QUOTABLE QUOTES
***MOTIVATION
"You can spend an hour explaining how to slice a lemon--if you first explain why it is important to know."
Ken Futch, Author of Take Your Best Shot

***IDEAS
"The beauty of ideas is that they can be used over and over again, without ever being depleted....The essence of the first Industrial Revolution was not the coal; it was how to use the coal (i.e. the steam engine)."
Jeffrey D. Sachs, author The End of Poverty

***VIRTUE
"The most acceptable service of God is doing good to men."
Benjamin Franklin

***HEALTH
"Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint."
Attributed to Mark Twain

***OLD AGE
"By the time a man is old enough to watch his step, he's too old to go anywhere."
Billy Crystal

***SPELLING
"I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht
I was rdanieg. Aoccdrnig to rscheearch taem at Cmabrigde
Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a
wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and
lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl
mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs
is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter
by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Such a cdonition is
arppoiately cllaed Typoglycemia Amzanig huh? Yaeh and yuo awlyas thought slpeling
was ipmorantt."
Contributed by TAD reader and syndicated columnist Alice O'Neill

***VISION
"Getting down to brass tacks does not require one to be brassy or tacky...just to the point."
--Chris Carey (Chris Carey was a friend and a reader of TAD. He passed away earlier this year. He was a wonderfully creative person. (Visit his website for a downloadable poster of this quote and the one that follows. http://www.chriscarey.com/brasstacks.html)

***VISION
"SIGHT counts the seeds in an apple. VISION counts the apples in a seed."
--Chris Carey http://www.chriscarey.com/AplSeed.html

LEADERSHIP LESSONS
***CREATE A DREAM LIST
Those of you who have attended my seminar "How To Get More Out Of Every Day" know that I emphasize writing down your dreams. I also have written about the importance of making your dreams specific in "Time Tactics of Very Successful People" (pp. 8,9,10).

Recently I came upon a terrific way for leaders to apply this principle. It's in an excellent article in the March 21, 2005 issue of Fortune Magazine entitled "The Best Advice I Ever Got." One of the people interviewed was Klaus Kleinfeld, CEO of Seimens, who told Fortune, "The best advice I ever got was from an old friend of the family's, and it goes like this: Whenever you take on a new position and get bogged down in the details, sit down, lean back, close your eyes, and think about what you really want to achieve and how you want things to look in a couple of years. And only then--once you have a clear vision in front of your inner eye--start executing so that things will move in that direction."

Kleinfeld says that this is the approach that he takes with his leadership team. He mentally puts aside the problems that they confront and asks, "Okay, what should this look like?" The process involves thinking it through and then drawing people in.

LINCOLN'S LOG
Lincoln's law partner William Herndon wrote: "He loved the study of grammar, which some think the most arid of subjects."

Actually Lincoln was following the advice of Hugh Blair, whom Lincoln had read, who had written: "He that is learning to arrange his sentences with accuracy and order is learning, at the same time, to think with accuracy and order."

Lincoln read aloud to himself in order to get a feel for the sound and logic of his words, and he wrote out his ideas as a way of arranging his thoughts.

Lincoln was not a good speller, but he took great pains in choosing his words. In one of his debates with Douglas, Lincoln accused his opponent of being sloppy about this. As Lincoln put it, a horse chestnut is not the same as a chestnut horse.

Here again, Lincoln was following Hugh Blair, who wrote: "Hardly in any language are there two words that convey precisely the same idea; a person thoroughly conversant in the propriety of language will always be able to observe something that distinguishes them...The bulk of writers are very apt to confuse them with each other, and to employ them carelessly...Hence a certain mist, and indistinctness, is unwarily thrown over style."

If you are interested in Lincoln's communication techniques, check out the DVD and CD "LINCOLN ON COMMUNICATION." This resource is widely used as a training film for leadership and communication programs.  www.achievementdigest.com/lincoln%20on%20communication.html. No-risk guarantee.

