550. Verbal Assault

When you are attacked verbally, before walking away, one of the most effective put-downs (if you could be bothered) is to say "That remark says more about you than me." This is because it is the truth. When you judge someone you define yourself as someone who needs to judge.

549. Silence and Combat

In a combat situation do not speak. Try to still your mind so that there is no "silent" inner conversation. Both types of speech will steal your energy and prevent you from taking action. When you talk about doing something, you are not doing it.

548. Good Sense

The first rule in Martial Arts is : If you are walking down the street and someone says "psst ! come into the alley!", DON'T GO !

547. Informed Decisions

Never, ever, make any important decisions without being in full possession of all the facts relevant to the decision that you can muster. Keep very good sources of high quality information. Never rely on underlings in an organisation for your information - always speak to the engineer, not the oily rag. Remember you are the Chief Executive Officer ( The Boss ) of your own life and as such you are an equal to the CEO of any organisation, from a stamp collecting club to the president of the country.

Learn to interpret all the facts calmly and cooly.

Don't just ask for the good news, ask what all the news is. In fact be very suspicious of those who only bear good news - they are probably only telling you what they think you want to hear. These people are called yes-men and will lead you into error.

Learn also to distinguish between hard data and mere opinion. Only give weight to an opinion if the person knows what he is talking about and if he has a reputation for being right more often than he is wrong. Don't for example agree with the opinion of a brick maker when he is talking about jewels.

546. Mastery

Make Mastery into a way of life, your way of life. We are life-long apprentices. The process is circular : Learn, try, correct, practice, improve, learn... Mastery is a never-ending cycle. You must get in line for learning and stay in line.

545.Perseverence and Breakthroughs.

Whenever your mind says to you "I'm just not getting this", then you are just about to make a breakthrough and learn something new. At times like this, it is crucial that you DO NOT GIVE UP! Most people give up when their mind tells them discouraging things but these thoughts are actually tell-tales you should read to let you know that a new discovery is just around the corner.

If you persist at times like this, your learning curve steepens and you begin to make profound changes in your knowledge base and you become capable of fundamental paradigm shifts.

544. Wealth

The acquisition of wealth is simple but not always easy. If, however, you find that you do not have the time to make the odd €1,000.000 or so, then there is something wrong with your thinking. Plato says : "Every man should be wealthy, for that allows him the leisure to associate with the wise."

543. Study, but What to Study ?

All of your life, study Life, Love, Philosophy, Politics, Martial Arts, and Business. Keep abreast of Technology. After that, you should study what you please.

542. Power and Truth

"Power and Truth have different demands." - Samuel Peppys.

Power, for instance, demands that you maintain it at all costs. Power must be exercised from time to time so that it is believed and to encourage the others. All that Truth demands is that you discover it. In practical terms, it is well to remember what Peppys has said and be clear in each situation which of the two are the priority.

541. Franchises

Generally speaking, you never want to buy a franchise. The real winners where franchises are concerned are the people who started and run  them. If you ever do set one up yourself, a clever way to do it is to give away the territories free of charge or for a nominal cost and then charge 10% of the gross in each region. This is equivalent to giving away the razor and charging for the blades. Make sure you hold the freehold of the property where each outlet is located (Mc Donalds do this) and charge the franchisee rent. Set your advertising spend at 9-14% of turnover (Specsavers).  Set total salary limits at 30 - 35% of turnover.

Register the name worldwide as the cost of doing this will be the cheapest legal fees you will have to pay.

Once you have your system up and running you can licence manufacturers to make product under your name. This will attract licence fees, of course. A good example of this is Weight Watchers, sweets, scales etc. Develop simple and effective financial control systems for the franchisees and maintain tight quality control.

540. Be Prepared to Defend

When out and about in the world, keep your mind present in the here and now. Let your attention be open and free, do not let it get captured. Keep your knees slightly bent and your guard up at all times.