was someone’s birthday.

The One Birthday I never Forget

If you read my newsletter on Sunday, part of my childhood was spent in an area that had lots of crime and violence. (Subscribe to my newsletter here and I will send you a copy of the previous newsletter)

My closest friend from my childhood was Mauricio Carreño and we went through many complicated situations as kids. He was my buddy in a crime and drug war zone and we use to stick together to stay as safe as possible.

After an incident that happened where they killed two gang members at my school bus stop, my parents decided to drop me off at Mauricio’s house in the morning. At the ages of 10-12, we would walk over to his bus stop together on a corner that was a bit safer than my assigned bus stop.

In the morning we would play a game of Sega Genesis and hope the bus came early so we could make it early enough to get in a game or two of touch football before the bell rang.

Those days are in our memories and fomented a long lasting friendship with Mauricio.

Yearly Birthday Tradition

Every year its tradition to call my good friend Mauricio, one of the most talented Graphic Artists I know in New York City. Even if the conversation lasts 30 seconds, it means a lot to me to be able to chat with a childhood friend and know that he is doing well.

I hope my tradition lasts many more decades and I continue to keep in touch with Mauricio for as long as we are here on earth.

Simple Reminder For You

We are only here for a determined time and sometimes we think we are immortal.

Who do you feel you have not congratulated, saluted, or thanked in quite some time?

Why not take a few minutes now and write them a quick email, text message, or call them and let them know they mean something to you?

If you are here reading this, please say hi in the comments area (it only takes a few seconds trust me).

Just the fact that you are here means a lot to me and I want to thank you personally.

 Sunday Newsletter

If you don’t see me writing as much here on the blog that is because I am sharing my more intimate thoughts and best material over at my weekly newsletter. Feel free to subscribe.

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Post originally published as part of Sunday Newsletter feel free to sign up here.

“Slowness to change usually means fear of the new”

Philip Crosby

A little over two years ago, a few days after Christmas, in my hometown of Ponce, I realized how an unexpected change in our lives was going to become a treasure.

Just minutes after my daughter was born, I made eye contact for the first time with my daughter. I remember I took the first picture of her, marking the beginning of a new journey and a big change in my life. The change I made from working outside the home to being a stay at home dad fulfills my life.

Change is a Scary Word

I am not sure how you deal with change when it presents itself, but as humans we tend to resist change rather than accept it. The resistance causes friction and drains us from the energy we need to make the best out of whatever situation change has brought upon us.

That resistance is usually caused by fear and the only way to engage fear in a healthy way is by building courage and accepting it. I write these words so they can serve as a reminder to both of us that we need to work every day and improve how we deal with change.

The Change We Seek

While listening to Dan Heath in 2011 at a conference where he was talking about his book Switch, (I read it and highly recommend it); he mentioned how people run away from changes that are beneficial to their lives. At that moment he used a picture of a baby. He mentioned how disruptive a new baby coming into our lives can be and how it is in our nature as humans is to reproduce and have our own children.

These words resonated with me at the moment because I was a new dad. I agreed on how a baby could really change your way of seeing life.  Involving yourself in the early stages of a small, living, human is a large commitment. Thankfully, love takes over our fears and helps us do our best as parents to identify the best opportunities possible for our children.

Now think about it for a moment.

Change From Our Perspective

How many times have you felt fear of change as you start a new project, shifting from one job to another, or maybe change your eating habits?

How about when unexpected change geared you towards a better opportunity even though it did not feel that way at the beginning?

So why are we so scared of change?

Feel free to contact me directly and share your experiences I might have a few more to share via email also.

If you you are in need of change or need help on making a decision that will bring change upon you feel free to take a look at how I am helping small business owners, professionals, entrepreneurs (like myself) and individuals who need help structuring their next project or business idea.

PS: I will be speaking at Jeff Pulver’s 140 Conference in New York in June.  I am very excited and thankful that my proposed topic “Changing Fitness Habits One Update at a Time” got chosen.

I have not been to New York in a few years and I have many great memories of working in the city.

If you will be in New York and want to attend the conference, register today for a price of only $199 (good only until April 26th.) Afterwards the price will be $495.  Jeff is in the process of curating the conference schedule and confirming the remaining speakers for the event. Click HERE to register.

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I get very excited each time I get to work with clients in Puerto Rico.

I have clients in England, Mexico, and many major cities of the U.S. and only a small part of my business is actually in Puerto Rico.

This past year I landed multiple clients. We are currently working on their projects and you will soon see them go live.

Our most recent client is The San Juan Water & Beach Club and we are helping them with how to share their story online.

