2006 is Knocking at the Door...

In this blog I’m doing a review of 2005.  I started the year in a beautiful Hacienda in

Mexico

with my 2 older brothers and our respective families.  We had a blast and I always enjoy spending time with my family, unfortunately the aggie football team started the year just as it ended it (losing).  January through march the highlight was my training sessions on 6 sigma, I must admit that it is an extremely good methodology, but one has to be committed to succeed.  Spring break was uneventful and we did not do much, actually I spend the break at home putting a new door that goes to the backyard.  In may I was very fortunate to be able to travel to

Boston

, I had never been in

Boston

and it was a really awesome trip, I got to visit MIT and Harvard, so what else can I add?  The summer I got to take my 2 oldest kids to

Mexico

for about 10 days.  We had a really nice visit and again it was too short.  The highlight of this trip was the hassle to deal with the Mexican immigration authorities.  In Latin countries you find great hospitality, and an amazing entrepreneurial spirit, unfortunately this came with a price tag for me.  On the way back the authorities accused me of entering the country illegally, and made it very difficult for me to return, it was thanks to one of my mother’s friends that I was able to get back on time.  The next big thing and probably the event of the year for our family was the birth of our daughter, unfortunately this came at a time when we were trying to deal with the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.  As always this tragedy came to teach us that our life is very fragile, and also made us think about all the blessings we have.  You can check my blogs during august and September where I wrote some pieces about the hurricane.  After Katrina and the birth of my daughter came Katrina’s cousin, Rita.  This time Rita headed straight to

Houston

and we had to evacuate.  I also learned from this experience, to be honest when I left the house I did not think I would see my house standing when I got back, it was almost as a dream, a bad one of course.  If you listened or watched the news, you saws people trying to make it out of

Houston

and traveling 10 miles in 8 hours.  We were fortunate to make the trip to

College Station

(a distance of 90 miles from our house) in less than 2 hours.  We left early enough and knew all the back roads so we were not caught in the mess.  In October I got to travel to

Amsterdam

, and I also learned many things. 

Chicago

was my last trip in early November, where I got to have dinner with my former boss and had a nice visit.  As I sit in front of my computer typing this blog I think back about the many blessings and accomplishments in 2005, and also thinking about how to make 2006 even better.

I have many things to be thankful for, and as promised finally I have compiled my list of the best books I read in 2005, I read many books and may have forgotten about some, but not the good ones, here’s the list:

“Hot Commodities,” excellent book by Jim Rogers on how we are in the middle of a commodities bull market and tells you how to profit from it.

“The Bull Hunter,” this is another excellent book, the central theme is how there is always a bull market happening in the world and also teaches you how to take advantage of it.  I find this book very interesting as it gives a different perspective on how to make money outside the

US

.

“The Demise of the Dollar,” by Addison Wiggins, this book is very sobering and gives a picture about the state of our economy and how this is going to play in the near future.

“Freakonomics,” by Steven Levitt, this book deals with the economics behind strange events, highly recommended and very light reading, you could even read it in a weekend.

“The Magic of Thinking Big,” this is a great book if you want to improve yourself and be able to achieve what you set your eyes on.  This may be the best motivational book I have read, as a matter of fact I just bought the audio book so I can keep listening to it and keep reminding myself of the power of thinking.  It has many quotes, but one that caught my attention is when the author talks about failure, he says that “The way you think after you lose will determine how long it is until you win.”

“Fewer,” this book talks about world demographics and how this phenomenon is about to change our world in the next 50 years. 

“Just One Thing,” by John Mauldin, he’s an excellent author and individual, and if you are wise you will listen and analyze his advice.  This book is the compilation of 12 chapters written by some of his friends, every chapter is full of wisdom.

“Beyond Entrepreneurship,” this book by Jim Collins is full of excellent advice for those of you with an entrepreneurial heart. 

“Automatic Wealth,” by Michael Masterson, this book is also a must read, it is not a get quick scheme, it guides you through a disciplined plan to acquire wealth, and life a more balanced life in general.

“The Millionaire Mindset,” by Mike Summey, this book is very inspirational, and you will enjoy it greatly if you aspire to financial independence.

“Joy at Work,” by Dennis Bakke.  I read this book half way through the year and found it to be an excellent lesson on how a company can be a great place to work.  The author has a very unorthodox (for current society standards) view on how a company has to be run and how to provide a meaningful job to every employee, do yourself a favor and read it, it will change the way you see your own company.

“Getting Entrepreneurial,” I bought this book while visiting Harvard, this book again is a must read if you aspire to one day be your own boss.

“Empire of Debt,” by Bill Bonner, you definitively have to read this book, if we aspire to a better nation, and to keep the status that we have achieved, you must read this book, it is doom and gloom, I do not know if it will turn out the way the authors perceive it, but it is better to be prepared in any event.

“No Excuses,” by Kyle Maynard, this book is written by an amazing young man for whom there are no obstacles in life, he was born without limbs (no arms, no legs), and went on to become a great wrestler, if you want to stop feeling sorry for yourself and start acting read this book.

“Starting from Scratch,” this book is written by a former participant of Trumps show “The Apprentice,” I must admit I was not too keen on this book, but I was very pleased after I finished reading it, it talks about some entrepreneurs and how they made it from scratch.  If you want to find a reason about how you can start your own business, this is your book.

“Action, Nothing Happens until Something Moves,” by Robert Ringer, as much as I would like to tell you that your thoughts will make you successful, this is not true if you do not act upon them, read this book and get off your butt and act on your ideas.

“Attitude is Everything,” do I need to say anything else?

“Success is a Decision,” Needless to say, this book written by current college basketball coach Rick Pitino shows you how success does not happen randomly and you could make it happen for you through hard work and determination.

“The Millionaire Next Door,” this book is a classic and a must read if you aspire to accumulate any kind of wealth, they say that if you want to fly with the eagles, do not swim with the ducks, so if you want to be a millionaire you’d better listen to what they have to say, and what they do.

“The Future for Investors,” by Jeremy Siegel, he’s an authority in investing and economics, you’d better listen to what he has to say, he shares a wealth of investing wisdom and financing advice, if you are a serious investor you ought to read this book.

I’m sure I’m leaving out many more good books I have read this year but these are the ones that I consider to be outstanding.  I hope you enjoyed this blog, I would like to thank you for reading my blogs and for keeping up with my thoughts, I hope you were able to gain at least one useful tidbit that made you more successful, or made you see life in a different way.  I may write a small piece tomorrow but do not guarantee so.  If I don’t see you, have a great time and best wishes in 2006.

Remember: “Success in Life Offers Many Roads”