14 Things Successful People Do On Weekends (Forbes)

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/02/22/14-things-successful-people-do-on-weekends/2/

Here are 14 things successful people do (or should be doing) on weekends:

1. Make time for family and friends. This is especially important for those who don’t spend much time with their loved ones during the week.

2. Exercise. Everyone needs to do it, and if you can’t work out 4 to 5 days during the workweek, you need to be active on weekends to make up for some of that time, Vanderkam says. It’s the perfect opportunity to clear your mind and create fresh ideas.

“I know an owner of a PR firm who takes walks in the park with his dog to spark ideas about how to pitch a new client, or what angle to take with the press for a story,” Kurow says.

Cohen suggests spin classes and outdoor cycling in the warmer months. “Both are energizing and can be organized among people with shared interests. For example, it is not uncommon for hedge fund folks and Wall Street professionals to ride together on weekends. It is a great way to establish and cultivate relationships based on membership in this elite professional community.”

3. Pursue a passion. “There’s a creative director of a greeting card company who went back to school to pursue an MFA because of her love of art,” Kurow says. “Pursuing this passion turned into a love of poetry that she now writes on weekends.”

“Successful people make time for what is important or fun,” Egan adds. “They make space for activities that add to their life balance.”

4. Vacation. Getting away for the weekend provides a great respite from the grind of an intense week at work, Cohen says.

5.  Disconnect. The most successful people avoid e-mail for a period of time, Vanderkam says. “I’m not saying the whole weekend, but even just a walk without the phone can feel liberating. I advocate taking a ‘tech Sabbath.’ If you don’t have a specific religious obligation of no-work time, taking Saturday night to mid-day Sunday off is a nice, ecumenical time that works for many people.”

6. Volunteer. “I know a commercial real estate broker who volunteers to help with cook-off events whose proceeds are donated to the Food Bank,” Kurow says. “The volunteer work provides a balance to the heavy analytical work she does all week and fulfills her need to be creative — she designs the promotional material for the non-profit.”

Cohen says a lot of successful people participate in fundraising events. “This is a great way to network and to meet others with similar interests,” he says. “The visibility also helps in branding a successful person as philanthropic.”

7. Avoid chores. Every weekend has a few have-to-dos, but you want these to take the minimum amount of time possible, Vanderkam explains. Create a small window for chores and errands, and then banish them from your mind the rest of the time.

8. Plan. “Planning makes people more effective, and doing it before the week starts means you can hit Monday ready to go, and means you’ll give clear directions to the people who work for you, so they will be ready to go, too,” Vanderkam says.

Trunk agrees. She says successful people plan their month and year because “if you get stuck on short-term lists you don’t get anything big accomplished.”

9. Socialize. “Humans are social creatures, and studies of people’s experienced happiness through the day finds that socializing ranks right up there, not too far down below sex,” Vanderkam says.

Go out with friends and family, or get involved in the local community.

“It has been demonstrated that successful people find great satisfaction in giving back,” Cohen says. “Board membership, for example, also offers access to other successful folks.”

10. Gardening/crafts/games/sports/cooking/cultural activities. This is especially important for those cooped up in an office all week.

“For the pure joy, some folks find great satisfaction in creating beautiful gardens,” Cohen says.

Kurow knows an attorney who uses her weekends to garden and do mosaics and tile work to satisfy her creative side. “Filling her life this way enables her to be refreshed on Monday and ready to tackle the litigation and trial prep work. Artwork for her is fulfilling in a way that feeds her soul and her need to connect with her spiritual side.”

Bridge lessons and groups can also sharpen the mind and often create relationships among highly competitive smart professionals, Cohen says. “I once saw a printout of a bridge club’s membership list; its members were a who’s who of Wall Street.”

Theatre, opera and sporting events can also enrich one’s spirit, he adds.

11. Network. “Networking isn’t an event for a successful person, it’s a lifestyle,” Trunk says. Wherever they go and whatever they do, they manage to connect with new people.

