On February 4th, 2014, actor Matthew McConaughey was a guest on The Tonight Show starring Jay Leno. Near the end of their conversation, Leno thanked McConaughey for being a friend of the show and told him what a pleasure it has been for him to watch McConaughey’s career progress over the years. McConaughey, who was making his 16th appearance on The Tonight Show, told Leno that he owed him a “thank you” as well. He then recalled the very first time he had appeared as a guest on The Tonight Show.  It was back in 1998.  McConaughey was promoting the film The Newton Boys. “I was hanging out back there (the green room) getting ready to come on and you said ‘Hi, how are you doing?’ “ Then McConaughey says that Jay asked him if he was a little nervous. “Yes sir,” was his reply. “Do you want to know the secret?” Leno asked. “Please,” said McConaughey. Leno said… “Just want to be here.” “Now that is not only a secret for coming on Jay Leno’s Show.  But I’ve taken that into places in life where – you know there are always things you don’t want to do, but we all know we have to do them – instead, you know, remember what Jay said ‘just want to be here…just want to be here.’ That’s all you got to do.” Now, this might seem like simplistic, even silly, advice but it’s really not. We can all relate to “things we don’t want to do and places we don’t want to be.” When we head into situations and events with a chip on our shoulder (no matter how big or small) it can’t help but affect our enjoyment level.  Not to mention the enjoyment of the people around us. What if instead, as Leno and now McConaughey’s advice, you were just happy to be there? You could instantly turn a potentially dismal trip or event into an exciting fun-filled adventure. My guess is that its advice that almost everyone can use. “Just want to be here.” And you’ll never again have a bad...

Today I will be looking at a powerful persuasion technique involving social proof. In Yes: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive, Robert Cialdini and his co-writers talk about how changing three words boosted sales. Even though the three words suggested that the customer might be inconvenienced. This change was made by Colleen Szot, an extremely successful and well-respected writer of infomercial scripts. The line in question was the familiar call-to-action… “Operators are waiting, please call now.” Colleen changed three words so it read… “If operators are busy, please call again.” No matter how many males have levitra prices canada been targeted by different erectile problems, they have been successful to defeat it with some of those that tend to be working are under community ownership. This system will be more competitive and will viagra soft tablet help in lifting low-paid workers out of paying tax and increasing the amount of money that is acquired by Treasury from the wealthy. The study however could not state the cause and effect of their findings, but an expert in health foods can tell you more about these magic pills, let us first read what exactly erectile dysfunction is and what its negative impacts are over the person. cialis samples secretworldchronicle.com Buy Online: getting prescription for viagra UK and EU men thus have the assurance that they are getting the right treatment for any health circumstances that could be causing it. The change resulted in a huge increase in the number of people who purchased the product. Why did it have such a positive impact? “Operators are waiting” created a mental image of a roomful of bored phone representatives “filing their nails” and “twiddling their thumbs,” indicative of low demand and poor sales. Whereas “If operators are busy, please call again” suggests that the operators are going from phone call to phone call without a break. Which would mean that people are so excited about the opportunity to acquire the benefits of the product or service, they are calling in droves. Another benefit, if by chance you did get a busy signal, you would think it’s to be expected and you would try again. So what’s the action item here? When scanning sales copy for typos and edits, also perform a scan of your copy looking for ways to add more social proof.   As you can see, changing just a few words can have a substantial impact on your (or your client’s)  bottom...

It was 2007. When I opened my Post Office box… A slip inside indicated I had a parcel. Could it be I wondered? As it appeared at the counter before me, I realized… “It was.” The package was slightly bigger than 8″ by 10″ and maybe a quarter of an inch thick. The printing was neat and orderly.  Very precise.  Not rushed. I thought for a second about letting the lady behind the counter know that the small package she had just handed me was from none other than classic movie actress Joan Fontaine. Not really knowing the counter lady or even knowing if she’d know who Joan Fontaine was, I decided against it. I’d never written a letter to a celebrity before. It was just not my thing. But when I came across Joan Fontaine’s address online, I decided to make her my exception. The golden age of cinema brought some very beautiful women to the public’s attention.  All dedicated to their craft and whose personality and charm shine through every character they inhabited. Rita Hayworth…Lana Turner…Greer Garson…Vivien Leigh…Myrna Loy…Carole Lombard…Carole Landis…Evelyn Keyes…Barbara Stanwyck…Paulette Goddard…I love them all. But two for me really stand out… Ann Sheridan who possesses “a girl next door quality” that permeates her beauty and demeanor (who I pay tribute to with my site www.ann-sheridan.com) and Joan Fontaine… Her beauty was more elegant.  She had a sophistication about her.  In fact, I almost couldn’t believe how beautiful she was.  By all indications, beauty and glow that time, try as it does, was unable to strip away from her throughout the years. I scoured Turner Classic Movies for her movies. One of her early films “Maid’s Night Out” caught Joan at her screwball best.  Still beautiful of course, but there was a marvelous sense of fun and wackiness about her performance.  Miles away from the type of characters she would play less than a handful of years later in the movies Rebecca and Suspicion. I’ve managed to watch quite a few of her performances, but there are still more treasures out there waiting to be discovered.  I even read her 1979 autobiographical book No Bed of Roses. I was delighted that both she and her sister Olivia de Havilland were still alive and well and making their way through their 90s. In fact, I’d often visit her Internet Movie Database profile, just to make sure everything was fine and she was still going strong. So around five to eleven the night of Sunday, December 15th, when I found out she’d passed away I was saddened, to say the least.  “Yes,” she was 96.  “Yes,” she lived a good life.  I know I know.  But it’s...

