Bud Bilanich

Precious is a tough movie to watch.  It is the story of a 350-pound illiterate teenage girl.  She is pregnant for the second time.  But as she says at one point in the film, "I never even had a boyfriend."  Her father abused her sexually and is the father of her children.  She is verbally and physically abused by her mother.  Nobody likes Precious.  She is obese and has little or no self confidence.  But a couple of people give her hope. When the school Principal learns that Precious is pregnant, she helps her get into a special school.  There,...

"What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God." Eleanor Powell Eleanor Powell was a well known dancer and actress who appeared in many musicals in the 1930s and 1940s.  She was a good dancer, but an amazing tap dancer.  In her day, she was known as "the world's greatest tap dancer." I love her quote; it gets at the heart of self confidence and commitment to taking personal responsibility for your life and career success.  God (or the universe, if you are so inclined) gives each of us certain talents and abilities.  It is...

The term "mentor" comes from The Odyssey.  Odysseus entrusted the care of his son, Telemachus, to Mentor when he set out to fight the Trojan War.  The best mentors will help you learn and grow by sharing their knowledge and wisdom with you.  In this way, you can benefit from their experience without having to suffer the consequences of gaining that experience firsthand. Mentors are positive people by definition.  It takes a positive person to give of himself or herself to help another learn, grow and succeed. I have been fortunate to have had several mentors in my life and...

Failure truly is the tuition you pay for career success. Katina Solomon at OnLineCollege.org has created a list of "50 Famously Successful People Who Failed at First." These people come from all walks of life. But they shared one characteristic in common - the commitment to their own career success. Katina has graciously allowed me post her list here: 50 Famously Successful People Who Failed at First Not everyone who's on top today got there with success after success. More often than not, those who history best remembers were faced with numerous obstacles that forced them to work harder and...

Each year in January, the National Western Stock Show comes to Denver and takes over the town.  The Stock Show is a Denver tradition.  It features the highest paying indoor rodeo in the world.  Farmers and ranchers from all over the Midwest and West come to view the exhibits and see the latest in farm machinery and veterinary technology.  Kids exhibit the animals they?ve raised.  McDonald?s purchases the prize steer.  The young man who raised this year?s winner won $50,000 for his efforts.  Cowboys flock to the local bars and restaurants.  All in all, it?s a pretty cool thing ?...

Recently, the Ask Amy column in The Denver Post had an interesting piece from a small business owner.  Here is what this small business owner had to say. Dear Amy: I am trying to get through to people and teenagers how to apply for jobs and how to keep the job once they get it.I own a small deli and grocery store, and I have tried to hire and keep good help.  People show up wearing short tops baring their midriffs, and rings in their noses, eyebrows, lips and belly buttons.They often have very poor hygiene.  Employees take calls from...

"Give so much time to building your self confidence and improving yourself that you have not time to criticize others." Abraham Maslow I know that I have a lot to learn.  There are many things about me I can improve.  I?m just guessing here, but I bet that?s true for you too.  That?s why I choose to focus on improving me rather than criticizing others.  I?m not a real religious guy, but I do remember a few bible stories.  There?s one where people are gathered to stone a woman who is accused of adultery.  Jesus disperses the angry crowd by telling...

There are quite a few good tests to find your hidden motivations. I am most familiar with the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the DISC.  Both of these are based on Jungian psychology and provide you with an easy to understand framework for getting to know yourself. I believe that we can all benefit from gaining a better understanding of ourselves ? what turns us on, what turns us off, what motivates us, etc.  However, I think that the real benefit is in using this knowledge to better understand other people. If you understand other people ? what turns them...

Stuff happens: good stuff, bad stuff, frustrating stuff, unexpected stuff.  Humans are the only animals with free will.  That means we ? you and me ? get to decide how we react to every situation that comes up.  That?s why taking personal responsibility for yourself and choosing to respond positively to the negative stuff that happens to you is so important. Personal responsibility means recognizing that you are responsible for your life and the choices you make. It means that you realize that while other people and events have an impact on your life, these people and events don?t shape...

I?d like to begin with three quotes.  The first is from T.E. Lawrence ? the Lawrence of Arabia guy.      ?All men dream, but not equally.  Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity.  But the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible.? The second is from my favorite playwright, George Bernard Shaw.      "This is the true joy in life, being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one;...