Mark Cigos

Morning workout on a sunny day, less than 24 hours shy of May 1^st – you can’t help but notice the energy/enthusiasm in the air. The bodies moving, the iPods booming, weights being punished, legs burning up the machines. People are movin’, people are groovin’, they’re shakin’, their smilin’, they’re experiencing the essence of action, playing full out and enjoying life as they move in it.  

Not just in the gyms, or on the pavement, but in classrooms, boardrooms, arenas, stadiums, restaurants, courtrooms, city halls and more – people everywhere are movin’. They’re pushing the envelope, getting outside the box, growing, expanding, experiencing – living a life of meaning, movin’ to make a difference in our world. This movin’ is enabling people to do something bigger/something better – its dreams/creativity/action and innovation at its best.

Far too much have we put the constraints, ceilings, caps and limits on people – its time to bust loose in a big way, time to touch the sky and stop being shy. Move folks – move to what you believe in, move to what you love and move to the vision you have. You want to lose weight – move. You want to make a million – move. You want to write a book – move. You want to open that store – move. NOTHING HAPPENS WITHOUT MOVEMENT.

Nothing worthwhile happens overnight, but nothing ever happens at all without taking at least one step. Take that step, make that move.

I’m a little too much at times. So I’ve been told. And I agree. I’m either pegged as a caffeine junky, drug abuser or ADD-spaz. The great reality is – I’ve been like this since the day I was born. Full of life, full of energy, full of enthusiasm, and for some I’m sure, full of B.S.

I’ve heard it all before – what’s this guy so happy about? Where does he get the energy? Does he ever have a bad day? And, what drugs is he on and where can I get me some? I take it ALL in as a compliment. It’s me, it won’t change – it’s my personal brand, it’s my personal identity. It’s what makes me, me and it’s what brings added energy and enthusiasm into our world. Something I strongly believe we need more of.

We’re in short supply – in short supply of people who give a damn, in short supply of people who care and in short supply of what makes life fun, interesting and expanding. The majority of my best friends are beaming with energy, enthusiasm and a lust for life. They exercise, eat right, laugh, work hard, play hard, love right and more. They are my best of friends because they ride the same wave I enjoy traveling. We share a common unwritten goal that life is worth living full out – and when I speak full out, I mean energetic to the gills and enthusiastic to the nines.

But YOU can do something about this lack of supply. You can change the game. Do what you love, love what you do (how cliché?). Choose to be the better person in everything you move. Choose to laugh harder, smile more, exercise stronger, love deeper, walk with confidence and talk with interest. Add value to everything you do and add value to this world. Move yourself and move the people around you. Be someone who may lack the book smarts and intellectual intelligence, but invaluably lights up the room and a nation with their energy and enthusiasm. Someone who makes a difference by simply being themselves – for I so deeply believe that we all have that remarkable vibe within us – it’s just that this vibe has become dormant as life’s pressures weigh us down. Let’s shed that weight and revive that will – the will to energize and enthuse all that lives around us.

I can’t help but think at times, that if I would have done this and if I would have done that, where I’d ultimately be at this very moment in time. A right turn here, a risk taken there, a flight out of town that day, a call made late that night. Who knows? Who cares? I am where I am right now because it’s where I am right now. Nothing that has happened back then matters moving forward right now. Nothing that I have already done, means anything more than the fact that I am alive right now – living, breathing, laughing, thinking, writhing this blog for the world to share. Everything that moves past this very word, word -à is all that truly matters.

Where I’m at is where I’m at and where you’re at is where you’re at, so be happy about that. Know that what you’ve done is done. Powerfully know that what you can do and will do is ALWAYS up to you. Instill that most valuable knowledge that everything you do from this word you’re reading on -à is all up to YOU. It’s in your hands, it’s in your heart, it’s in your mind, it’s in your actions, it’s on your time.

Be happy with where you’re at. Don’t give time to what you’ve done – no matter if what you’ve done is great or bad – the reality is that it’s done. What you need to feed is that hunger inside. You need to fuel the fire within. Deeply know that nothing is sexier than an ambitiously hungry person. Someone movin’ and shakin’ to a higher beat. Someone wanting more from life, for their life. Someone with confidence that where they’re at is where they’re at, but where they know they can go, is entirely up to them.

Monday night was a rough one – had my wallet and my fiancée’s iTouch stolen. What a mess. This was a first for me and I didn’t like the feeling. I felt angered/frustrated/violated. So did she – her iTouch had all her contact’s info, photos for her business and more. Then last night, one phone call changed it all.

A gentleman called my cell around 5:30 yesterday evening to tell me that he had found my wallet AND my fiancée’s iTouch – can you believe it! We were both shocked! What are the chances that A) not just one, but both of these objects were recovered (together I might add) B) someone tossed a $400 iTouch and C) that someone had the decency to find these two items and take the time to call back the rightful owner/s. There is goodness in this world.

