In my business book Surviving Your Serengeti the protagonist in the story, Sean, after going on his own personal safari of self-discovery, finds his inner animal at the end of the book. Meanwhile I subtlety added his “animal” type at the beginning of the book — on the cover. I am sure you can guess what animal he is.

No-one knows exactly the total numbers cheetahs that are left in the wild but best research estimates it to be less than 10,000. During my most recent trip to the Serengeti, I had an up close and personal time with three cheetah brothers and it was a very, very memorable experience. I saw them work together, chase down a wildebeest and then they allowed me to get within 5 feet of them while they were feeding. Unbelievable!

And then this week a friend sent me this great photo. How cool is this Cheetah!

He is also well known as an excellent motivational speaker and I recently reheard the story about the taxi driver who demonstrated the importance and value of quality customer service. The story has been recounted and posted many times, usually under the title Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar. Basically you have two alternatives. You can blend in with the mold or you can rise above the rest. Great wisdom.

Today with full admiration to Harvey I am going to add another animal to the end of the title and give it a little more Africa flair… Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar and Lions Roar!

It’s not that Africa doesn’t have ducks and eagles, they do. But with so many wild animals when I wrote Surviving Your Serengeti I was drawn into a huge array of exotic animals. Growing up in Africa I’ve always had an affinity for the wild and the animals that rule the untamed land of the Serengeti.

Each year more than two million wildebeest migrate 1,000 miles through the harsh plains of East Africa – a migration so dangerous and incomparably massive that it’s often considered the number one natural wonder of the world. While many animals succumb to hunger, thirst and predators, others use their inborn skills to survive.

And yes, then there is the lion. And although he does not migrate, he is impacted by the migration. Even though he is the king of the jungle, life isn’t just straightforward and easy. He has to makes plans. Lions actually work pretty hard to make sure their cubs are fed on a regular basis. Hunting becomes a skillfully execute plan of strategy, teamwork, single-mindedness and superb implementation.

We’re all facing a struggle of some sort – our personal Serengeti – whether it’s finding a job or new career, balancing work and family, keeping a business afloat through the recession or to paying the ever-growing stack of bills. Surviving and also thriving during these times requires that we rely on our innate skills – our strengths.

To rise to the top, and to succeed where others don’t, you have to soar like an eagle and act like a lion. Remember, your skills are significant, your attitude is critical, your execution is essential, focus is continuously important and perseverance required until the end.

The trail starts on the north shore of Kauai, goes up and down the side of the mountain many times, crosses the Hamnakapiai stream and beach, goes on to the spectacular Hanakoa Falls, crosses more streams (Hanakoa and Kalalau), reaches the hanging Hanakoa Valley, crosses the flat-bottomed valley and goes down Red Hill before reaching the end of the trial at Kalalau Beach.

The walk was breathtaking and the scenery absolutely gorgeous. The natural beauty of Na Pail coastline never ceases to electrify me, affirming Kauai as one of my most favorites places in the world.

The hike is up and down narrow, slippery, mud-covered inclines with loose rocks on the edge of eroding cliffs. It can be particularly hazardous when wet and we had flash flooding the night before. The complete trial is 22 miles and, according to Backpacker, it’s one of America’s 10 Most Dangerous Hikes.

Now we didn’t do the whole trial, and neither is it comparable to the 1,000 mile wildebeest migration I used as the backdrop for “Surviving Your Serengeti,” but it made me think of it. A dangerous journey over an arduous terrain filled with danger, exhaustion, thirst, hunger, predators… OK, there were no predators. Instead of lions, crocodiles or cheetahs the extent of Kauai’s dangerous wild life are wild pigs and feral chickens.

In elementary terms it was the wisdom of the Serengeti that I found germane. To flourish at anything in life, even something as small as a hike, you can see how many of the insights shared in “Surviving Your Serengeti” also apply: tenacity, good planning, being efficient, taking a risk, etc..

Whether on the Serengeti savannahs, the Kauai coastline or the concrete jungles of New York, life is a delicate, awesome thread that ties us all together.

Thanks for joining me every week for my Weekly Wisdom. Mahalo.  Asante sana.

Kevin Purdy, the author of the article, says it matters a lot – I agree. It can be the 30 – 60 minutes that you see everything clearly, get something important done. Many recommend that you focus on the human side of work rather than your task list.

He cites some great examples by some well-known people who provide some insight on how they start their day. Read his article for more details as I am only referencing a few favorite ones below:

As If Today Was Your Last

After hearing a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last” Steve Jobs, at the age of 17, decided to make it his morning mantra.