Also, we have passed the 150,000 mark for "Time Tactics of Very Successful People." To celebrate, if you place an order for this book between now and May 1, we will send you absolutely free the audio book "The Inspirational Words of Abraham Lincoln." That's a $11.95 gift with every book, and we pay the shipping.
To order: http://www.achievementdigest.com/timetacticsofverysuccessfulpeople.html

TRAVEL NOTES OF A ROAD WARRIOR
***ST. CROIX, AMERICAN VIRGIN ISLANDS
In a recent issue I mentioned how impressed I was with St. Croix. Apparently the people at Delta Air Lines agree; Delta began direct service from Atlanta to St. Croix on March 5. (American Airlines and U.S. Air already serve the island.) There are miles of hiking trails, pristine beaches, and impressive dive sites that are known for the 13,000-foot-deep sub-sea canyon and steep diving walls. One option in St. Croix is to rent a condo. I like Sugar Beach Condo & Resort (http://www.sugarbeachstcroix.com 1-800-524-2049)which is directly on the beach and is near the old Danish town of Christiansted.  St. Croix is the only island with a casino. It also has horse racing and two fine golf courses: Carambola, a Robert Trent Jones-designed course, and a beautiful 18-hole course at the Buccaneer Resort.

***CHINA
Just two decades ago the people of China had barely enough to eat. Today China has the fastest growing economy in the world--something that has to be seen to be believed. On a recent trip to China--four days in Beijing and three days in Shanghai, which is about right for an overview--here's what I observed:
*Traffic as bad as Tokyo's or LA's.
*Clean streets and sidewalks with hardly a scrap of paper to be seen.
*Huge, dramatic buildings going up everywhere. Most of the cranes in the world seem to be in Beijing or Shanghai. Famed architect John Portman has designed three brilliant hotels in Shanghai alone.
*Excitement and pride. Beijing is getting ready for the Olympics in 2008 and Shanghai for the World Expo in 2010. *Entrepreneurship. Everybody is trying to get in on the action. Even bus drivers sell bottles of water--two for a dollar.
*Openness toward Western ideas that is perhaps unparalleled in history. Example. The State owns the land but individuals can own condos and finance them with 5-10-15-and 20-year mortgages. As my guide put it, "We are learning from you." *Unbelievable bargains. I was particularly impressed with the silk scarves and rugs.
*Hustlers. Most of the antiques and coins in the shops--except for the government approved (or run) shops--are fakes. You will be able to purchase watches on the streets for almost nothing, but they tend not to run very long.
*Business opportunities. China is looking for partners and investors. China owns more American bonds than any other nation on earth, and it will have to find ways to spend dollars on American products and services.

TRAVELERS TIPS  FOR CHINA
*Don't go to Beijing or Shanghai for a vacation. Go to Cancun or St. Barts instead and lie on the beach. Go to China for an adventure.
*Choose a hotel as close to the central city as you can. Otherwise you'll spend a lot of time in traffic.
*Be on guard against pickpockets and counterfeit money.
*Do go to The Great Wall. Do avoid the Peking Opera--amateurish and strictly for Western tourists--and the Peking Duck banquet that they serve in the restaurant adjoining the theater. It's difficult to make Peking Duck taste ordinary but these chefs succeed brilliantly.
*Do go to the Shanghai Acrobats Performance--amazing--and do not miss an excursion to Suzhou, a few miles from Shanghai. Known as the "Venice of the East," Suzhou is renowned for its canals and gardens.

A TRAVEL BARGAIN Check out www.smartours.com. If you are accustomed to flying business-class or first-class and staying in five-star hotels, don't consider smarTours. But if you don't mind flying coach and staying in four-star hotels, this company provides excellent value. (You may want to consider using Smartour and purchasing upgrades for your flight.) Their guides are fantastic; they take away the pain of navigating through a really foreign culture.

***LOS ANGELES
I revisited Lilly's French Café & Bar in Venice, CA and found it as wonderful as I remembered it. Ask to be seated in the outdoor patio. Inquire about their "set-up" menus. I love their artichoke with mustard vinaigrette, their grilled salmon with green lentiles and soy ginger sauce, and their sauteed striped bass served with fennel and leek tart with merlot sauce. I should also mention one of their specialties--Canard a l'orange pommes gaufrettes (Roasted "Maple Leaf Farm" duck with orange sauce served with waffle potatoes and French green beans.) They serve a lunch special--two courses for $10. Plan to stroll through the fabulous little shops in the neighborhood. 1031 Abbott Kinney Blvd., Venice, CA 90291  310-314-0004

