Saskatoon, October 13 2008 11.35pm

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any wilder, it gets a whole lot weirder. From the insanity of Wall Street to the Fear on Main Street, the storm is shaking ALL of us to the core. Whether you’re a billionaire, a bureaucrat, or just Bob, you’re being forced to re-examine all that you’ve been told. The system is straining, the model is cracking, the ground is shaking. The unthinkable has never been so real. Panic is just a heartbeat away. I feel it as I write this. That’s WHY I’m writing this – to get the noise out my head so I can quiet my mind. The crazier it gets, the calmer I need to be. Anger, Anxiety, and Overwhelm need to be dissolved before they do some serious damage. Then again, I control them but only if I’m vigilant, and only if I have someone to watch over me.

It’s hurricane season for the foreseeable future. So don’t wait for it to end in order to feel safe. It’s tough, it’s dangerous, and it’s going to ask the impossible from you. But nothing ever happens that wasn’t supposed to happen. It’s called a “Correction”. We’re in an emergency and that’s when the solutions emerge. It’s not meant to be easy, it’s just meant to be.

Two days ago, I wasn’t as lucid as I am now. I found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time and I reacted the wrong way. I lost a major opportunity but I learnt a major lesson: my internal state determines my outer results. Anger, anxiety and overwhelm create external havoc, not the other way round. If you find the quiet space in your mind and the strong space in your heart, you’ll sail through the hurricane. But if you allow the hurricane to get inside you, you’re sunk. So the next time you come face to face with adversity, be quiet within. Breathe deep. Be certain that the certainty within you will shift your outer reality in your favour. Practice, practice, practice being vigilant and it will serve you well.

But you cannot do it alone. My wife, Hilary, and my children – Anthony, Carla and Dani – got me through this experience. They provided me with the tough love and perspective to let it go so I could move on. Tomorrow, I’m appearing in front of 4000 people in Saskatoon on behalf of the PowerWithin. I must be preeminent. I will be preeminent. With a little help from my friends.

Who are the people who will help you through the crises ahead? Who are the people you need to help? Are you the kind of partner they’re looking for? Can they count on you to stand tall and face the storm? You are only as strong as the people you run with. And they are only as strong as you. So be strong, live strong, finish strong. There’s no other way to be.