Portland, Ore. (PRWEB) October 02, 2012

What do successful business leaders such as Warren Buffet, Oprah Winfrey and Donald Trump have that many others dont? Profound success, fame and fortune, but how did they get there? They had a vision and a strategic plan.

Fortune 500 consultant John M. Hawkins says strategic planning is a key factor that many dreamers are missing. His new book, Building a Strategic Plan for Your Life and Business, allows readers to follow in the footsteps of notorious strategic thinkers by providing insight and instruction on how to create their own strategic plan.

This book is about helping people turn their dreams into reality, said Hawkins. Its about helping people reinforce their vision with simple tools that can make that dream come true.

By working alongside his father as a carpenters assistant in multi-million dollar homes, Hawkins learned at a young age that the secret to getting what you want is to build a strategic plan. In Building a Strategic Plan for Your Life and Business, Hawkins provides a detailed roadmap for success by teaching readers to:

Hawkins says his dad, a carpenter by trade and perfectionist at heart, ignited his passion for success. Now a dad himself, Hawkins hopes to pass along these values to his own children.

For more information, visit johnhawkins.blogspot.com.

Building a Strategic Plan for Your Life and Business By John M. Hawkins ISBN: 9781469746265 Approx. 214 pages Paperback 6x9 Retail price: $28.95 E-book price: $3.99 Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iUniverse

About the author John M. Hawkins has 17 years of business/consulting experience. He has helped Fortune 500 companies, small businesses and individuals achieve their short and long term goals. Hawkins graduated with a degree in business from the University of Portland. He is also the author of Affinity: Managing Java Application Servers. Hawkins lives in Oregon.

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Think Like a Millionaire, says Fortune 500 Consultant John Hawkins

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The Puffs brand has partnered with the Dress for Success organization to provide beauty and wardrobe makeovers for deserving women across the country, hosting a finale event here in the Big Apple. Celebrity make-up artist Jake Bailey and stylists from PANYC salon were on hand today to help women look and feel their best as they begin new chapters of their personal and professional lives.

Bailey was on site providing beauty makeovers to the women while sharing make-up tips and tricks that they will be able to use every day. Teaching everything from blending colors, gently removing excess shine, blotting lipstick and even applying mascara, Bailey and Puffs equipped each woman with the tools theyll need to put their best face forward long after the event.

Both Puffs and Dress for Success feel confidence is tied to beauty, said Laura Dressman, Puffs communications manager. Were honored to partner with such a wonderful organization and to have Jake, an expert in beauty, on hand to offer these women the services and information they need to feel confident no matter what they face.

Because Puffs believes every woman deserves to look in the mirror with confidence and feel beautiful, they launched a community on their Facebook page. Fans can encourage each other to look and feel their best, by sharing inspiring words on how they put their best face forward every day. Participation in the conversation offers fans the opportunity to donate to Dress for Success and make them eligible to win prizes.

Through these Puffs sponsored events, our women in San Francisco, Chicago and now New York have received an extra boost of confidence they need to put their best face forward as they re-enter the workforce, said Joi Gordon, CEO of Dress for Success Worldwide. Dress for Success will continue to work with these women to provide them with the tools they need to succeed both personally and professionally.

Puffs tissues have always been what people reach for when suffering from cold and allergy symptoms, but Puffs are designed with your entire face in mind. Whether caring for a cold, applying makeup, or making subtle touch-ups, Puffs tackles all of the things your face has to face throughout the day.

Now through October 12th, Puffs fans can upload their inspirational quotes, tips and stories to http://www.facebook.com/puffs. As fans submit their tip, Puffs will donate $1 per upload and a minimum of $100,000 to Dress for Success Worldwide to help promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women. Also, with every entry, fans are entered into a sweepstakes to win one of 60 Procter & Gamble beauty baskets as well as a grand prize trip to New York City for a beauty makeover.

Each submission is hosted on a gallery within the tab where Puffs fans can gain confidence through the inspiring words of others in their community and fans are encouraged to post their own quotes, tips or stories that show support of the Puffs Facebook community and the women of Dress for Success.

About Puffs

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Puffs® Partners with Dress for Success to Help Women Put Their Best Face Forward

POSTED AT 11:32 PM ON Sep. 30, 2012

Gyros, pita chips and feta cheese are just a few staples of Mediterranean cuisine IU graduate Shadi Khoury serves throughout Indiana.

Khoury graduated from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs in 2011 and now owns In a Pita, a Mediterranean food truck business.

He runs the business out of Indianapolis.

Students who went to GLOWfest this month may have seen him peddling pitas out of his electric blue 1987 Chevrolet box truck.

My personal favorite is the falafel, Khoury said. But the honey and feta pita chips are pretty darn good, too. Sweet, salty, crunchy, soft, its a party in your mouth.

Khoury, whose parents own a Mediterranean restaurant in Indianapolis, said deciding on a business plan was easy.

It seemed like a dream to own my business and sell food because I love to cook, he said. And I was born into the cuisine.