His story went down like this – he was driving downtown, and in front of him, some person in an SUV simply tossed them out their window. The gentleman stopped, picked up both of the items, saw my business cards in the wallet, and gave me a shout. Simple as that. One phone call made a dreary situation 180. It changed everything – and even more so, it proved with authority that there is greatness in this world.

To add to this series of events – we capped off the night with a Billy Joel concert here in town. For a guy knocking at 60’s door – he moves, sings, jokes, laughs and rocks like he’s a teenager in love with life. I loved it. Here’s a guy that after the failure of his band Attila, attempted suicide in late 1970 by drinking furniture polish. “It looked tastier than bleach,” he later revealed. Thank god he survived. The world needs more gents like Billy Joel.

All this to say, there is good, no pardon me, there is great in this world. People making that call when they don’t need to – people rocking the crowd and entertaining the world when they could be sitting at home watching TV and sippin’ cognac. The world truly moves in mysterious ways – but these ways are what makes our world a very unique and remarkable place to live, experience and appreciate. Life is great.

I have only one real/deep love in my life – my fiancée/my family. But I have many other loves in my life that also complete who I am and what I do. I was reflecting recently about what gets me up in the morning, what fills me with enthusiasm and excitement. Aside from waking up next to the most beautiful woman in the world – I get out of bed knowing that it’s the things I love doing and nothing else that move me forward full throttle along this journey called life.

What are your passions? What gets you moving to a higher beat? What would you gladly do for free? What would you do without hesitation with the time you are given on any particular day? What do you love?

I love people – I love my family, my friends, my customers, my colleagues. I love eating healthy/clean/international/new foods. I love to exercise – it energizes me, keeps me sharp/focused/alive. I love to travel the world (the airport is still my favorite place to be at) – meeting new people, trying new cuisine, experiencing different cultures, swimming in international waters I have never tested before. I love reading the right books – books that help me grow, books that enlighten me, educate me and enable me to write better, understand more and become a better person. I love to write – this is the one thing I could do all day without ever glancing at my watch. The one thing I would gladly do for free if there were no bills to pay or fortunes to leave behind for my future children, grandchildren and community.

What do you love? Aside from yourself what do you truly love? What ignites your days? What infuses your core? Make a list, check it more than twice – recall to paper what you do throughout your minutes/hours/days/weeks/months/year that helps you grow, that makes you feel alive and human. What brings meaning to your life and what gives you the ability to say with confidence that what you did with your time here on earth, was something that passionately mattered to you and that made this world a better place.

What an awesome weekend I just had – got to spend it with colleagues, customers, friends – attending the first ever UFC event in Canada, right here in my hometown of Montreal. Over 21,000 fans packed the Bell Centre in downtown Montreal Saturday night, to watch the world’s fastest growing sport and super league entertain non-stop for over 4 hours. I had the remarkable opportunity to attend and experience this event with some of the most important people in my life right now – people whom I have either known for years, and some of whom I have only met in the past year, but who have become a very integral part of my every day. This was supposed to be a business initiative – I say it was much more than that.

Let me explain a little deeper. I have always been a big believer that I am who I am – that there is no business Mark, no leisure-time Mark. I am simply Mark, all the time, every time. I intertwine all aspects and facets of my life. I enjoy the business I do, and I enjoy the customers/people I deal with. I am honest, I am sincere and I wear my heart on my sleeve. I am myself. Same goes with every other, we’ll call it category, in my life. Whether it be leisure time, volunteering within the community, time spent with family, friends, whatever – I am myself and that’s just how I’ve got to be.

I do mix business with pleasure because I love what I do. My customers feel that love, that passion and will be all the more inclined to be a part of what I am trying to achieve – both for me and for them. Same goes right here on my blog – I don’t try and write what I’m not, I write exactly how I think, how I speak and how I move. For whether it be a weekend out with colleagues, customers and friends, to my 6am training at the local YMCA – I incorporate fun into everything I do. I make sure as much as I can, that EVERYTHING I do is pleasurable – from the books that I read to the career that I chose.

For me it’s about choice – and I choose to enjoy everything that I do. This is not to say that hard work, sweat and tears will not be present – but when you move to something you love, desire and are so passionate about, no obstacle in this world will ever deter you from that chosen path.

Don’t tell me weather has nothing to do with people’s moods, spirits, energy and more. Don’t tell me that winning or losing has nothing to do with happiness, attitude, gratitude and more. And please don’t tell me that getting what you want or not, has nothing to do with how pleasant you are, cheerful, appreciative and much, much more.