30 Minutes To Thrive

Tony Robbins suggests setting up “30 Minutes to Thrive,” that involves light exercise, introspection and reviewing everything you should be grateful for, like your family, friends and health. 

Choose Your Frog

Brian Tracy says, “Eat that Frog,” the title of his book from a Mark Twain saying that, if you eat a live frog first thing in the morning, you’ve got it behind you for the rest of the day, and nothing else looks so bad.

Don’t Check Your Email. Seriously. Stop That.

David Karp, founder of Tumblr, tries hard not to check his email until 9:30AM. Reading e-mails at home never feels good or productive,” he says.

A Few More I Thought Of

I am expanding above with a few more ideas I am considering adding to my first 30 minutes of the day.

• Pause And Enjoy The Morning Silence
• Forgive Somebody That You Had A Disagreement With Recently And Tell Them
• Write A Thank You Letter to Someone You Met Last Week
• Think For 5 Minutes Of Someone You Love And Why
• Decide to Help Somebody Today That You’ve Never Helped Before

The wisdom of the Serengeti is often to just pause life and take it in what it means to be alive. Why don’t you try that tomorrow morning, before you get to your email, “To Do” list and frog of the day.

What do you do….What would you like to do going forward?

I am not referring to Ferrell and Galifianakis in the movie “The Campaign” that was released last week, but rather the “other two” that are on their presidential campaign trail. I travel a fair amount (about 165,000 miles a year) but can’t even begin to fathom the millions of miles they must travel. (I do suppose it’s a tad different in Air Force One compared to Southwest Airlines, right?)

OK, so this is not a political post. My Weekly wisdom is strictly about the skills and abilities we all have and how we can improve our weaknesses and develop our strengths. The campaign trail this week spurred me to write about communication this week.

A good president should be a great communicator. He should be able to communicate coherently, understand the needs of the people and motivate a nation with Hollywood-like passion, a Steve Jobs-like confidence and a fatherly familiarity.

I don’t have the audacity to try and tell a current or future president of our beloved country how to communicate, but I do want to share a small extract from my Safari of Self Discovery Coaching Program in which we list ways to improve your communication. There are many, but I am going to list five bullets that I think would also help a political candidate on the campaign trial.

• Sincerely listen before responding and don’t obviously focus on what you are going to say next.
• Try to see all arguments from the other person’s point of view. This often requires you to often shut up, listen and “hear” what’s being communicated.
• Avoid confusion and ambiguous language, by saying what you mean and meaning what you say.
• Don’t generalize or be vague, be succinctly articulate and always provide the facts.
• Keep your opinions simple, brief and to the point.

It is way easier said than done. Communication is indeed a fine art.

A Serengeti Wisdom that says:  “There is something in us that connects with someone who listens.” 

So when you see someone reach that level of excellence it is moving… and 100 times more, when that person has a serious disability…such as no legs.
I can’t even begin to fathom what it would be to be a double amputee. Yet South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius is now one of the fastest runners in his country, and a Paralympics medalist. He now has become the first athlete with no legs to compete in the Olympics against healthy athletes representing their country. Oscar was born without fibulas (commonly known as the calf bone,) and both his legs were amputated below the knee before the age of one.
Last week history was made at the Olympic Stadium as the “Blade Runner” ran around the track in the 400 meters in a time of 46.54. Pistorius came second in his qualifying preliminaries in the 400 and although he did not make it through in the next round, he competed on the Olympic stage against world-class athletes.

The journey wasn’t easy. Although a strong Paralympic runner, the world governing body for track and field (IAAF) ruled, stunningly, that prosthetic legs constituted a “competitive advantage.” Now I don’t want to get into the debate on whether the “cheetah-like” blades gave him an unfair advantage or not (I personally do not think so as these types of legs have been around for more than a decade and thousands of athletes are using them) as it is not the point of this post.

All I wish to do is to recognize and admire the incredible determination of one man to follow a dream and pursue a normal existence, when life has been so profoundly stacked against him. His tenacity and persistence is simply awe-inspiring. Oscar, I salute you! You are one of the best examples of the Olympic spirit I have ever seen and an awesome example of an enduring wildebeest.

It’s evident that Missy has an incredible gift; a great swimming physique…at the age of 17 she is already 6.1 ft tall, has a size 13 feet and a wingspan of 6.4 feet…and a really smart coach.  It is not her raw talent or her decade long dedication and practice that that I want to point out today but rather the unique decision made by her coach, Todd Schmitz last week when they discovered that the finals for the 100m backstroke was only 14 minutes after the 200m freestyle heat. 14 minutes.