But running the business, Khoury said, isnt as easy as dreaming up an idea. He said operating a food truck is risky. Its always a gamble picking what special events to go to, because he said he never knows how many people will show up or what the weather will be like.

A lot of people assume that having a food truck is so easy, that you just park, sell food and then you are a millionaire, Khoury said. Thats definitely not the case.

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IU grad finds success with start-up pita business

Kat Gee admits to being "very green" when she kick-started her jewellery business Kagi.

The year was 2006, she was 24, full of great ideas for design, and leapt in to a world dominated by old men, old thinking and gold and diamonds.

Over the years Gee has had to pull on her large stores of inner strength to develop the business, especially when she began to face unsustainable losses when her business loan ran out.

It was at that point she sat down and crunched the numbers, while looking at the company's core competencies and what people loved about the product.

She developed an innovative and cost-effective approach to jewellery, such as asking "why pay silver's high prices when stainless steel looks like silver, is more resistant and durable and under half the price".

With help from her successful entrepreneurial father Bill Gee (who founded garaging company Spanbild), fashion consultant Dianne Ludwig, her fiance Geoff Neil, and others, she formed several key philosophies.

These have included being truly customer focused, pre-testing designs and strategies before release, sticking to a small range of 150 bestsellers, and pricing the jewellery affordably.

Jewellers were resistant to Kagi's affordable price points and feared it would cannibalise their stock. However, Gee and her team won over the retailers and became many stores top performing brand.

The business, based in Newmarket, Auckland, has grown phenomenally quickly. Kagi was placed in the 2011 Deloittes Fast 50, and recently ran a show at NZ Fashion week. Gee was a finalist in the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2012.

Kagi is distributed in 220 stores across Australasia, and intends to be in 250 stores by March next year.

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Success sparkles after testing start

When Mitt Romney's wife, Ann, was diagnosed with breast cancer in late 2008, one of the people who reached out to the couple was newly elected President Barack Obama.

It was one of the few personal interactions between Obama and Romney.

"He was kind enough to call our home when my wife was ill, and he said that he and Michelle had my wife in their prayers," Romney said in an interview after the call. "I said, 'Mr. President-elect, Ann and I have you in our prayers'. And we do."

Even as their political fates have become more entwined, Obama and Romney have had little opportunity to connect directly. In fact, when the Democratic president and the former Republican governor of Massachusetts stand alongside each other during Wednesday night's presidential debate in Denver, it will be their first face-to-face meeting in nearly five years.

"I don't really know him well," Obama said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I think Gov. Romney obviously has achieved extraordinary success with his businesses, and he's obviously very focused on achieving the presidency. He cares deeply about his family, and I think he cares deeply about his faith."

Romney has had similarly kind words about the president as a father and family man. But most of their descriptions of each other during the campaign are far less complimentary, and that probably will be the case in the debate.

Romney accuses the president of having "more European than American" views. Obama says Romney has written off half the country.

The two do have a few similarities. They're both graduates of Harvard Law School; Romney also has a business degree from the Ivy League university. Each is a multimillionaire, though Romney's estimated $250 million fortune far exceeds Obama's net worth of about $12 million.

When people get one of their first looks at the rivals standing side by side Wednesday, they'll see a Republican who is 14 years older and an inch taller than the 51-year-old president, who stands 6-feet-1.

Obama and Romney first met in 2004 at a gathering of Washington's political and media elite. Romney, then governor, and Obama, a senator-elect from Illinois, were picked by the Gridiron Club to deliver speeches at a black-tie dinner. The private event's festive atmosphere, however, meant their dueling speeches were more about cracking jokes than outlining their policy differences.

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Obama, Romney: Rivals With Little Personal History

TORONTO, Sept. 29, 2012 /CNW/ - For some, being born a double arm amputee might be considered an obstacle, but not for Stephen Hann. Today (Saturday September 29) at 1 pm in Prince Ballroom South of the Westin Prince Hotel (900 York Mills Road), Stephen will tell his success story to multiple amputee children - or "Super Champs" - attending The War Amps 2012 Multiple Amputation Seminar.

Stephen was enrolled in CHAMP and attended many seminars, later giving back as a Junior Counsellor. In today's session, he will describe with candour and humour how he overcame his amputations and explain to young Super Champs that with the help of family, friends and CHAMP, they can too! Stephen currently works as a retirement specialist in Prince Edward Island.

