I just woke up from a dream where my wife (who didn’t look at all like my wife) and I had to clear out our side of some storage unit where someone had parked a Winnebago full of Meth in it. I say Winnebago instead of RV because this thing was just a four walled piece of siding on wheels (think MTV Road Rules circa 1995).

We were obviously in a hurry to back the thing out before the cops arrived. There was a nice gay couple who lived in some sort of addition to the other side of the storage unit. Their side of the unit acted as their garage and had stairs going up to their home. This nice couple took the time out of their heated argument to help my wife clear the boxes out from around the tires so I could back out.

As we peeled out with the sirens getting closer, the Meth turned into a box of deer meat and antlers. I remember thinking, why do we need a whole Winnebago when it’s just a 24x24x24 inch box? Just as suddenly an elderly couple appeared out of nowhere and the husband began to drive the Winnebago for us. The husband slowed down into a circular driveway to let two people on bicycles pass with the old wife saying “see I knew we shouldn’t have passed them before.”

At this point I leaned out of the Winnebago and shyly waved to the one wearing an old yellow t-shirt looking up at me. We used the exit as a turnaround point and hopped onto a freeway heading back from where we came.

Before seeing “Inception” I would have thought that we needed to throw out the steak in the freezer because it’s making me trip out. Now though I’m wondering if I’m in a dream within a dream and am expecting to wake up refreshed in the first class cabin on a flight back from Sydney.

Okay, time to go back to “sleep”

Wow, it has been a long time since I’ve posted on this site which I think, unfortunately, is pretty normal for me.

Years ago, before everybody did it and when Blogger was the only good site, I used to blog constantly. Over the last few years it has been difficult to stay motivated to continue. I’m not sure if it is because I now have Facebook and Twitter as an outlet to share with the world or if I’m just too busy or just lazy. I’m assuming that it is a combination of all of these.

In a world with so many outlets to share your thoughts, hopes and frustrations it seems increasingly difficult to find your voice as a writer. Voice, to me, comes out of focus on a subject. What do you want to speak about? What do you want the world to know? What? What? What?

Maybe I’m frustrated that I have so many interests that I just don’t know how to focus this site and steer it toward a niche. I doubt anybody wants to follow a blog where they read about Social Media Theory one day and about my concerns regarding my move away from extracts to all-grain in the brewing process the next day. (And yes I have both of these things circling around in my head.)

The answer is that I really don’t know what I want to share or what the world needs to know. I’ve decided many times to make this a blog about marketing, then small business, working anywhere, brewing, internet marketing, or just something that’s extension of my professional goals. Maybe this blog could be a sales tool for my companies.

But then there’s the question of branding. What do I have to hold back and how “stuffy” do I need to make this thing so that people are still comfortable writing me checks. Again …focus. Am I going to steer this thing toward a profit or is this going to be a place where my ideas enter the world no matter what my companies do?

Even if I can narrow the focus and pull one subject out of my overflowing brain; what about the lack of motivation? Maybe I just don’t have the drive and the passion for this which I think is becoming commonplace for me. We’ll cover that later though.

For now, I think I’m going to embrace the clutter in my brain. This site doesn’t say “marketing” in the title, it doesn’t have my company name on it, it doesn’t say anything other than ME.

So until I figure this thing out, you’re gonna get just that. I’m a man of many interests so I’m going to do what every professional blogger says not to. I’m going to skip the part where I figure out the goal and niche of this site and just write whatever the heck I want.

Let’s just look at this blog like a buffet. Come back as many times as you want and pick whatever looks good to you. You may not want everything on the menu but God willing you’ll enjoy something.

I am slowing piecing together the new design for this site with the hope that I will finally devote the time to revive it. While doing so, I was distracted by some posts from the past. Among them was this post from the beginning of the year where I made some announcements regarding the year to come. I know it is a little early to start looking back on the year but so much has been accomplished, though my perfectionism reminds me that we have not accomplished nearly enough.

We re-launched New Harbor Design in February and it was very well-received. We have had positive cash flow from the day one and continue to grow through our self-sustainabilty and not through debt. I, being the responsible finance nut that I am, continue to be very proud of this accomplishment.

In addition, we have added new employees to what used to be a two man show and have grown a company that boasts clients in multiple states and has interest in other countries as well. We will end the year with revenue that blows away the years prior to our re-launch. Despite Perfectionist Adam’s eye toward the imperfections, we have done quite well this year and will continue to do so in the year to come.

Life is always a daily struggle and my health has always been a sign of that. I’m proud to say that I have dropped over 35 pounds this year and now currently struggle to both maintain that weight loss and continue to lose more. I hope to continue forward and soon reach my goal. I don’t think I have to say that this is probably the biggest challenge I face but I am trying to stay positive and will continue my journey.

New Harbor Design continues to be our biggest project though we have made great progress in the other areas of our company. New Harbor Investments is coming together nicely and we hope to make awesome progress in 2011. We are also beginning plans for a few non-profit/charitable organizations as well as a new company (more later) that I am excited about.

My hope, is that this site will not only inspire and challenge entrepreneurs and other marketing professionals but also give some insight into the process of growing multiple businesses over time. Hopefully, I can live up to that.

USA Today.com recently published an Op Ed by one of my new favorite authors. I spent January reading his latest book and it has since become my all-time favorite and one that I’ll be sending to a lot of friends and family members this year.

Stephen Mansfield has written a lot of interesting books covering many world leaders including Bush and Obama. In his latest book, he takes on the amazing life and legacy of Arthur Guinness. I’m, by far, the biggest beer snob and beer enthusiast I know. Guinness has always been a long time favorite of mine both as a drink and as a brand (don’t forget, I’m a marketing nut too) so I was very interested in reading about the great Arthur Guinness. It doesn’t take very long to find out that beer was just the beginning for this man. He used his great influence and wealth to save many lives and change Ireland, and the world, for the better.

Mansfield’s book begins with the history of beer and works its way through every amazing generation of the Guinness family. Truly, awesome. Nothing I can write here will do the book any justice. I do, however, recommend reading Mansfield’s USA Today article in order to give you a taste of what you can find in his book. The entire article is very good but I was moved to write this post when I read this:

Yet there is another lesson for us today. We are tempted in our disgust with Wall Street greed and corporate misdealing to reject the economic engine that has made us great, to prefer the security of the state to the vicissitudes of free market exchange.

What we learn from the Guinness story is that character is king, that markets without ethical boundaries make Madoffs but that corporations driven by a benevolent vision can do vast amounts of good.

It is morals and ethics that we need, then, not a new economic system, and this, perhaps, is the most lasting legacy of the Guinness tale for us today.

The story is a very inspiring one and should not only be read for enjoyment but as a mandate and road map for what we should all do with what has been given to us.

Order the Book on Amazon here

UPDATE: Stephen Mansfield has written another article on Guinness. You can find it in the new issue of Relevant Magazine.