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A few weeks ago there was some shocking news. Matt Cutts, Google’s long-time Czar of Organic Search, informed via a blog post that his wife had passed away suddenly. She wasn’t sick. There were no signs of health problems. He was on a business trip, and she was visiting her parents. She just stopped breathing. This isn’t going to be a post for you to run out and hug those that you love because you never know when they will leave you. No. I’ve made it clear in older posts that those that mean the most to you should already know how fucking awesome you think they are. No, this…

I have jokenly said that my last words on this earth will be, “That doesn’t look so hard. Here, hold my beer.” Okay, that sounds like more of a bad decision, but when ever I hear someone say, “That is a bad idea” I simply say this.

“Work Smarter – Not Harder” It’s one of the most used and misunderstood statements in business and in life. It was once associated with the lazy, who used the statement as a crutch to disguise their poor work ethic. Is there truth to it? Absolutely. There’s certainly merit in stopping trying to do everything yourself. Where it gets interesting is when you stop the useless act of improving your weaknesses. As my grandfather once said, focus on making your strengths stronger and forget about your weaknesses – hire out for that stuff. Or, something like that. Don’t know what your strengths and weaknesses are? Take my Motivation Factor test. In 12 minutes you will figure…

I’ve been in this business a long time and have seen a lot of people start and quit because they hold onto the thought that, “If this doesn’t work, there will be another opportunity.”

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and I refer to it as “Forced Affection Day” – that is fact. And every year the same situation unfolds. Nearly every woman in the western world is swooning, and nearly every man is groaning. For good reason. It is a “holiday” set up for failure. It’s due to unrealistic expectations. The overpriced roses, candy, and teddy bears. It could be an Olympic sport seeing the men dashing to the store on their way home from work to pick up the needed “provisions” to stay out of the proverbial doghouse. But odds are, despite their good intentions, they will fall short of expectations and wind up…

The drama of life will happen. It is part of life. However, you may not be aware that you manufacturer most of it. Think I’m full of it? Okay, try this exercise and tell me how things look in just a week.

Since it’s Super Bowl week, a football story is fitting. Back in the ‘90s, there was a powerful running back out of Michigan named LeRoy Hoard. If you’ve never heard of him, that’s okay; his career wasn’t spectacular. And no, it had nothing to do with the fact he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns. ;) After six years in Cleveland, he was cut after two games in 1996, the season the Browns moved to Baltimore and became the Ravens. Carolina signed him, and he lasted just three games with the Panthers before being cut. It seemed his career was over. When Minnesota called, he decided he needed to change…

2018’s inaugural episode of SEO and Beer has landed! Jerry West and Michelle MacPhearson talk new year resolutions, dream boards, Oprah and dating.

So this is where I get personal. Through this series, it has been all about unfucking your life, and much of the advice I’ve given you has come from my own personal experience.

Imagine for a moment you are the ruler of an independent state, literally the size of a major city, and you have dedicated more than three decades of your life building it from a backwater fishing port to one of the key economic players in the world. You learn that the primary source of economic prosperity is being jeopardized by a union strike. What would you do? Would you cave to their demands, so the millions of lives you govern do not suffer and the millions you have spent in advertising do not go to waste? What would you do? If you answered “Nothing,” then you would be on par…