August 13, 1993. James R. Jordan, the father of NBA superstar Michael Jordan, was found dead, a victim of a random highway robbery. October 16, 1993. Michael Jordan decides to retire from basketball to play … baseball. The unthinkable had happened. The greatest basketball player in the history of the game had lost his desire to play basketball. The man who, the previous three years had led the Chicago Bulls to the NBA Championship, was burnt out. Mind you, Jordan still possessed plenty of passion; the focus was just different. You see, playing baseball was something he’d been considering for a while. His father, at one point, had even challenged him to take action on his baseball aspirations. The reaction to Jordan’s retirement and his decision to play baseball was instant and worldwide. Disbelief. Criticism. Ridicule. Even laughter. Some thought it was a hoax. A publicity stunt. Steve Wulf, a writer for Sports Illustrated, said the idea of Jordan playing baseball was ridiculous. Players were resentful, Wulf said. He quoted one manager as saying, “It takes some guys 15 years to learn how to hit a baseball, and this guy thinks he can just walk on and do it?” Even though he hadn’t played baseball since he was 18 years old, Jordan insisted this was no gimmick. “I won’t be a sideshow for anybody. If my skills are not good enough to be there, I don’t want to be there. It doesn’t hurt to try. I don’t think it damages the sport,” he said. If you’re old enough to remember the year Jordan played minor league baseball, you may look back and think of it as being “unsuccessful.” A strange and unusual blip on the otherwise stellar career of one of the greatest athletes the world has ever seen. But I, for one, would disagree. It’s a story of a man devastated by a personal tragedy. And who, as a result, made a decision to follow his passion. To take up the challenge of the man he loved and respected most in the world — his father. The qualities Jordan exhibited are the qualities anyone needs to be successful in any field, whether you’re a doctor, a bricklayer, or a freelance writer. I invite you to be inspired by Jordan’s year of playing minor league baseball by looking at five important actions he took as the right fielder for the Birmingham Barons: 1) Don’t let criticism slow you down. Aside from the talking heads across the land, Sports Illustrated published a story with the headline: “Bag It Michael, Jordan and the Sox Are Embarrassing Baseball.” The press then started a rumor that the death of James Jordan was somehow...

It was the first time he had won the award. Super salesperson Joe Girard was at a banquet put on by the automobile company whose cars he sold. They announced that he had won The Number One New Car Salesman Award. He received hearty applause as he walked to the stage to accept his award. The following year he won the award again. He received applause, but not as much. The next year he won the award again. He was stunned that when his name was announced he received jeers and catcalls from his fellow salesmen. He looked at his wife sitting at his table. She was in tears. Shocked by the reaction he was receiving, he conjured up the image of one of the greatest baseball players of all time, Ted Williams. Every time the crowd would boo, William’s batting average would go up. Girard tossed away his prepared acceptance speech and instead said… “Thank you.  I’ll be back again next year.  You have given me the right to come back.  You have fuelled my tank to keep my motor running.” He went back to his table and his wife explained why she was crying.  She said she was shedding tears of sympathy for him and she had tears of anger for the others. Joe took her hand and said… “The day they quit booing me is the day I’m no longer number one.  They’ve paid me a compliment.” Girard won the award many times after that.  The same thing happened.   All the while he tried to analyze why it was that they were booing him. He determined that it was envy, jealousy, and a willingness to settle for second best and in some cases just give up. He knew if he was to remain number one, he must never let those emotions happen to him. “Those who are number two and number three in life are not content until they pull the number ones down to their level,” he says. In life, in order to succeed, we must all be our own number-one fans.  In fact, Girard says the number one rule in life is to have faith in yourself. Here are his ten rules to keep yourself as the number one person in your life: Buy a small number one/lapel pin (or ring, necklace, or bracelet) and wear it proudly every day. Tape a three-by-five file card with “I Am Number One” printed on it to your bathroom mirror where you can see it first thing every morning.  Read it out loud and smile. Keep a similar card in your office or shop or kitchen or locker.  Put another on the sun visor of your car....