Corruption, pay to play, demeaning treatment of women, which is worse? Are they the traits of a potential leader of the greatest nation on earth? A writer of screenplays could not have written a more unbelievable plot than this year’s elections in the US. The circumstances may be good for the sellers of anti-depressants but the entire process represents a bad example for the citizens of our country. As discussed in my newly released 7th book, We Got Mojo! success needs to begin with values and certainly there is every appearance that those wanting to become our top elected officials have different perspectives.

Values do matter. Kofi Anan, the former Secretary General of the United Nations in a eulogy after the death of Nelson Mandela succinctly said in reference to Mr. Mandela that “by showing us that the path to freedom and human dignity lies in love, wisdom, and compassion for one another Nelson Mandela stands as an inspiration for us all.” Well maybe our leaders need to practice the three keys to fine tuning your values:

• Love one another;
• Be wise making decisions that respect the betterment of freedom and human dignity; and
• Exercise compassion to the rest of humanity.

Read more about what we think about values in our book “WE GOT MOJO!” now available in Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other booksellers. Learn more about it and even purchase the book at http://www.wegotmojodeju.com

Pass the word on to others so they can benefit from the wisdom in the book which contains the stories of 35 of my very successful BFF and I. All proceeds go to help Service Disabled Veteran Entrepreneurs launch their businesses.

 

 

Just some food for thought. In my recent book We Got Mojo, 36 of us got together and assessed what were the factors that have helped us succeed. In all cases we have started and built our success with true values. You can read our stories in the book (Here is my only ad- buy it at Amazon or Barnes and Noble on the internet and help veteran entrepreneurs).

However, what do we see in our leaders today. In Russia, Putin has a new calendar just like Sports Illustrated. In Asia, in Latin America and in many other capitals you hear about corruption but what about our American Example today? Corruption, intolerance, lies!

Here is why we need my new word “Bananization” to describe the process of turning America into a banana republic. We need to expect more from our leaders. We need to demand respect for each other be them men or women, all races, orientations, national origins etc. Remember the key to America’s prior success is its diversity and its tolerance for its diversity. We need to demand that our leaders be truthful. It is an insult for our leaders to lie to us assuming we are all stupid. Let’s fight bananization- it is a path to the destruction of. all the good that America has accomplished. Spread the word. Demand values from our leaders. Let’s continue to be the shining beacon of the world. This is not about party affiliation. It is about America and having a great future for generations to come.

I know it can be done!

36 of us just published We Got Mojo Stories of Inspiration and Perspiration. It is definitely more inspiring than listening to Hillary or Trump and guess what:  we start and go on with strong values. Watch our YouTube at https://youtu.be/3CKSZjAGkjU and then buy the book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or other booksellers.

As practiced by the 36 of us, Albert Einstein puts it best in as few words as possible when he said, “Once you stop learning, you start dying.” There is not much learning you can do from listening to politicians today instead grab our book and learn a few good things!

I promise you won’t need anti-depressants when you read We Got Mojo!

Check out our new You Tube: https://youtu.be/3CKSZjAGkjU that describes my 7th book We Got Mojo! Stories of Inspiration and Perspiration it will inspire you.

And if you like it buy the book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or other booksellers.

Send me some likes or comments. Ranked 5-Stars in Amazon

We all have memories of September 11. I was on a plane on my way to my office in Salt Lake City when the plane was asked to instead return to San Francisco and as soon as we arrived we were asked to leave the airport terminal. My older son and my daughter in law were in New York City on that day but fortunately not at ground zero. I had a friend that died in the building. The carnage of that day lives in my memory forever, but equally I will continue to remember what we Americans did in response to the acts of terror on that dreadful day.

Since that infamous day 15 years ago, look at what we in America have accomplished and the many American Dreams that have been achieved. We in America are innovators and risk takers as exemplified by the 36 of us who authored We Got Mojo!

Some of our stories are raw and most have had a happy ending- not all. However, on September 11 we need to particularly remember the three stories in the book by my co-authors who fought after the collapse of the towers  for the freedoms that we enjoy:

Lt. General (Ret) Ricardo Sanchez who served the US Army for 33 years including serving as the Director of Operations for US Southern Command and leading the US and Coalition forces for Operation Iraqi Freedom;

David Hornbeck, a US Marine who led IED patrols in the Middle East and patrols in Guantanamo Bay; and

US Army Major (Ret) Tom Deierlein, who was critically wounded by an Iraqi sniper yet now has completed the Army 10-miler race and several Triathlons.

The three of them have now moved into the private sector where they are building their companies while generously donating to others less fortunate. They all remember the infamy we suffered on September 11.

There are a number of other military veterans featured in the book but the three mentioned above will churn your gut with the pain of what they had to go through to insure that September 11 is not repeated and America continues to be the land of dreams.

We cannot forget September 11. May God Bless the souls that perished there and those that since have perished in the battlefield or in the homeland in this continuing Terror War trying to ensure our freedoms which sometimes we so easily take for granted.

We Got Mojo! is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other internet sellers. All proceeds go to the Disabled Veterans Business Alliance.

Thirty two   5-Star Reviews in Amazon can’t be wrong. For example on August 28th Anne Cunnigham a University of California Professor and an author herself wrote a review on Amazon titled:

A Blueprint for Success We Got Mojo!

