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As most of you know, I developed the Power of Mortality™ in 1994. For a number of years it was simply my own personal philosophy. It was how I lived my life and it worked wonderfully!

Then in 2003 I realized that my story and my philosophy can help others with their own personal life challenges. I decided to use my considerable talents as a communicator to help people implement the Power of Mortality™ to live a life that is fearless, focused and free from regrets.

• I began giving keynote speeches.
• I started an e-mail newsletter that now reaches people in 30 countries around the globe.
• I began conducting workshops.
• I wrote a book.
• I began doing television and radio interviews, including Oprah & Friends.
• I was featured in newspapers and magazines.
• I started a podcast.
• I started a blog.
• … and I have many other plans in the works!

It has been a very rewarding five years and I have met many fantastic people who have shared with me how they have applied the Power of Mortality™ in their own lives. Their stories have always touched me deeply.

You will notice though, that all of my efforts so far have been on the level of one-to-many. Countless people over the years have asked me if I can work directly with them. They wanted to supercharge their experience with the Power of Mortality™ by having a one-to-one relationship with me. So far, I have not offered that type of service because I felt that I lacked the proper tools and framework for dealing with someone on a one-on-one basis.

However, I am thrilled to announce that I have just finished my training with the Certified Coaches Federation and I’m now a Certified Coach Practitioner! This training has given me the skills and techniques that I wanted to have in place before I started working with people on a one-on-one basis.

So for those of you who’ve read my book, attended one of my presentations or simply just been following my blog or podcast - I want you to take a moment to consider the following: Possibly something about the Power of Mortality™, or a certain aspect of my personal story, has touched something deep inside of you. You might have noticed that it has awakened long forgotten dreams and goals. Or perhaps you are now experiencing something in your life with which you would like help. If you want to achieve a certain goal or overcome a limitation I would be honored to offer my services. Together we can use the Power of Mortality™ to create a life for you that is fearless, focused and free from regrets!

You may want to consider booking a free 30-minute initial session with me. After we’ve had an opportunity to complete that call, you will have a solid understanding of the possibilities that are available to once you hire me as your coach. Here is how to reach me:

Phone: +1-519-763-6245
E-mail: patrick@mathieu.com
SkypeID: barcodeguy

This is the next level in the evolution of my mission to use the Power of Mortality™ to help transform the world! I invite you to come and play with me on this delicious journey called life!

ENJOY NOW!

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing - that’s why we recommend it daily.”
- Zig Ziglar

I’m not a doctor, but I have two prescriptions for those of you who like to remain freshly bathed in motivation.

FIRST

Symptoms: Lack of focus. Early morning lethargy. Feelings of “what difference will today make in the big picture?”.

Prescription: 365 Daily Expiry Dates.

Dosage: One per day for 365 days.

IMPORTANT DIRECTIONS: Once you have read the daily note, you MUST throw it out. No matter how much you like the message, you can’t keep it. This is to remind you that life comes at you one day at a time and you aren’t able to save up the good days and throw out the bad days.

SECOND

Symptoms: A need for audio motivation. Desire for variety of motivational information and material. Wish to help others at the same time as helping oneself.

Prescription: 52 Motivational Interviews.

Dosage: One per week for 52 weeks.

KNOWN SIDE EFFECTS: An overall feeling of self-satisfaction and happiness that comes from the knowledge that a portion of the proceeds of this program are being donated to fight Alzheimer’s Disease.

Now, take both of these and call me in the morning!

ENJOY NOW!

Very often, if I stop long enough to listen, the Universe will tell me what I need to know. Recently, I’ve been going through a mini-crisis. Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to get some guidance.

I was listening to my iPod and I happened to choose the album Welcome To Wherever You Are from the group INXS. As I listened to it, I remembered a very surreal moment in my life. I was in southern Japan, wandering by myself through the city of Miyazaki. It was 1994 and I was 24 years old. I had no idea where I was going, but I was enjoying the fantastic sites and sounds of this new place. (Perhaps it’s different now, but at that time Miyazaki had very few “foreign” tourists, so it was not nearly as “westernized” as Tokyo.)

As I strolled the streets, I came to one of the many bridges that cross the river which cuts through the city. At the side of the bridge, there was a large sign that included a map of the surrounding area. I went to the map, hoping that it would shed some light on my whereabouts. Everything on the sign was in Japanese, except for a red “x” that appeared on a road just beside the river. There was an arrow pointing to the “x” with the English words: “The Place Where You Are Right Now“. (I really wish I had taken a picture of that map!)

