One of the challenges about trying to live your life in crescendo, or in constant geometrical progression is that you forget about what you've been given and who was given it to you. And we often are looking so forward to getting that we forget to give. Today's episode we discover how great it is to give and to be grateful.…

It's common for one spouse to be more of a teacher well the other spouse to be more of a connector. Ideally together we should connect and create harmonious relationships so there were better able to direct and help our families grow and develop and become amazing contributors.

What are leg measures? And how does the lead measure relate to improving your relationship? Are you one of those persons that have so many innovative amazing ideas for relationship but you have an executed or implemented them up to this point? And today's episode learn what it means to accomplish your goals and plans and dreams together. After all …

Do you have toxic people in your life? This book boundaries by cloud and Townsend is one of the best books on the planet for dealing with challenging people in any relationship. There are so many good truths and principles packed into this book you'll want to read it again and again.

Revisiting Stephen R covey's classic The seven Habits of highly effective people left me in awe. I took several paragraphs of notes. And I want to to share some of the things that I relearned. Enjoy!

There's a small little book called sisu there's some wonderful tips and ideas. One of the ideas for sisu is social resilience. The idea that we can bounce back more effectively if we work on our relationships.

How would it feel to be back up to Joe Montana? Steve Young found that out. He found out how anxious and difficult it can be to live up to others expectations. He found out in college what it means to be an 8th string quarterback with no potential to ever play in a game. He found out what anxiety and physical pain feels like. And in a very intrigui…

Undisturbable, unflappable. The Epic quote from Martin Luther "I have so much to do today I need to spend another hour on my knees." Synergy as explained by plants. And a whole host of other wonderful ideas from Stephen R Covey.

DaVinci painted the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper evoking images of emotion and motion. In Walter Isaac's biography of Leonardo, we learn what a true guru does to be able to master his craft. What if you took his same hunger and thirst for knowledge and applied that to your relationship? It's said that he would carry his masterpieces around for up …

What are some of the relationships that we can strengthen? And how can we strengthen them so that they provide enduring help and guidance in our lives?

Buckminster Fuller said something like this, "do more and more with less and less until we can do everything with nothing." How does that relate to relationships? What systems teams and concepts are you implementing now so that you can have more and more happiness in your family and better and better connections with less effort? Also in today's ep…

John Adams is one of the most interesting founders of America. The only thing more impressive than is accomplishments is his character. And of course his amazing wife Abigail. I recently finished a biography by David McCullough where I learned a ton that I wanted to share about these amazing people whose character stands as a beacon to everyone who…

Think Again by Adam Grant is again my focus this week. Start with helping people open their mind before trying to change their mind. Unlearn. Improve not just prove.

Adam Grant is a master storyteller. In his book Think Again he shares many wonderful ideas applicable to marriage. He suggests that we become more of a scientist where we're open-minded and willing to challenge our assumptions, our habits and our traditions. He uses many wonderful stories and quotes to help us become more teachable.…

In today's episode I explain how slow is fast. Various athletes over the last 30 years experienced great results by slowing down. How can you slow down in your marriage so that you can have peak joy?

What did Johnny Lawrence and Daniel LaRusso teach us in regards to marriage? Unity, preparation, and self-reliance are just a few of the things we can learn from these two distinct approaches to martial arts and marriage.

I love reading and rereading John C. Maxwell books. And although I've read a number of his books on leadership and tried to apply the principles, this book on communication is one of my favorites for marriages and family. Isn't it true that we all try to communicate, yet to be able to truly connect deeply and intimately involves work and practice. …

About a month ago Dan wrote in his daily blog about the more willing we are to be proven wrong, the more likely we are to find answers. And I would submit the more likely we are to be proven wrong then the more likely we are to form lasting true friendships and connections. Those who seek to learn from others genuinely often have the greatest learn…

Steven St. Any talks about flexibility is key to putting a puzzle together. The puzzle of relationships, work, and anything that is important. Flexibility, diversity, appreciation are some of the key things to successful marriage as well. Want unity? Get good at gratefully putting puzzle pieces together.…

