Everything we do in life is defined by our thinking. So how much time are we dedicated to evaluating our own ways of thinking? Since that insightful conversation, I've actually caught myself several times starting to go to the dark side and stopping myself dead in my thought tracks. Rather than allowing the negative thinking to take over, I simply stop, take a deep breath and give some serious consideration to some other ways of looking at things. I literally coach and encourage myself to go with the more positive alternative, and guess it works. This little mental reset exercise really works.

People often say to me they admire the wide variety of people I know and the friendships I've developed over the years. I always use those conversations as an opportunity to remind people (and I guess you too since you're reading this now) they too can have the same kind of friendships and experiences if they are willing to just try to have them.

Did they know they were doing something significant when they were doing whatever it is they did? Or did they simply see something that needed to be done and found a way to do it, confident enough in their own skin to let history judge them on whether the job was done well or not.

My own little 1st grade Mentee and I play a game together called “Best Thing/Worst Thing,” where you share something from the previous week that fits into each category. The first time we played it, I asked, “What was the best thing that happened to you all week?” She looked at me seriously and said, “When you came.”

Have you ever been meeting with a friend, business colleague or prospective client and suddenly found yourself not knowing what to say next? You know that lull in your conversation which comes after you've exchanged the customary "How's the family? What have you been up to?" pleasantries. That silence can be the kiss of death when you are trying to create, develop and build a relationship with someone.

I took a rare afternoon off and hit the trail which got me thinking. What trails are out there waiting for me if I just slow down long enough to look for them. What about you? Are you forging your own trail or are you following a trail you think you need to go down?

When I travel the country, people always ask me about Austin. Whether it's the iconic bang and bust of the first wave of Internet start-ups or the resounding resilience and outright refusal to stay down for the count, Austin has become synonymous with entrepreneurship. Who needs Silicon Valley when everything you could possibly want is right here surrounded by live music, great coffee and a mostly free wifi. The "vibe" is electric and the people, many if not all aren't even from here, come in wave after wave with ideas abuzz and dollar signs in their eyes.