Today is the first anniversary of the birth of this blog. I chose to celebrate an anniversary instead of a birthday because if my parents, Mark and Dorothy Murakami, were still living, it would’ve been their 66th wedding anniversary. I’ve had so much fun in the past year writing this blog and I appreciate everyone who has paused to read my blog. I’ve met some wonderful people and even met two of my California readers in person! How awesome is that?!

Through this experience, I’ve found a special passion for Alzheimer’s and now run  two blogs. You will see more guest bloggers in this blog, amazing seniors I’ve met through a networking group that I co-founded, Women’s Network of Springfield. I know you’ll enjoy their blog posts.

This is the time of year when we think about the many things we are grateful for. Did you know that there’s a science to happiness? Research suggests that gratitude makes us happier and is the key to a longer and more successful life. Robert A. Emmons, PhD, professor of psychology, University of California, Davis, has written a book on the science of gratitude: Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier.

So from the bottom of my heart, I extend my deepest gratitude to all of you and a very special and Happy Thanksgiving!

Welcome back! With Thanksgiving over, have you gotten off your ‘hind and started walking? Doesn’t it feel good to just move? Perhaps you’ve noticed things around you that you’ve never noticed before. It doesn’t cost a penny. Have you thanked someone recently? Again, it doesn’t cost a cent.

Your head would have to be buried in the sand to not know that our economy is in a sad state of affairs. Hundreds of thousands of people have been laid off or in some cases offered an early retirement package. Personally, I did not know anyone who lost a job … until last week. And a couple of weeks ago, I lost two friends to cancer … women in pre-retirement and retirement. Women who had a zest for life and had their lives cut short.

Do you have dreams? Or do you just daydream? According to Dream Coach Marcia Wieder, dreams are the aspirations, goals, and hopes that you most want for yourself, your family, friends, and business associates. Achieving your dream, she says, is a three step process:
1. Clarify what you want. What are you passionate about?
2. Write it down.
3. Share your dream with others.

My dream is to establish an educational foundation in memory of my parents: The Mark and Dorothy Murakami Educational Foundation. Its purpose is to give scholarships every year to undergraduate students. One will be in the field of elementary education. Mom wanted to be a third grade teacher, but her family could not afford to send her to college. Dad wanted to be an attorney, but World War II broke out when he was a first year law student and he never went back to law school. Instead, he became an entrepreneur in the field of insurance. Coincidentally, my son recently partnered with another attorney and they opened their own law firm, Hixson Nagatani LLP, and his wife is a third grade teacher.

Unlike many foundations that are funded through donations and fund raisers, this one will be funded via a network marketing business (a.k.a. MLM). It’s taken a lot of research to find a right combination of great products and a great compensation plan. In the process of researching, I came across a group called Mentoring for Free. In my last company, I thought I had chosen a company with great products and I liked the fact that I could understand their compensation plan … until Mentoring for Free asked me the $10K question. That was an eye-opener. Here is the question: How many distributors and customers on autoship do you need to make $10K/month? I was appalled at the huge number. They told me it wasn’t my fault that I wasn’t making any money and they explained the different kinds of compensation plans. What an education that was. So, I decided to join them as a Mentor and Coach and now I help others in any network marketing or direct sales company around the world.

If you are not familiar with the network marketing model, get a free report on why Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki recommend network marketing. And if you are familiar with network marketing, but not achieving the success you had hoped for, download a free e-book called “Success in 10 Steps” and you will find out why it’s not your fault as well as be introduced to many golden nuggets.

What is your dream? I invite you to share it with others.