12. Reflect. Egan says truly successful people make time on weekends to appreciate what they have and reflect on their happiness and accomplishments. As Rascoff said, “weekends are a great chance to reflect and be more introspective about bigger issues.”

13. Meditate. Classes and private instruction offer a bespoke approach to insight and peace of mind, Cohen says. “How better to equip yourself for success in this very tough world?”

14. Recharge. We live in a competitive world, Vanderkam says. “Peak performance requires managing downtime, too–with the goal of really recharging your batteries.” That’s how the most successful people get so much done.

Successful people know that time is too precious to be totally leisurely about leisure, Vanderkam concludes. “You’re not going to waste that time by failing to think about what you’d like to do with it, and thus losing the weekend to TV, puttering, inefficient e-mail checking, and chores. If you don’t have a busy workweek, your weekend doesn’t matter so much. But if you’re going from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day, it certainly does.”

My Wife is Always Late - Lose the Resulting Stress and Conflict

The following letter describes a problem experienced by millions of men and women:

"My wife is late to everything, which of course makes me late too. I've talked to her about it, over and over, but it doesn't make any difference. It makes me so mad, but then she gets mad too, and then we don't speak to each other the rest of the evening. There's got to be a way out of this."

First, you need to see that your wife doesn't make you angry. I know it seems like she does, but really she has little to do with it. We react to events with anger only when we are already empty and afraid-when we don't have enough Real Love in our lives. Without enough of the single most important ingredient for happiness, we're in pain all the time, and in that condition it takes virtually nothing to make our pain intolerable and push us over the edge.

When your wife is late, it's just plain inconvenient. When you already don't feel loved-as a result of an entire lifetime of unloving experiences-that inconvenience alone is enough to throw you off the tracks. But the truth is, there's a lot more than just the inconvenience going on. Each time she's late, you also hear her saying that she doesn't care about you--that she doesn't love you--and after a lifetime of hearing that, it's more than you can stand. When you get angry, you don't feel quite as helpless-you get a taste of Imitation Love in the form of power-and sometimes you actually motivate her to change her behavior, so that you're not inconvenienced.

But does your anger really get you what you want? Of course not. What you really want is a loving relationship with her. That's a lot more important than being on time--really--and every time you get angry at her, you make the higher goal pretty much impossible. Not the best move, would you say? Imagine: The Titanic is sinking, but you've left your wallet in your room. You'd like to get your wallet, but are you willing to get it at the price of your life? That really is what's happening here. You're trying to be on time at the cost of your marriage. Is it really worth it?

Now, you have to wonder, is it possible to have both? A happy marriage and being on time? Yes, as long as you remember to put Real Love first in the equation.

Right now, when you talk about being on time, because of your anger she can only hear that you don't love her-so that's pretty much the end of the conversation. Nothing good can happen after she hears that message. So how can you change that? How can you be more loving?

First, don't talk to her about being late while she's late. By that time, you're upset, and she's feeling pressured, and you will not have a productive conversation. Talk to her when neither of you is distracted by anything else, and say to her,
"Sweetie, for years I've been nagging you about being late, and I'm just beginning to see what an idiot I've been to do that. Every time I get angry at you, I'm only thinking of myself, and you can feel that. You hear me say with my behavior that I don't care about you, and I'm sorry for that-it's been a huge mistake on my part. Now, I'm not going to promise you I won't make the same mistake again, but now that I recognize it, I really do think I'll do it less."

I make you a promise: In the moment you say this, you will have her attention, because when you're admitting your selfishness-when you're not defending yourself and trying to be right-you're communicating that you care about her.

Does this mean you have to put up with being late to everything for the rest of your life? No, it doesn't. After apologizing for being selfish, you keep talking to her. Say something like, what "There's no excuse for my nagging you and being selfish-It's wrong, and I'm going to work on that-but I also want to be on time from now on. Notice that I said that *I* want to be on time. I am not telling you what you have to do. So let's talk about how we could make that possible."

Now there are lots of options you could discuss with her.