It’s hard enough to just qualify to make it to the Olympic team, let alone then to participate in different events, but to have these events take place so close together, makes it almost impossible to triumph. No one has ever has so little time to regain their strength and prepare. Even Phelps admitted to having at least 30 minutes between any of his races.

Normally swimmers would make the short walk over to the warm-down pool to prepare for the next swim. But Todd was concerned about her lactic acid levels. Lactic acid is a powerful organic acid, and its accumulation can cause distress and fatigue during exercise. Todd needed to address that. They would petition the IOC to allow Missy to use the adjacent Diving Pool instead of going to the warm-down pool. So after the previous qualifying heat Missy climbed out of the competition pool, walked to the Diving Well, and began swimming back and forth for about 10 minutes. Only then did she go and join her rested competitors in the ready room before walking out to the competition pool.

The final was super fast – less that 60 seconds – and in the end the 17-year-old high school student took home the Olympic gold for the women’s 100-meter backstroke, ahead of former backstroke world record holder, Emily Seebohm from Australia.

Wow…and that most likely because of an unconventional but clever tactical move to have Missy continue swimming between races instead of going to the warm-down pool.

Don’t you just love forward thinking strategic lions!

On Monday July 16^th Stephen Richards Covey (79) died after complications resulting from a bicycle fall in April. Covey was in my opinion one of the world’s foremost authorities on leadership. He was an American educator par excellence, a multiple times New York Times best selling author, and a great motivational speaker. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.

Among the many things he will be remembered for will be his hugely successful book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. In the book Covey tells us that when we plan, we should  “begin with the end in mind”. Great wisdom and very applicable to this week’s Weekly Wisdom.

So keeping in theme of short and simple, here are seven pointers to help you create a great  plan.

1. Set measurable objectives.
2. Define the strategies required to obtain them.
3. Determine the tactics necessary to achieve them.
4. Allocate the resources required throughout the process.
5. Implement and execute your plan.
6. Evaluate performance and review new developments.
7. Initiate corrective adjustments.

A successful plan always depends upon a clear understanding of where you are heading and how you plan on getting there. But the plan only provides you a road map…you still have to actually get there. More about that next week…

Meanwhile start writing your plan.

In the late 1980s, Ken Kutaragi was watching his daughter play a Nintendo game console and he realized the potential of video games.  At that time, Sony’s executives had little interest in video games, and when Nintendo expressed interest, Kutaragi responded by working in secret.  Sony execs nearly fired him after discovering his sideline project, but then-CEO Norio Ohga realized the value of his innovation and encouraged Kutaragi’s efforts. With Sony’s blessing, Kutaragi worked with Nintendo to develop a CD-ROM-based Nintendo.

But the story doesn’t end there. Oddly enough Nintendo decided not to go forward with the project, so   Kutaragi went on to help Sony develop its own gaming system. This became PlayStation, and then became the best-selling game console of all time, and then led to the formation of Sony Computer Entertainment, one of Sony’s most profitable divisions ever!

Wow!  What a great entrepreneurial story that shaped millions of people around the world and created a huge new industry. Ken, the enterprising crocodile, also had a happy ending as he ended up as Chairman and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment and a net worth, according to Wikipedia of over $5 billion.

Do you have a dream?

I bet you do!  I have many dreams and have achieved a good number of them. So can you. So let’s start working on yours. Write down your dream and give it some thought over the next few days and then in next week’s Weekly Wisdom I will share with you 7 Steps in Creating a Great Plan.

Our physical condition and fitness provides us the bodily energy we need to press ahead while our mental fortitude is the drive that keeps our mind on track when our reserves start running on low.

Therefore, it is vitally important that you develop ways to continuously build and strengthen your mental tenacity. Although it’s hard for most of us to commit to regular exercise, we all know what we should do to become physically fit and healthy. However, many people don’t know where to start when it comes to getting some mental exercise.

Well, here are three simple suggestions:

• Continuously explore ways of doing things you have done many times before in new, creative and different ways.
• In downtime, develop your mind and memory with brainteasers such as Sudoku, crossword puzzles and chess.
• Learn to always laser focus your actions on only one thing at a time and remain focused until you have completed the task on hand.

Like the Wildebeest, endurance, whether physical or mental, requires people to train hard, develop new behaviors and build strong proficiencies.  Overcoming any big challenge is always easier when you are prepared – both physically and mentally!