I broke out laughing because as I looked down at myself, I realized that I was wearing a t-shirt that I had bought at an INXS concert back home in Montreal. The t-shirt had the album cover for “Welcome To Wherever You Are”. So here I was in the middle of a strange city on the other side of the globe from my home, wondering where I was - and the answer came back loud and clear.

THIS is the place where you are right now and welcome to wherever you are!

As I listened to that album yesterday, the Universe reminded me of that day and of the fact that the best way out of any situation is to be at peace with where you are right now. Once you can make yourself welcome in that place (no matter how unpleasant or stressful) you have some power with which to choose where to go next.

So the solution to my mini-crisis is to simply get very present to where I am now and not worry about the future. Hmmm…. that sounds like very familiar advice… where have I heard that before? Well, I guess we all need reminding from time to time.

ENJOY NOW!

Oh. In case you’re wondering how I got “un-lost”…. after continuing to study the map, I managed to decipher that there was a koban or “police box” a few blocks away. When I was done with my exploring and ready to head back to the place I was staying, I made my way to the koban to ask directions to the correct bus stop.  The officer stationed at the koban didn’t speak English, so he phoned someone else (to this day, I have no idea who he called) and I told the person on the phone which bus I was looking for. That person had no idea where to find it, but they translated my request back to the police officer, who gave the directions to the person on the phone, who then gave them to me! What an amazing trip! It was a lot of fun! (I’d post some photos from my trip, but no one would believe that they are me.  I had a full beard and a big head of hair!)

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I have a question for you.

I want you to be really honest with yourself when you answer this question:

How much of your life is dedicated to “being right”?

I’m currently taking a seminar series and one of the things that has come out of that seminar is the idea that we waste an awful lot of time and energy focusing on the idea of being “right”.

If you honestly reflect on this, you’ll see that I’m right! (ha!)

But the real issue isn’t about being right or wrong. The real issue is about how long you hold onto that feeling of righteousness. It’s also about the cost of that sort of mindset.

Let me give you an example: Two friends are driving somewhere new for the first time. They are old friends and haven’t seen each other in a while so they have a lot to discuss. They are having a fantastic conversation when the road comes to an end and they can only turn left or right. There are no signs to indicate which way they should go and the directions they were given didn’t include this information either. One friend, we’ll call him Mr. Left, says “I think we should go left.” The other friend, Mr. Right, says: “No, I’m positive that we should go right.” But Mr. Left is behind the steering wheel and decides to go with his instinct, so they turn left.

Now I want you to consider two scenarios that unfold from this point.

Scenario 1
Mr. Right is very vocal about his opposition to the decision to go left. “You’re wrong. This is the wrong way. Turn around and go back,” he tells his friend. But they continue driving. Mr. Right, convinced that they are going the wrong way, cannot sit still. He keeps fidgeting in his seat and steaming over the fact that his friend didn’t listen to him. For his part, Mr. Left can sense his friend’s displeasure and is now getting worried about whether or not he made the correct decision. Twenty minutes later, it is very clear that they made the wrong choice at the intersection, so they turn around. Mr. Left feels very bad about this. “See, I TOLD YOU SO.” says Mr. Right. Clearly he was correct. The facts have supported his position. But then why doesn’t he feel any better? As they drive back, his mind has escalated beyond being upset that his friend didn’t listen to him and has now started thinking about all the other times his friend didn’t listen to him. And about all of the other people in his life who might have dismissed his ideas or opinions. ANOTHER twenty minutes and they are back at the same intersection, only this time they proceed in the correct direction. “We’re now forty minutes later than we would have been if only you had listened to me!” yells Mr. Right. Ten minutes later they arrive at the destination. They are both very stressed out and neither of them is speaking to one another.

Scenario 2
In this scenario, Mr. Left still decides to go left and Mr. Right still thinks that this is the wrong decision. However in this scenario Mr. Right has let go of the need to be right. The two men continue their conversations and appreciate the new scenery. After twenty minutes, it is very clear that they made the wrong choice at the intersection so they turn around. “Told ya so!” jokes Mr. Right. Twenty minutes later they pass the intersection without comment because they are too busy with their engaging conversation. Ten minutes after that they arrive at their destination, having had an extra forty minutes of fantastic discussion.

So, how important is it to you to be right?

