"If you see something that is not possible, make it possible." Mick Ebeling

"If not now, than when?

If not me, than who?"

Steve Jobs: How to live before you die- Love what you do

At his Stanford University commencement speech, Steve Jobs, CEO and co-founder of Apple and Pixar, urges us to pursue our dreams and see the opportunities in life's setbacks -- including death itself.

Click here to view his talk

"Stay hungry, stay foolish." Whole Earth Catalog Farewell

"You should never try to be better than someone else, always learn from others. Never cease trying to be the best you can be. That's under your control." John Wooden

Other highlights:

"Your reputation is what you're perceived to be; your character is what you really are."

"They ask me why I teach and I reply, 'Where could I find such splendid company?'

"I had blocks in the pyramid. And the cornerstones being industriousness and enthusiasm, working hard and enjoying what you're doing. Coming up to the apex. According to my definition of success. And right at the top -- faith and patience."

"There was a Major League Baseball umpire by the name of George Moriarty. He wrote something that I think he did while I tried to do in this pyramid. He called it "The Road Ahead, or The Road Behind." "Sometimes I think the Fates must grin as we denounce them and insist the only reason we can't win, is the Fates themselves that miss. Yet there lives on the ancient claim: we win or lose within ourselves. The shining trophies on our shelves can never win tomorrow's game. You and I know deeper down, there's always a chance to win the crown. But when we fail to give our best, we simply haven't met the test, of giving all and saving none until the game is really won. Of showing what is meant by grit. Of playing through when others quit. Of playing through, not letting up. It's bearing down that wins the cup. Of dreaming there's a goal ahead. Of hoping when our dreams are dead. Of praying when our hopes have fled. Yet losing, not afraid to fall, if bravely we have given all. For who can ask more of a man than giving all within his span. Giving all, it seems to me, is not so far from victory. And so the fates are seldom wrong, no matter how they twist and wind. It's you and I who make our fates -- we open up or close the gates on the road ahead or the road behind."

Reminds me of another set of threes that my dad tried to get across to us. Don't whine. Don't complain. Don't make excuses. Just get out there, and whatever you're doing, do it to the best of your ability. And no one can do more than that.

Cervantes. Cervantes said, "The journey is better than the end." And I like that. I think that is -- it's getting there. Sometimes when you get there, there's almost a letdown. But there's getting there that's the fun. I liked our -- as a basketball coach at UCLA I liked our practices to be the journey, and the game would be the end.

The courage to be imperfect, the willingness to say "I love you" first, and the willingness to do something where there are no guarantees...

Excerpted from The power of vulnerability, a TED Talk by Brene Brown

There was only one variable that separated the people who have a strong sense of love and belonging and the people who really struggle for it. And that was, the people who have a strong sense of love and belonging believe they're worthy of love and belonging. That's it. They believe they're worthy. And to me, the hard part of the one thing that keeps us out of connection is our fear that we're not worthy of connection, was something that, personally and professionally, I felt like I needed to understand better. So what I did is I took all of the interviews where I saw worthiness, where I saw people living that way, and just looked at those.

What do these people have in common? ...These are whole-hearted people, living from this deep sense of worthiness...And so here's what I found. What they had in common was a sense of courage. And I want to separate courage and bravery for you for a minute. Courage, the original definition of courage when it first came into the English language -- it's from the Latin word cor, meaning heart -- and the original definition was to tell the story of who you are with your whole heart. And so these folks had, very simply, the courage to be imperfect. They had the compassion to be kind to themselves first and then to others, because, as it turns out, we can't practice compassion with other people if we can't treat ourselves kindly. And the last was they had connection, and -- this was the hard part -- as a result of authenticity, they were willing to let go of who they thought they should be in order to be who they were, which you have to absolutely do that for connection.

The other thing that they had in common was this. They fully embraced vulnerability. They believed that what made them vulnerable made them beautiful. They didn't talk about vulnerability being comfortable, nor did they talk about it being excruciating -- as I had heard it earlier in the shame interviewing. They just talked about it being necessary. They talked about the willingness to say "I love you" first, the willingness to do something where there are no guarantees, the willingness to breathe through waiting for the doctor to call after your mammogram. They're willing to invest in a relationship that may or may not work out. They thought this was fundamental.

"Strength doesn't always equal success." Matthew Childs

"Trust yourself and believe, whatever happens...don't give up." William Kamkwamba

"If we taken man as he is, we make him worse. But if we take man as he should be, we make him capable of becoming what he can be." Goethe

In this rare clip from 1972, legendary psychiatrist and Holocaust-survivor Viktor Frankl delivers a powerful message about the human search for meaning -- and the most important gift we can give others.