IF YOU ARE INVOLVED IN PLANNING AN UPCOMING MEETING, SALES CONFERENCE, CUSTOMER-APPRECIATION EVENT OR SEMINAR, PLEASE TYPE "YES" BESIDE THE ITEM/S BELOW AND RETURN THIS EMAIL IN ORDER TO RECEIVE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS:

___"Lincoln Live" "Lincoln The CEO" "Lincoln For Leaders"

___Personal Productivity-Time Management "How To Get More Out Of Every Day"

___Keynote Presentation ("Lessons From Legends" "Success and Failure: Nine Secrets That Make The Difference")

___How To Do Business With Americans (This is a new presentation based on a new book and a keynote that I'll be delivering to a four-nation conference in Lima, Peru later this year. For overseas businesspeople and for organizations with a multi-national workforce. Let us know if you're interested.)

FEEDBACK
***"I caught your performance on Saturday night on KABC. You were just great. I loved your clever portrait and your boundless knowledge of events in U.S. history. The personality you present is just so much like Lincoln. Thanks a bunch. Michael Landis

***(Because I think the following announcement is important, we are repeating this message from a previous TAD.) "Dear Dr. Griessman, I believe that many of your readers will be interested a new program we are offering at American College. It's an accredited Master of Science in Management (MSM) program with an emphasis on leadership. What makes it appealing to your readers is its unique delivery schedule that allows a busy professional to complete the program in one year. The program consists of two, one-week residential periods at The American College in Bryn Mawr, PA and six, six-week distance courses.

The program is designed with all ten courses in leadership targeted for professionals who hold any of the following types of positions in the financial services industry broadly defined: President, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President, Regional Vice President, Division CEO, Senior Vice President, Managing Partner, Executive Level Director and Home Office Division Leader.

I will be happy to provide information and answers to questions. (Peter.Dean@TheAmericanCollege.edu) I enjoy your publication." Peter Dean, Ph.D.

***"You perform a public service in spreading this warning (about Internet frauds reported in the March issue of TAD). With regards to your email fraud warning about account information requests supposedly from major corporations, I would add a fifth point that I have noticed. I receive many such emails on a regular basis now (none of which I even open), supposedly from companies with whom I do have accounts, but these emails ask me to update information for accounts that I do not have. For example, I received one recently supposedly from Washington Mutual, with whom I do have mutual fund accounts. This email warned me that my on-line banking account was in jeopardy if I did not respond. I don't have on-line banking with Washington Mutual. I immediately deleted this email without opening it. They are very tricky in their wording - I've come close to being fooled by them, but my natural suspicions stayed my hand.

An easy virus check for attachments is to drag the attachment icon from the opened email message to your desktop. It will be highlighted. Right-click the mouse to bring up a little menu. Pick "Scan for viruses" (or it may say "Scan for [name of your antivirus program]"). It will scan for a few seconds and notify you when it's done and will identify any problems. This should be done to all attachments, whether or not you know the sender.

I'm no computer whiz by any stretch of imagination, but through experience, I have learned these few simple things, and they might be useful to a broader audience.
We enjoy the TAD and look forward to its arrival every month.
Sincerely, Sally Chetwynd, Phillip Chetwynd, Lincoln For The Ages

***IMPORTANT RESOURCES

***THE WORDS LINCOLN LIVED BY" A quote book you'll use for the rest of your life. http://www.achievementdigest.com/thewordslincolnlivedby.html

***"LINCOLN ON COMMUNICATION" DVD-CD This DVD release is widely used as a training film for leadership and communication programs. www.achievementdigest.com/lincoln%20on%20communication.html

***"AN EVENING WITH ABRAHAM LINCOLN" Video of "Lincoln Live" performed before huge audience. www.achievementdigest.com/aneveningwithabrahamlincoln.html

***"LESSONS FROM LEGENDS" CD AUDIOBOOK A famous keynote based on exclusive interviews with celebrites performed before a live audience. www.achievementdigest.com/productorderform.html

***"THE DIVERSITY CREED" POSTER www.achievementdigest.com/productorderform.html

***"THE POWER OF WORDS" POSTER www.achievementdigest.com/productorderform.html

***SHOPPING CART If your website needs a shopping cart so that your customers can use their credit card to purchase your products and services, take a look at Kickstart. It's the one that I use, and I recommend it highly. To get information, click http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/default.asp?pr=31&id=60231