” This is an inspirational book on leadership and success. A must read for any individual interested in a blueprint for success. Dr. Raul Deju and his 35 colleagues share intimate stories of their adversity and triumph in achieving personal and professional success. ‘We Got Mojo” is a treasure trove of galvanizing stories replete with lessons for all of us who seek, and believe in the American Dream.”

Watching TV these days can lead anyone to depression, alcoholism or worse. Instead, go to your favorite internet bookstore and download a copy or purchase an old-fashioned but awesome paper-copy of We Got Mojo! You will see hope, achievements, giving- all the things missing from today’s political landscape. Yes America is a great country today and likely will be tomorrow but not because of its politicians but because of our people who get an A+ for Achievement. In the last two weeks I worked from our place in Kauai, Hawaii- what a difference. I turned off the TV except to get the weather reports, and worked while looking at the blue surf zeroing in on a few green turtles and my mind cleared and my hope scale went up, not because some great leader is going to lead us but because I believe there are enough Americans that believe in the American Dream that we are unstoppable.

So click on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or our own internet site http://www.wegotmojodeju.com and purchase your copy. It beats therapy. For $20 you can get a soft-back edition.

Send me your comments.

On early release copies of We Got Mojo are available now on the Internet on hardback and soft cover. Check Amazon and Barnes & Noble Webpages. The webpages at the Internet retailers are being populated with more information but you can get copies of the book now. Be the first to read it and you can contribute reviews, hopefully good ones. All author’s proceeds go to a great cause the Disabled Veterans Business Alliance. Remember books make great gifts.

Here is what others are saying about the book “We Got Mojo! Stories of Inspiration and Perspiration”

“Great leadership is found in courageous acts in every corner of the Earth. This compilation of compelling stories from around the globe is a source of inspiration and insight.”

Frances Hesselbein, Founder & CEO, Hesselbein Institute and Recipient of the Presidential Medal of Honor.

“Every once in a while you find a leadership book that gets right to the point, revealing the grit, determination and generosity necessary to build a lasting legacy.”

Marshall Goldsmith, New York Times bestselling author and #1 executive coach in the Thinkers50.

“While my career has been focused on the intersection of business, law, and technology, my life has been a quest for knowledge, wisdom, and useful information. This book condenses the wisdom of many lifetimes into short, moving chapters that tell the unique story of an individual undertaking inspiring personal and professional journeys. Readers seeking success in business may find that being the hero of one’s own life story is the ultimate path.”

 

Miriam Rivera, Managing Partner and Co-founder Ulu Ventures; formerly Member Board of Trustees, Stanford University and Vice President/Deputy General Counsel, Google.

 

“We all want to be successful, so what better way to advance that ambition than by reading the intimate stories of those who have persevered and frequently had to overcome imposing challenges to achieve personal and professional success and happiness. I have had Raul Deju as a significant author for my business journal and can assure you that his We Got Mojo! book will inspire and guide you on your own success journey.”

 

James Kristie, Editor, Directors & Boards.

 

If you don’t believe you can do it, read a marvelous little book called The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, a New York Times best-seller written by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer, who came across the story while he was reporting in Africa covering the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

                        William was a very poor African farm boy born in Malawi, where Mary Tuchscherer, my colleague, teaches literacy and writing to young women. William had read about electricity and became passionate about the subject and passionate about what electricity could do to his very poor family. He then found some science books in a local library, used some scrap parts, and built a generator and a windmill from scratch. His neighbors called him misala, or crazy in the language of Malawi, but he did build his windmill and single-handedly was able to bring to his family both electricity and water using the power of the windmill.

His passion never stopped. In describing William’s accomplishment, Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of MIT Media Lab and the founder and chairman of One Laptop per Child, said “William Kamkwamba is an alchemist who turned misfortune into opportunity, opportunity beyond his own. The book is about learning by inventing. William’s genius was to be ingenious.”

This coming November read in my book “We Got Mojo” the stories of inspiration and perspiration  of my BFF. All of them won’t stop until their goals are achieve. Get your Mojo!

More to come.

 

            

      So what is success? Merriam Webster Dictionary defines success as “the fact of getting or achieving wealth, respect, or fame; the correct or desired result of an attempt; or someone or something that is successful: a person or thing that succeeds”.  Notice how easily in our society we tie “success” to “money, fame and social status”. Yet many of us know wealthy or famous people who are unhappy despite their riches. Is that really success? I say “No”. As for me I prefer my own definition of success “as having been able to take the steps to lead a happy life on this planet, with comfort, moral support, true values and a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.” As I enter my seventh decade I can more analytically reflect on the success I have had (by my definition), with some failures or better yet learning steps along the way. My coming book We Got Mojo! Stories of Inspiration and Perspiration reflects on the stories of 36 of us, our trials and tribulations as well as the successes that follow. In this blog we will regularly elaborate on many specific parts of our stories and invite readers to share their own stories with us as well as with readers of this blog. We encourage everyone to become an instant author. Send us blog-size snippets of your road to success, your definition of success, and how it has changed you.

The first 200 writers will get a special gift from the Lead Author of We Got Mojo! Raul Deju.

Send your material to rdeju@deju.net