Viktor Frankl: Why to believe in others

Leverage Relationships With Successful People

The following bit of advice comes from this week's newsletter for our insurance agents at my company. I thought I'd share it with others. The technology has changed, but it rings much like the ancient wisdom of Dale Carnegie, who wrote "Showing a genuine interest in others not only wins friends for you, but may develop in its customers a loyalty to your company."

"Build closer relationships with the 12 most successful women you know (family, friends, clients, community leaders, as well as civic, secular and religious leaders). Use Google, Bing or LinkedIn to research their interests. Look for opportunities to help them meet their goals. Then call them and invite them to meet over coffee to exchange ideas, talk about interests and ask their opinions."

“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” Dale Carnegie

Let's Revive the Golden Rule

THE CRIME BOSS:Leading a life of crime, if only in my mind...

The Crime Boss
Originally uploaded by lorenzodom

Part of a series of portraits of people in public that were taken September 26, 2010, while serving as the New York City Adviser for Microsoft's launch of its foursquare photography app.

New York City, May 18, 2011

“He who profits by a crime commits it” —Seneca

I took this photo while walking across the Brooklyn Bridge, not really knowing what I was going to capture along the way.

I would see an suspecting victim and then shoot from the hip. This is one of the shots that I liked most. Made me feel like I had arrived before Wee Gee had to, before all the blood and guts were spewed all over the hard city streets. I felt like I had captured crime in the making.

Or at least that's what my wild imagination made me feel...

Life is simply a little more exciting when you let your imagination tell the story. I've got three young boys, so I am reminded that kids do it all the time. Its a shame that we tend to lose that as adults.

Don't be afraid to use your imagination today. It can help sustain you through another boring one. God knows life in a cube can be awfully monotonous.

True crime writer Jack Olsen once commented in Esquire magazine about the alleged fabrications in Truman Capote's runaway bestseller In Cold Blood:

"I recognized it as a work of art, but I know fakery when I see it," Olsen said. "Capote completely fabricated quotes and whole scenes... The book made something like $6 million in 1960s money, and nobody wanted to discuss anything wrong with a moneymaker like that in the publishing business."

Capote replied, "Jack Olsen is just jealous."

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“I hate this "crime doesn't pay" stuff. Crime in the United States is perhaps one of the biggest businesses in the world today.” —Peter Kirk


© Lorenzo Domínguez, All rights reserved, 2010.

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in 2010 & 2011 on Amazon—
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Be a leader, be someone that is kind, audacious and helps to push the boundaries of love. —Lady Gaga

“For those of you that are being bullied, know that the problem is not inside of you. Know that it is insecurity inside the person that is bullying you. And for those of you who don’t feel bullied, take it upon yourself to be nurturing. Be a leader, be someone that is kind, audacious and helps to push the boundaries of love.” Lady Gaga

I can’t say whether or not I am a fan of Lady Gaga’s music. That said I am now a certified avid fan of her social activism. Surprisingly, I am enamored by what she has to proselytize as guest editor for today’s Metro NY. Please read, if only the piece called, ‘Be a leader and push the boundaries of love.’ "Today we have learned in the agony of war that great power involves great responsibility."— FDR

Click here to read one of her more moving editorials.

"If you have something to give, give it now. Serve food at a soup kitchen, clean up a neighborhood park, be a mentor." Mark Bezos

"The way to a more productive, more inspired, more joyful life is getting enough sleep" Arianna Huffington

"I no longer try to be right, I choose to be happy." — Ric Elias

THE LITTLE THINGS

The Sound of Sleep, 9
Originally uploaded by lorenzodom

“If you think you're too small to have an impact, try going to bed with a mosquito in the room.” —Anita Koddick

Yes, t’is the season for galoshes, parapluies (paraguas) and Mom’s chicken soup; belated April showers and the coming of the monsoons of summer pests—rats, bedbugs and the dreaded mosquito. Be grateful that we are reminded that it is always the little things that truly count.

Tell someone you love them today. “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.”—Mother Theresa

Dare to be enlightened

Dare to be enlightened
Originally uploaded by lorenzodom

There is one place where you can usually depend on finding adventure, wisdom, inspiration and joy—take advantage of what some people have taken years to create, open a new book today instead of turning on the television; dare to be enlightened, rather than simply be entertained.

“That is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed in profit.” —Amos Bronson Alcott



BE INSPIRED
Read the #1 Bestselling Photo Essay and Artist Biography
in 2010 & 2011 on Amazon—
25 Lessons I’ve Learned about Photography…Life!

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