Oftentimes we are given a choice between being right and having peace. Peace of mind and peace in our relationships. I’m certainly not advocating that you let people walk all over you in the name of “keeping the peace”. You should still stand up for what you believe is right. My advice is to let go of the need to be right as soon as the decision is made, because if you cling to it beyond that point, you are living in the past. And living in the past can only lead to suffering. Living in the past breeds regrets and resentments. And you and I are above that. We’re after lives that are FEARLESS, FOCUSED and FREE FROM REGRETS, aren’t we?

(You know I’m right!)

ENJOY NOW!

I’ve learned a lot from Tim Ferriss, the author of The 4-Hour Work Week. I’ve picked up countless tips from reading his book and his blog and watching his YouTube videos. But today, I learned a new kind of lesson. A lesson in community.

Today, Tim wrote a serious blog post on the topic of depression and suicide. (You need to read it!)

Tim isn’t a doctor. He’s not a psychologist. But he has a blog with a very large audience and he has decided to step outside of his usual subject matter to make a very important comment on a very important topic. He says:

Statistically, out of the millions of people who visit this blog, a fair number will consider or attempt suicide. I want to know that I at least made an effort to prevent such terrible loss.

Tim’s post has reminded me of two important things:

• We all have a duty to watch out for one another
• You don’t need to be an expert to offer assistance - especially if that assistance is to help someone find an expert.

It would have been so easy for Tim to simply continue using his blog to regale us with his globe-trotting, time-saving tales of his fantastic life and how we too can have that life. But today, Tim decided to step out of that comfort zone and give something back to the community.

Thanks for the lesson Tim!

ENJOY NOW!

My friend Peter from i will change your life . com is currently featuring another guest article of mine.  Read the article on kickstarting your day and leave comments in order to win a copy of my book: What’s Your Expiry Date? Embrace Your Mortality - Live With Vitality.

I just read about a most incredible ceremony!

In South Korea, a company called Korea Life Consulting will let you attend your own funeral!

That’s right - you read your last will and testament then climb into a casket.  The good folks from Korea Life Consulting then nail the lid shut, sprinkle dirt on the lid and play funeral music!  After 15 minutes, they pry open the lid and you emerge - reborn!

One of the participants had to say this:

“I felt really, really scared inside the coffin and also thought a lot about my mom,” said Lee Hye-jung, a 23-year-old woman studying engineering. “I’ll live differently from now on so as not to have any regrets about my life.”

POWERFUL STUFF!

So what do you think?  Should I incorporate some caskets into my next workshop or weekend seminar?

Read the story for yourself.

I believe that it is entirely possible to be an unsuccessful success.

Let me explain this apparent oxymoron.

I am a fan of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. I have cheered for the Canadiens since I was a kid. (If you’re not a hockey fan, stick with me… my point applies to you too!)

For the last few years, I have lived outside of Toronto - home of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team, arch rivals of the Canadiens. This means that I am surrounded and outnumbered by Leafs fans, who are characterized by their desire to put the Maple Leafs’ logo on anything and everything.

Whenever someone wants to argue with me about which is a better team I tell them one simple thing:

“Count the Cups!”

This is a reference to the highest prize in the National Hockey League, the Stanley Cup. Montreal has won the Stanley Cup 24 times in their history, more than any other hockey team. The Leafs, on the other hand, have only won it 13 times. Furthermore, the Leafs have not won a cup in my lifetime!! Their last win was in 1967 - that’s a 40-year drought! Hardly what I would call successful!

HOWEVER, my definition of “success” assumes that the aim of a hockey team is to prove itself against all competitors, advance through the playoffs and ultimately win the Stanley Cup.

Another reality about hockey today is that it is a busine$$. In that regard, the Leafs are very successful. They have a fan base who’s loyalty borders on rabid obsession. They sell out every home game, make millions in merchandising and broadcast revenues. A 2004 report from Forbes.com ranks the Most Valuable Teams in the NHL. The Leafs rank #2, while the Canadiens rank #8. Hmmm..

Whether you are a hockey fan or not - the lesson should be clear by now:

Before you can decide whether or not something is a “success”, you need to be clear about what your measure of success will be.

How many people do you know that are financially successful, but unsuccessful in their relationships? Spiritually fulfilled, but constantly in debt. How many people have fantastic careers, but unhealthy lifestyles?

Now look at your life. Are you successful in the areas that matter most to you - or are you using your success in some areas to justify or explain your lack of success in others?