The reality is for the great majority of us, when things are going our way, we’re all good. When they don’t – watch out. When the weather is nothing but sunshine and warm breezes, life is grand and smiles are all around. When your favorite team is winning game after game, there is no negative air, no trash talk, no booing. When the clean eating and rigorous exercise pays off and pounds start to shed, you feel rejuvenated, alive and bursting with energy and enthusiasm. But what happens on the flip side of all this positive energy? What happens when the tension in the air thickens, when things don’t go your way, when it’s snowing centimeter after centimeter and the thermometer drops even lower? When your home team is losing game after game and the playoffs are nothing but a forgotten season? Where are the lifted spirits, the high fives, the cheerful hellos and right/positive attitudes and mindsets?

And here lies the challenge of your lifetime – to fly high all the time. Regardless of where you’re at right now in your life – your attitude, your enthusiasm, your goals, your vision and you ability to move MUST be at a higher level. Everything in life starts at the bottom – but it’s the truly great ones and great things that move to the top with the right attitude and perseverance. It’s the ability and power to move to a higher altitude regardless of your circumstances and regardless of your environment.

How many have walked the line of death before making their life meaningful and inspiring? How many have hit rock bottom before they rose to the top of the world? How many continue to struggle day in day out, but remain positive, uplifted and never cease to smile and love every second of their life. This is living baby – this is flying high all the time. No matter what.

Thank you Kalina

I’ve had it up to here with procrastination. Nothing ever gets done with that mentality. I understand patience is important, producing great work equally crucial – but nothing in life is perfect. If your goal in life is perfection, you better pull up a comfy chair that has 2 cup holders and a built-in fridge.

I must have had writer’s block the past few days – cause man I was drawing blanks. Just couldn’t figure out what it was that I wanted to share with the world right here on my blog. Then it hit me – how about I tackle the very issue that’s killing my creative flow and write about it. So here we are. I took the leap, I felt better and I lived by the words of Branson.

Although my story may seem petty, it is simply a small example that can be applied to anything in life, no matter how little or how big. Its the ability and power to take the leap, move to something you want badly but are unsure of or scared of. Its devouring procrastination and coming to terms that perfection is never in the eye of the creator.

As I begin to write the manuscript for my first book, the only goal I have in my mind right now is to give it everything I’ve got. Pour it all out. Leave nothing on the table. Write like I have 24 hours to live, and care not what anyone thinks – just confidently know that what’s in your heart and in your mind will be moved to words. My work, those words, will move readers and will inspire them.

To finish of this post, I want you to know that I have struggled with taking the leap for many years now. Always looking for that next big business idea, that perfect workout program, the flawless organic diet. The truth is, although I’ve moved/made things happen a great deal and achieved more than I ever thought possible for a kid who didn’t go to college – the reality is I’ve probably left a lot on the table that could have been life changers. But dwelling on the past won’t encourage the leap.

Take the leap and love it. Give it everything you got and never look back. The outcome? No living person ever knows – that’s for you to decide and to enjoy along the journey.

I took the words above from an awesome song I heard over the weekend – they simply just stuck with me. Got me thinking deep about what/how I’m living right now – how this is the prime time of my life, how I should enjoy it, truly live it and take full out advantage of it. 

I could hear the thumping beats from that song in my head the entire weekend – and still now. Music is funny like that. It can truly move you to another place. It’s like reading a special book or seeing a special movie – you don’t just read and watch them, you experience them. You experience them and you are then moved by them. And so goes the title to this song. As the title was repeated throughout the song, all I could keep thinking was how true those words rang.

But you may ask, when is the prime time of my life? And that’s the beauty of it – the prime time is any time in which you want it to be. It’s a time where/when you feel that you have experienced your a-ha moment, perhaps an epiphany, a time where/when everything pauses, a time where you can see and understand what you were put here on this earth to do, your purpose in life. Time then unfreezes and you go out and live it – now. You could be 4 years old, or 104. There is no right time or wrong time – as long as there is a time before you leave this earth.

There is no better opportunity than now to go after that job you’ve always wanted, no better time than today to start eating better/cleaner and exercising more. There is no more perfect moment than now to start that business you dreamed about since graduating from college many years ago, and there is no more ideal time than right now to patch things up with your parents and live the right life with the ones who brought you into this world.

I’m not a doctor, a psychologist or some self help guru who has an endorsement from Oprah (although I would love to Oprah). I’m simply a human being that’s feeling the burning desire, the passion, to live my life full out right now. To move and to take full advantage of my prime time – for I’d rather start now than never. And that’s all these words meant to me – simple, but so effective. You’ve got one shot to live, why not live it. Now.

I won’t say much more today other than please watch this video clip by clicking right here.

Didn’t think it could ever happen, but I’m at a loss for words right now.