First you need to understand that you don't have the right to control her. We all get to make our own choices in life, even the ones that inconvenience other people. That's the Law of Choice that we read about in the book, Real Love: The Truth About Finding Unconditional Love and Fulfilling Relationships.

A relationship is a natural result of the choices people make independently. Your wife has chosen to be late-that's her right to do-but that doesn't keep you from independently making the choices you want. You can still choose to be on time, but it should be obvious that if you choose to be on time to an event, and she chooses to be late, you won't be able to travel together to that event.

Tell her that you are not going to be angry anymore, but you're also going to be on time, so on occasion that might require that you take separate transportation. Tell her that each time the two of you are going somewhere together, you'll tell her ahead of time exactly what time you'll be leaving, and if she wants to go with you, she'll need to be in the car by that time. You are not telling her what to do-is that clear?-you're simply choosing to be on time yourself, and then you're giving her the choice of whether or not she wants to go with you. If she chooses not to be on time-no problem-she can still go to the event, and she can still spend time with you AT the event, but she won't be able to travel there with you.

So how would that look? You could go in separate cars (if you have more than one), or one of you could figure out another way to get where you're going-borrow a car, take a taxi or a bus or whatever. Lots of options.

After you've described this to her, start leaving at the time you've said. Don't look back as you drive away, do not feel guilty, don't be angry, and don't deliver any lectures about being on time. Just do what you've said you'd do, and you'll discover that you don't have to get upset at the choices of other people anymore. You simply make your own choices and allow other people to make theirs.

She probably won't believe you're serious about this until the first time you leave without her. People who are chronically late are pretty selfish. They just don't think about the time and convenience of other people. They just can't believe that the world doesn't revolve around them. The first time you leave before her, she might get angry and say some unkind things. Do not defend yourself. Simply explain to her again-without irritation or a need to be "right"-that you are not making her be on time. You're just choosing to be on time yourself. If she wants to go with you, she only has to get ready earlier and be ready at the prescribed time. Tell her that you'd love it if she went with you.

This approach could seem harsh to some, but it's much better than continuing to allow your marriage to be destroyed by the anger and blaming you're experiencing now. You're not controlling her in any way. She can still do whatever she wants, but she can't choose any longer to make you late.

You'll work this out just fine as long as you remember that it's always about Real Love. If you become irritated-if she hears that you don't love her-the conversation is over. You have to accept her completely, and if she really feels that, one of two things will happen:

First-without the deadly distractions of anger and contention, you'll be able to come up with a way to get both of you there separately: two cars, cab, whatever.

Second-and I've seen this happen with many couples-she'll quit being late. Really. Think about it: Right now, why should she go out of her way to be on time for somebody-you in this case-who gets mad at her and who with his behavior tells her he doesn't love her. Most of the time, she probably doesn't want to be with you at all, much less be with you on time. This is no criticism of you-98% of marriages run like this.

As she feels more and more loved by you, though, the odds will improve dramatically that she will want to be with you, and that will include being with you on time.

Dr. Greg Baer is the author of 16 books, DVDs, and CDs—two of which are internationally published by Penguin Putnam Group—and has presented the life-changing message of Real Love to hundreds of thousands of people all over the world.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/329566

'Limitless' Has Wisdom By Paul Kyriazi

This article contains many spoilers about Limitless. See the movie first, then come back to this article.

Our hero Eddie gets access to 100% of his brain by using a smart pill called NTZ. He tells us via narration,"Everything I'd ever read, seen and heard was now organized and available."  

Us in the real world can't access that much brain power, but with Google Search, smart phones and some clarity of mind on our part, we can have tons of information ready to use, if only we make the decision to do so. 

"All fear and shyness was now gone," Eddie tells us. Yes, those are success blocks. But we don't need a pill to rid ourselves of those blocks. Classes, books, hypnosis or just diving into where we have to go, can start eliminating fears.

After hooking up with higher caliber friends (his useless relationships are "better forgotten and put away in mothballs," he says) and going to  Puerto Valletta, Eddie says,"Mere lounging wasn't enough." 