Merriam-Webster says animosity is: antipathy, hostility, friction, antagonism, enmity, animus, opposition, aversion, acrimony, bitterness, rancor, resentment, dislike, ill feeling, bad feeling, ill will, bad blood, hatred, hate, loathing, detestation, abhorrence, odium, malice, spite, spitefulness, venom, malevolence, malignity, grudges, grievances…

Penn and Kim Holderness are very fun to watch on the Amazing Race. In last night's episode they said something extremely profound for marriages and families. As they were navigating and becoming a little bit stressed they expressed their core philosophy as a family. "We think that others are always doing the best they can." Wow! Isn't that a game c…

Are you familiar with the classic book Grit by Angela Duckworth? There's rarely a word so important to successful relationships as grit. Grit is a combination of enthusiasm and endurance. It's having the courage to try different approaches to get the ultimate result of success. Grit is learning that losing is a necessary part of winning. Grit is th…

Looking back on over two decades of being married with a girl of my dreams, I think there's a few bits of advice that I wish I would have given heed to over two decades ago. Find out what those bits of advice are in today's episode.

It was Earth Day and I was in the third or fourth grade as a recall. We were given a small pine tree seedling. I went home and planted it somewhere in our yard and didn't give much thought to it after that. Yet of course trees and marriages need more than just thoughts. Both need nurturing, nourishing. What's the one thing you'll do today that take…

Have you read the new book by the Holderness family? It's got a lot of insightful tips and ideas on how to finance better, become more intimate, solve contentious arguments and work through extended family challenges.

Dallin H Oaks once talked about ensuring that our strengths don't become our downfall by implementing humility into our lives. Alex Haley, the renowned author of Roots, once told the story of a turtle on a pole and then explainef a turtle doesn't get there by himself.

Like Boston said: Amanda. Have you noticed that Amanda LaRusso in the Cobra Kai series is one of the few characters who remains true? She's often consistent in her love, forgiveness and expectations. She'll connect and she'll even confront those that she should but she'll do it in a calm manner. Be like Amanda. Seek to prevent confrontation. Don't …

If you're familiar with the movie Dune or the book Doom then you're probably familiar with what Lady Jessica said about the least common denominator. Ensuring that the essential component that is depriving your relationship is revived will ensure that your relationship thrives.

Oscar Wilde has an interesting statement that says everything popular is wrong. In today's episode discover some of the things that are popular but don't add any value to your relationship. And discover some of the things that add value to relationship that may or may not be popular.

Two Finnish words show us some great teachings. Kanssa means with and Vastaan means against. In the classic book on swimming called Total Immersion, we learn that you want to swim with the water and become slippery not against the water and try to plow your way through like a barge. Same goes for marriage, we should work with our family not against…

Thomas Monson said no failure needs to be final. So how can we ensure that our spouse doesn't permanently fail? How can we be present for them emotionally physically and spiritually? In today's episode I go into describing what it means to be resilient and to be there for our spouse.

Gary Stevenson said that kindness causes healing. Notice that he did not say anger pushiness or frustration helps others and ourselves to heal. Rather kindness causes healing. Also noticed that he didn't say kindness facilitates or may cause healing. He talked about causation not correlation. Where could you apply kindness so healing will happen mo…

With mutual esteem and high regard for one another because of our love of God it's easier to respectfully disagree. We confront rather than contend. We closely listen to another to change ourselves and to come up with a better solution instead of changing others.

Have you ever seen the Zen Dog show on Disney? Perhaps you've learned quite a few things from the show as I have. Walk with your companion not in front nor behind. Or connect don't control. Or perhaps don't raise your voice and treat each other with respect.

