Today is one of my favorite holidays here in the United States – a day we celebrate our independence. Rwanda and the Philippines also celebrate their independence today and a number of nations have similar holidays throughout July.

Although most people in the US will spend today at barbeques and possibly check out parades and fireworks, it’s a great time to take a look at your life and think about freedom. Do you appreciate the freedom that you do have? Do you lack some of the freedom you desire? In addition to tyrannical governments, there are other things out there that can eat away at our freedom. A bad employer or boss from hell can certainly make you feel like a prisoner. As can an unhealthy relationship whether it be a spouse, significant other or family member. Even certain friendships can rob you of freedom.

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Okay, it’s time for another pet peeve of mine that has been rearing its ugly head in recent months. I can understand people using phrases like “unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’d know about …” in conversations with people they have rapport with. But lately, I’ve seen these snide remarks used in business situations.

In addition to publishing my own e-zine, I also subscribe to a number of others in the topics that interest me. In the last month or so, I’ve seen people use these idiotic and condescending phrases in their e-zines. First, people were using it in reference to Susan Boyle’s rise to stardom. Now people are using it to describe the news regarding the recent deaths of celebrities such as Michael Jackson, Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett.

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I’ve heard that the best way to double your success rate is to double your failure rate. The rationale is that if you have to fail a few times before you can have a success, you’ll get more successes if you have more failures. I think it works in some instances but in other cases can make your situation worse. Especially if you take it too literally.

Where it works:

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The King of Pop. Pedophile. Talented. Wacko Jacko. Everyone has an opinion of Michael Jackson – some loved him, some hated him. Although I wasn’t a fan of his music and found some of the things he did a bit odd and creepy, I certainly can appreciate his talent as a performer and admire the way he touched his fans. I remember when he went to court in 1993, people who he had never personally met waited outside willing to stick by him regardless of the outcome. Whether you love him or hate him, you have to admit that it’s pretty impressive how his fans truly loved him.

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I remember John and Kate Gosselin from their first documentary on the Discovery Channel. This was before they agreed to be the focus of a reality show – a decision that resulted in the recent unfortunate news that’s dominating the entertainment headlines. They seemed like a nice couple doing an amazing job despite a challenging lifestyle.

Before “John & Kate Plus Eight” Kate worked a couple shifts a week as nurse. John, in my opinion, did a great job handling the kids on his own given that he also held down a full time job. They were crammed in a small house, their financial future was uncertain and both parents were overtired and over-stressed.

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You have a lot to say and are enthusiastic about what you have to say, yet you’re lacking one key ingredient – no one can understand you because you mumble. You may mumble and not even be aware of it – although a good indicator is when people are always asking you to repeat yourself because they didn’t hear or understand what you said.

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In 2002, I took an acting class. I had always wanted to be on TV or in a movie and I figured that this would be a good place to start. What I didn’t realize at the time is how acting and public speaking can work together – the skills that you learn in one can help you in the other.

To be a good actor, you need to memorize your lines and make the audience believe that you are the person you’re pretending to be. To be a good speaker, you need to speak clearly and effectively to get your point across. Can you see how one can help with the other?

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