Yes, being a 'lounger' will not move us closer to what we really want. In that scene Eddie gets it: "Suddenly I knew what I needed to do. But it would take money to get there." 

Ah money. Here's where we lose a lot of people. My success teacher Dr. Paul Mastrodakus once said: "I can announce a seminar that says this coffee pot is God and I'll get 100% sign up. But any seminar that has 'money' as the subject, people just don't seem to want."  I wonder why? Maybe getting money sounds like work. But money, that symbol of energy, is a must in the real world to accomplish our goals and live our dreams.

With increased brain power, Eddie apologizes to his ex-girlfriend saying, "My power for self sabotage wasn't boundless after all."  He then asks her, "Why did you stay with me for so long?" 

When she asks when his book is coming out, he replies, "Next year," and then immediately asks her about her job. It seems our hero has got off of his own problems and is now giving out interest to other people.

In the beginning of the film, when Eddie is standing on the ledge of the building ready to jump, he talks about "Wanting to make an impact on the world, instead of the pavement." When explaining his book in the bar, Eddie mentions a 'utopian society.'  So we can guess that his final goal might be helping the world.

When Eddie is accused of having 'delusions of grandeur' he retorts with, "I have an actual recipe for grandeur." Ah, a plan. Definite plans get definite results. Indefinite plans do not get 'indefinite results', they get NO results. Eddie says, "I was clear. I knew what I needed to do, and how to do it."

Notice the first thing that Eddie does once he's on NTZ. He cleans up his 'base of operations,' his apartment. Where have you heard this before? Actually he first smoothes over his bad relationship with the landlord's wife and helps her write her law class paper. Eddie is a giver.

Next as the 'enhanced Eddie', he gets a haircut, new clothes, exercises and starts learning; studying languages. Yes, sounds like the Rules Of Living the James Bond Lifestyle. He then finishes his novel in four days. This is possible without NTZ if you type 5 pages an hour,16 hours a day, for four days = 320 page book. 

Yes, all this can be done without the NTZ. It just might take a little longer to reach the success level that we want. Eddie says, "There are moments in your life when you cross a bridge and know that your old life is over." This can scare some of us as it gets us out of our comfort zone to accept a change, even a positive change. But if a new life means, not having to run to the bank in 100 degree weather, because my car is broken, to make a $20 deposit to cover my overdue electric bill, then I'll take that new life.

And while a high level of success is necessary to express our true selves, Eddie cautions us with, "We are all wired to over reach. Look at history, all the countries that ruled the world. No one stopped and said, 'We've got France, Poland, a big Swiss bank account. Let's not invade Russia in the winter. Let's go home, pop a beer and live on the interest.'" Yes, better not fulfill the Peter Principle and rise to our level of our incompetence.

We see that Eddie can access classic literature when he compares Robert DeNiro's energy customers to "Oliver Twist begging for his bowl of gruel." Not bad to have an understanding of a few classics under your belt.

DeNiro makes a good point about earning your power by experience. He tells Eddie: "Your super intellect is a gift from God, but you didn't earn it because you're careless with your power, flashing it around like a trust fund child. You never had to earn it year by year. You don't know how to assess your competition because you never had to compete." 

Finally Eddie overcomes his challenges to get where he wants to go, the U.S. Senate. His next step will be the Presidency where he can accomplish the most good. However, the now evil and manipulative DeNiro wants to control Eddie so Eddie can pass laws to benefit DeNiro's various companies. But now Eddie has learned to compete and gets rid of DeNiro with verbal strategy. Eddie won't be corrupted.

Leaving the theater, after watching Limitless, I heard a patron remark, "I wish I had that pill." To me it sounded like, "I'm not going to even try to 'enhance' myself' like Eddie. I want a free ride."

In fact, even on NTZ, Eddie worked hard, studied, exercised, worked on his finances and upgraded his appearance. Things anyone can do without NTZ.