This is a great story to start off with today as Chef Raúl Correa was nominated by @FandW (Food & Wine) magazine as Peoples Best New Chef for the Gulf Coast Region! We are rooting for Chef Raúl as voting began today!

Follow the information below to see how you can vote! If you are on Twitter, include the hashtag #PeoplesBNC and don’t forget to let the hotel know that you voted for them by using their Twitter account @SanJuanWBC !

Click the Link

http://raulj.com/XDilD3

Tweet It Out

Tweet

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My friend from Motorphilia Aaron Manley Smith will be providing a Limo service around Austin during SXSW.

The Motorphilia Limo

Why not travel in style and help a person in need of a car out?

So feel free to like the page and if you will be in Austin and need a ride.

I know of another company that will be offering free shuttle services.

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I have stopped writing as often as I did so I could focus a bit more on some of my short-term goals and get to many things I kept putting off.

One of them was creating a formal Newsletter to connect with people directly via their email.  Following in the steps of to close friends I admire Señor Chris Brogan and A.J. Leon I wanted to be able to replicate some of the experiences both of them have created via their newsletter for me.

So if you are asking yourself where my content is going first it is to share some of my inner thoughts and ways of working things out via my newsletter.

Today I published my 3^rd version. I am still working on a few things to make it better.

So far I have been able to make some limited offers exclusive to my newsletter recipients, I shared my ideas on the importance of being lean, and in my 3rd edition I just wanted to ask people what noise are they running from.

If you want to be able to read some of my inner thoughts feel free to sign up.

I protect my gear with Otterbox

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Yes it’s that time of the year again and I am getting ready to make my third pilgrimage to Austin along with many geeks, bloggers,  developers, and people interested in learning more about digital.

Last year I created a few posts and a guide on making your SXSW experience an easier one.  I do this more as an exercise to prepare myself; I advise that when it comes to SXSW Interactive, especially if it is your first one, most of the planning goes out the door once the conference starts.

Last year while walking the SXSW trade show floor, I found a booth that had a neat mini-backpack called a Runnur.

Andrew Hamra, CEO of the company, gave us all a quick explanation of the functionality of the Runnur. Andrew also did a great job on focusing on how it would benefit me by observing that my pockets where full of things I needed to keep in hand.

Being a fan of bags, I thought that the Runnur offered me a unique way of carrying my gadgets and gear with accessibility.

Don’t Leave Home Without It

A year later, if anyone has seen me in public, they have probably seen me with my Runnur. As the old American Express slogan use to say  “Don’t Leave home without it”. I probably don’t ever leave home without my Runnur.

Walking the Dog on the Beach

When I walk the dog on the beach, I carry extra treats and even hang my sandals from the carabineer.

Visiting the Gym

I carry my headphones, my water bottle, and even hang my towel from it while having everything on hand.

Fun Walks with my Daughter

When we are out with our daughter, it keeps my cell phone handy, along with charger, and water bottle. I even made a small first aid kit with some necessities that every dad with a toddler might need.

Back to SXSW or any other Big Conference

SXSWi 2012 with Rock Star C.C. Chapman wearing my Runnur

Once I arrive at SXSW my Runnur will have:

• License – Very useful when I am trying to get into venues with an age limit and they might think I am under 21.
• Bus Pass or Shuttle wristband– The previous two years I used the RR Shuttle, which made you carry a wristband that had a cost of approximately $60-$70 dollars. If you lost it, you would have to buy a new one. Keeping it in a safe place like your Runnur will save you money and a headache when every bus driver asks for the wristband.
• Sunglasses – I normally don’t buy expensive sunglasses because their life span in my hands tends to be short. Last year I had some sunglasses I accidentally dropped and broke. Since then, I use the compartment made for sunglasses.
• Extra Battery Pack – At SXSWi you need to ABC or Always be Charging. For that reason I will be carrying my Extra-Battery pack with me so my cell phone does not run out of battery.
• Phone Charger Cable – I will have the cable to my iPad 2 and iPhone 5 handy.
• Instead of my wallet I will be using my Runnur. I will have my credit cards, debit cards, and cash. A lot easier to lose your wallet than to lose your Runnur.
• My iPhone5 will also act as a Wi-Fi hotspot when the SXSW networks gets slow and I need to do something online.
• My Point and shoot camera, a Ricoh CX2, with an extra battery.
• Since going to SXSW is a business expense, I can store my receipts and scan them later.
• If you’re staying at a hotel the key can also be placed in the Runnur.
• I will be using the carabineer to carry my swag bag.

I am sure I will find other ways to make use of my Runnur.

One thing is certain, if you see me at SXSW you will see me wearing one.

I protect my gear with Otterbox

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