Have you read Seth Golden's new masterpiece called The practice? I took down several notes from The Practice and in today's episode I talk about how to apply them to your relationship. Learn about the discard pile and how big it should be, and learn about the genius of and. And and find out what is the difference between an amateur and a profession…

Today I talked about 10 steps to Kaizen, the Japanese word for continuous and never-ending improvement. Companies such as Toyota, Nestle and Canon have sought to follow the principles of Kaizen. In today's episode I discuss how we can use Kaizen in our families. And I discuss how the British bicycling team use Kaizen to get just a little bit better…

Gerald Jampolsky is the author of Love Is Letting Go Of Fear and he said “Forgiveness is giving up all hope for a better past.” I can't think of a better way of expressing forgiveness and simultaneously hope. Hope is expecting that the future will keep getting better, because we know who the Author of our story is. And forgiveness is also knowing w…

Joy Mangano's life story found in the Book Inventing Joy brings hope and inspiration. This is what I learned: you don't have to be good to get started you just have to start. Shift your skis don't necessarily stop. Celebrate the small wins. Questions ignite invention. "Over, under, around or through." Amway, then KMart, then QVC. Circle back to peo…

Liz Wiseman's book Multipliers is a treatise on how to become true leaders. It contains sage wisdom about avoiding being diminishers and creating multipliers. What is a multiplier? It's someone who challenges others, encourages others, and finds the good in others. She gives examples from Ernest Shackleton to Magic Johnson and from political candid…

According to Webster's dictionary ossification happens when bones become hard. Babies have little to no ossification. Their bones are malleable and un-hardened. What are some of the attitudes and traditions that have ossified in your life? What can you learn to become more malleable, more teachable? Has your love harden to towards a certain group o…

Ferris bueller said it best back in the 1980's: life moves pretty fast and if you don't take time to look around you might just miss it. Part of that taking time so that you don't miss it is counting your blessings, and looking to your Maker for help in fast times.

You know there are many ways to measure success when it comes to running a triathlon a biathlon or perhaps mountain biking. There are group rankings, age rankings, and your personal best time. My favorite is your personal best time. Recently I've heard a few relatives talk about their personal best time. They glow and radiate as they talk about the…

Blogger Joshua Becker who often talks about minimalism gave some great advice about misconceptions and assumptions. Are in-laws really horrible? Do the terrible twos really exist? And what about faith and finances? Find out what assumptions he says are completely false and my thoughts on them as well.…

Melissa went out of town for about 8 hours. So what did I do? Well I didn't go golfing. Nor did I play basketball. I did spend a little bit of time with a friend at the gym. But what I spent most of my day doing is making sure that she would come back to a clean house and less stress. What do you do when your spouse goes out of town? And does your …

A motorcyclist told me that the best way to avoid an accident is to practice in a controlled environment with no one else around for the inevitable accident situations that will happen. He told me about watching videos of people playing motorcycle limbo and practicing difficult situations before they occur. And that led me to think about marriage. …

Ask your children how their day went. Ask your children what you can do for them. Ask your spouse how you can be better. Ask your spouse what you can do to help. Ask your maker what you can do to see miracles in your life. Ask for forgiveness. Ask your boss how you can be a better employee. Ask yourself where you can be better than yesterday. Ask y…

"That is something I've learned from Phil, calming the body. No matter how much pressure there is in a game, I think to myself: It's still just a game. I don't meditate, but I know what he's getting at. He's teaching about peacefulness and living in the moment, but not losing the aggressive attitude. Not being reckless, but strategic... He believes…

How to win in marriage? It's like sports: chemistry over history; Psychology AND math; Fun over duty. Discipline and desire; Work not merely good looks. Leadership and teamwork; Encouragement and praise not force and coerce.

Flawed Not Flawless at work, at home, with family. Recognizing not aganozing over our flaws. We are fallible and yet fixable. Play life loose and with love not without mistakes. Errors, turnovers are to be set aside not fretted over. Track your wins, set aside losses.

It was a fence that had been built 15 or more years before. A chain link fence that separated two driveways. But at the suggestion of a teenager the fence came down and in its absence unity, fun, play and love sprung up. What fences do you have? And is today, this very minute the day the fence will come down?…