To me, real NTZ is water, as 90% of the human brain is made of it. Just Google 'benefits of water' and see the 10 things water does for humans and how much more we should be drinking. In fact, it's Eddie's 'baptism' in water, after he dives into the ocean, where he realizes his real purpose in life, which seems to unfold as: Improve himself to the point of being able to serve others and make a positive difference in the world.
  

Finally, like all success that we accept as ours, Eddie's success in now internalized and natural. When he speaks to a waiter in Chinese, his girlfriend looks at him in awe. Eddie turns to her, sees her expression and says, "What?"

END -

Written in 45 minutes, without NTZ.

Source: http://www.authorsden.com/categories/article_top.asp?catid=5&id=63596

Asking Paul Kyriazi: Can we really live like James Bond?

FLORIDA, August 31, 2012 — Who among us men can honestly say that he has never looked up to James Bond at one time or another?

The legendary British secret agent stands as one of our time’s most recognized characters in both literature and film. It is Bond’s unique philosophy of refined, yet edgy living that has captivated untold billions over much of the last century.

Replicating this lifestyle — though without the villains scheming for world domination, one might hope — could very well seem to be impossible. After all, Bond is fictional, and besides, how can the average guy even hope to rival the exploits of an international spy?

Entertainment industry veteran Paul Kyriazi has devoted much of his career to educating people about the Bond philosophy. He devised a now world famous seminar regarding this, and it since has been released in book form.

In a detailed interview with me, he speaks about far more than the cliches of James Bond. From why the character has such enduring appeal to how one can finance a 007 caliber lifestyle, nary a stone is left unturned.       

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Joseph F. Cotto: Many of us grew up with James Bond as a role model of sorts. Why do you believe that the character holds such enduring appeal?

Paul Kyriazi: Bond endures because, even though he’s a man of action as all heroes are, he is also a man of prosperity and leisure. When another hero goes on a mission, such as Rambo, he’s in prison or catching cobras in the jungle. Rocky lives in a cheap apartment, so does Dirty Harry. But before James Bond goes on a mission he’s in a high class casino, wearing a tuxedo and meeting beautiful women. That’s where us men want to be. It’s never boring around 007.

Before Bond came on the scene, Frank Sinatra was the number one male icon. Every man wanted to be Sinatra in a casino wearing a tuxedo and choosing whatever fun he wanted at the moment.

That all changed when the 3rd James Bond movie ‘Goldfinger’, made 007 the international icon of masculine adventure and lifestyle. And he’s endured for 50 years. When Bond is in trouble, he doesn’t fold, he focuses. He calls up his talent at will and delivers on a deadline, like he did with the ticking time-bomb in Ft. Knox. Men want to be that cool under pressure and get the job done with that style.

Cotto: How can one go about adopting the Bond attitude toward life? What is required in order to accomplish this?

Kyriazi: When you ask someone “Why do you like James Bond?” the answer often comes back, “Because he’s so cool.” And the only way that a person can be cool is to start taking control of the three parts of his personality; the body, mind and feelings. Especially the feelings. 

Bond has his fear, panic and anger under control. Bond also has a knowledgeable mind (on almost any subject, it seems) and though his body is often beat up, he is never sick. So to adopt Bond’s attitude toward life, an intelligent mind, healthy body and feelings under control are of upmost importance.

Cotto: If one wishes to live like Bond, can this be done on a fairly standard budget?

Kyriazi: We have to remember that Bond is a civil servant, a working man, but he surely has his finances under control. To get the most bang for our bucks, Q Branch provides us with two powerful “gadgets“. They are the calendar and the calculator.

The calendar is used to set a date for achieving our goals. The calculator is used to make a budget,so that we how the cost of our upcoming goals. And it usually turns out that they are not as expensive than we imagined. By judicially choosing what we want to spend our money on, we can accomplish great things.

Three of the 21 Rules of the James Bond Lifestyle are; # 1- I never run out of cash. # 7 - I carry enough cash and credit to operate efficiently. # 10 - I’m not afraid to spend money on what I want.

So yes, we can accomplish our goals on a ‘standard budget’, but we need to know exactly what we want for ourselves and an exact plan on how to get it.

Cotto: How important is personal attire? Is it pretty far down the list, or an essential element of self-definition?

Kyriazi: It is essential to upgrade our clothing to at least staying away from T-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes as our daily attire.

Stay away from loose and baggy clothes. Well fitting clothes that are comfortable give the wearer subconscious power. This is especially important when we are first starting out to reinvent ourselves.

The new Bond movie Skyfall is all about Bond’s “resurrection” as he puts it. Upgraded clothes, cash in our money clips and a plan of action, will give our “resurrection” some empowerment.

In he ‘50s when Frank Sinatra was trying to make a comeback he said, “I changed my agent, my manger, my recording company, my clothes and got back to work.” Notice that “clothes” was in that list, along with that all important word “work”.

Cotto: Would Bond take something along the lines of a career setback in stride, or quite seriously? Can we learn from his example?

Kyriazi: In On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, when Bond thought that he was fired, he first got distressed when clearing out his desk, then took it in stride with a toast to the picture of the Queen on his wall, saying, “Sorry Ma’am.” But we know for sure that Bond will snap into action and find another job, probably as a mercenary. However, in Bond’s case, his secretary, Miss Moneypenny, saved the day and Bond kept his job.

When we have a setback, we have to ask ourselves, “What would James Bond do?” and the proper answer will come back: He’d focus, make a plan and take immediate action.

Source: http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/life-stories/2012/aug/31/asking-paul-kyriazi-can-we-really-live-james-bond/#ixzz2htKDyCwS

Interview Paul Kyriazi: The art of romance "James Bond" style

FLORIDA, September 1, 2012 — Romance is of tremendous importance to any given James Bond story. What can men learn from the unique relationship between Bond and the opposite gender?

Planning for the future is an extremely important thing. However, Bond does appear to live in the moment. Is there any way of finding a balanced center which emphasizes both wisdom and excitement?

In living the Bond lifestyle, is it more important to own things, or rather experience them? Above all else, is personal confidence the essence of James Bond? If not, then what might be?

In this second and final part of our discussion, Paul Kyriazi, who has educated men across the world about the Bond philosophy, will answer all of these questions and tell us a bit about his life and career.       

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Joseph F. Cotto: Romance is of tremendous importance to any given Bond story. What can men learn from the unique relationship between Bond and the opposite gender?

Paul Kyriazi: We know that James Bond enjoys women, but you’ve never seen him try to change any woman. Bond has no pre-conceived idea of what a woman should be. He takes each woman, even a villainess, at face value and lets her be herself. Bond’s attractive power with women is that he is on a mission. He has a purpose, he’s not “hanging out“, and it’s a positive purpose of trying to save the world from destruction.

Bond seldom chases the woman. He let’s the woman approach him. The actor George Hamilton, who has a reputation as a “ladies man” summed it up perfectly when he said, “I’ve never forced the issue of sexual involvement. Women make that decision. And as long as you make them feel comfortable, you’ll arrive there quicker than guys breathing down their neck.” James Bond never ‘breathes down their neck”.

In my James Bond Lifestyle seminar, I teach ‘The Ultimate Secret of Women’. And many women have told me, “Paul, you’ve hit the nail on the head with that one.” The ‘secret’ is; ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ just like the Cindi Lauper record. Of course, they first want love, respect and security, and most men will give them that. But what men often forget is that women also want ‘fun’.

So the man has to be the ‘director of fun’ and plan outings that the woman can enjoy. You know that James Bond would never sit home with his woman and watch three football games in a row. He’d be taking her to a luxury resort and saying things like, “Don’t bother to pack. Just bring your passport and we’ll buy what we need on the way.”

Cotto: Planning for the future is an extremely important thing. However, Bond does seem to live in the moment. Is there any way of finding a balanced center which emphasizes both wisdom and excitement?

Kyriazi: When he’s on a mission, James Bond certainly must live in the moment. He has to navigate the challenges that come to him as he proceeds to stop whatever evil he’s up against. When he is off duty, such as you see him lying in a small boat on the river with his girl of the moment Sylvia Trench, he is certainly relaxed with no plans except for the next few moments. The age old choice of the “wisdom of security” versus the “excitement of risk” seems not to concern Bond.

We often see him concentrated when it gets down to the final countdown on a mission, but we almost never see him afraid. Eliminating as much fear from our minds is upmost if we want to emulate 007 and have an exciting life. Yet, notice that Bond carried 50 gold sovereigns in his briefcase for back-up, valued at $19,000. (One full sovereign = 1/4 oz.) Gold can get us out of more dangerous situations than a Walther PPK.

Cotto: Despite being a man of refined taste, Bond does not seem to own many of the finer things. From stays in tropical resorts to refurbished Aston Martins, these are typically paid for by the British government. In living the Bond lifestyle, is it more important to actually own things, or rather experience them?

Kyriazi: Your question has struck to the very heart of living the James Bond Lifestyle. ‘Lifestyle’ leans more to the ‘livingness‘ side of life, than to the ‘ownership‘ side. We can live like James Bond if we think of ‘living‘, not ‘ownership‘. So, for example, instead of buying a second house, we can start taking ‘mental ownership’ of hotels as our second homes. It’s cheaper to do and we can have ‘second homes’ all around the world, just by using hotels.

And just think, you don’t have to clean up the place and carry in boxes of bed sheets, soap and shampoo. Your ‘second homes’ will have all that waiting for you when you check in. As 007 says in ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ when he is shown to his first class hotel room, “This will do. This will do me nicely.”

Cotto: Above all else, is personal confidence the essence of James Bond? If not, then what do you think might be?

Kyriazi: James Bond certainly did not have confidence when he was trying to disarm Goldfinger’s nuclear device in Ft. Knox. He was really sweating out the countdown until an expert showed up to turn it off. In ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ at the ice rink, surrounded by killers, Bond was at a complete loss of what to do and worried. It took his girlfriend Tracy to get him out of danger.

Confidence is not the essence of 007, perseverance is. No matter what, James Bond keeps going. He may have great setbacks, get beat up and tortured, but he never breaths a word about giving up. He perseveres to the end.

Without perseverance, no mission is accomplished. The attributes of confidence, intelligence, talent and education can help, but without perseverance James Bond would have been killed by Oddjob long before the bomb exploded making all that gold radioactive.

Cotto: Now that our discussion is at its end, many readers are probably wondering how you not only came to be a noted writer about the Bond philosophy, but a figure in the entertainment industry. Tell us a bit about your life and career.

Kyriazi: At age 8, I saw “The Making of ‘20,000 Leagues Under the Sea’ ” on Disneyland TV and decided I wanted to make movies too. I made 16mm action stories in film school and then on to directing independent feature films such as ‘Omega Cop’ starring Adam West who played Batman on TV.

In the ‘90s when independent feature films were difficult to get financed, and I was unable to break into Hollywood movies, I turned to making full-cast audio-books for novels I had written working with movie stars that I loved as a little boy, such as Rod Taylor, Robert Culp, David Hedison and George Chakiris. Even though they were in their ‘70s, they could still play leading men in my audio-books. It was a dream that I never thought possible.

So sometimes, when you don’t get exactly where you plan to go, if you preserve through the disappointments, you will get to a wonderful place that you didn’t even know existed.

Having survived as a creative freelancer all my life, I started getting questions about how I was able to do that. Since I had always had James Bond in my mind as living a lifestyle of luxury and adventure, I used him as an example to teach the success techniques that I had learned from books and seminars.

In 1998, I recorded a 90 minute cassette tape called ‘How to Live the James Bond Lifestyle’. I later expanded it into a 230 page book, and then to an eight hour audio-book and now a 342 page Kindle book. I’m still using those ‘Bond techniques’ to get to new levels of creativity and lifestyle, so I can continue to walk into luxury hotel rooms and say, “This will do. This will do me nicely.”

Source: http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/life-stories/2012/sep/1/paul-kyriazi-art-living-james-bond/#ixzz2htGthwoC