Media are also welcome to attend the following sessions today, or interviews with the "Super Champs" can be arranged at any time:

SOURCE: War Amps

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"Super Champ" graduate motivates young multiple amputees with Success Story At War Amps Toronto Seminar

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_dGhmLPCoc

27-09-2012 05:29 Since joining from Benfica in 2010, Angel di Maria couldn't have wished for a much better first two years at Real Madrid. The Argentine international won the Copa del Rey in his first season and helped Real to La Liga glory earlier this year. The 24-year-old, who's recently extended his contract at the Bernabeu until 2018, played a big part last season with seven goals and 16 assists. And he puts most of that success down to one man - head coach Jose Mourinho. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) ANGEL DI MARIA Real Madrid "The day he told me to come I was at the World Cup and I was not doing very well but he kept trying, and I think most of what I am doing here is thanks to him and I try to repay that with hard work every day." Real haven't had the best start to the defence of their league title with only two wins from five. But after all the domestic success di Maria has enjoyed, could this be the time to win that elusive UEFA Champions League? SOUNDBITE (Spanish) ANGEL DI MARIA Real Madrid "I wish, I wish. The fist year with Mourinho we won La Copa, then La Liga, and I wish this year we are able to win not only the Champions. We are going to fight for every title because we are Real Madrid and that is what we have to do, and we'll see what we get." Madrid's biggest rivals Barcelona have had an impressive start this year. But despite five league wins from five, Barca forward Alexis Sanchez isn't getting carried away just yet. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) ALEXIS SANCHEZ Barcelona "We've got an ...

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Di Maria praises Mourinho for personal success - Video

ATLANTA It's a brilliant blue September afternoon, and the mood around the Turner Field batting cage is loose. The Braves have just clinched yet another postseason berth, and all is right in the world as they play out the regular season. Terry Pendleton, the 1991 NL MVP, is here tossing a baseball, a few steps from John Schuerholz, the architect of the Braves' record run of postseason appearances. All-Star outfielder Ron Gant is nearby, and somewhere in the depths of the stadium, Chipper Jones is talking to a local radio station about What It All Means. Pearl Jam's "Evenflow" is blaring over the stadium PA, and if you squint hard really hard, because Turner Field didn't even exist when "Evenflow" was released you can imagine that it's the early '90s again

Chipper Jones has made the playoffs in 14 of his 19 seasons with the Braves. (AP)But it's 2012. Terry Pendleton is a coach tossing batting practice. John Schuerholz has ceded the general manager's office, and his once-black hair is now full-on gray. Ron Gant is in a suit, preparing to broadcast the ballgame for a local network. And the line of flags commemorating Atlanta's postseason appearances stretches the length of the high-end luxury club that would have been unthinkable way, way back in 1991.

Only Chipper Jones is still playing ball, the last remaining link to one of the great, if underachieving, dynasties in baseball history. Fittingly enough, his career will end the way it began: a Braves trip to the postseason.

It was a simple play, really; the proverbial "doesn't-show-up-in-the-box-score" move that speaks volumes.

Twenty-two years ago, Jones was one of dozens of ballplayers sweating in the rookie league in Bradenton, Fla. He was surrounded by players headed up, players headed down, players headed nowhere at all. On this day, he was at first base with one out in the inning. The batter hit a sharp grounder to the first baseman, who reasonably enough stepped on first to get the runner and fired a throw to second, presumably to nail Chipper with 30 feet to spare.

[Related: Chipper Jones' 10 best "Natural" moments]

But things didn't work out that way. Chipper had deked toward second and walked casually back to first after the ball was gone. The first baseman could have tagged the kid out if he'd just looked, but Jones, just weeks out of high school, had outthought everybody on the field.

"You don't see this kind of instinct in the Rookie League," former Braves coach Bobby Dews later told Schuerholz. "In my entire baseball career, I'd only seen the play twice before. Once by Mickey Mantle and once by Pete Rose."

"This is a guy, who as a youngster, demonstrated great physical ability," Schuerholz said recently, "but more importantly, the uncanny ability to be better in tough situations, to deliver the goods when the game was on the line, when the circumstances were the most difficult and the pitcher was the best he had faced all day. He demonstrated at a very young age that he could succeed."

"Oh, we all knew about Chipper," laughed Gant, who was just entering his prime when Atlanta drafted Jones in 1990. "We'd hear about what he was doing in the minors. First time I met him was at batting practice. He was swinging this little toothpick bat, and I said, 'Kid, you need to be swinging a man's bat.' I gave him one of my 36-[inch], 33-[ounce] bats, and he's been using it ever since."

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As Chipper Jones bids farewell, he leaves behind legacy of success

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Sept. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --StockCross Financial Services recently hosted Golf For a Cure at the Trump National Golf Club, Los Angeles. StockCross and the Associates for Breast and Prostate Cancer Studies (ABC's) are a long time partner and fundraiser for the John Wayne Cancer Institute. This was the first time StockCross and the ABC's have hosted a golf event and judging by the support of their generous sponsors and golfers they look forward to hosting the event again in 2013. Together the partnership has raised over $12 Million dollars year to date and the latest event supports the effort which includes a Black Tie Gala "Talk Of the Town" and a Mother's Day Luncheon honoring cancer survivors and doctors.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100316/LA71656LOGO-b)

"We take pride in our partnership with the ABC's and supporting the talented women and men at JWCI," said Eric Tassell, Senior Vice President of StockCross Corporate Services. "I'm thankful for the generous support of our sponsors and team, everyone pulled together to make this an outstanding event."

A memorable day of golf with 80 degree weather and sunshine, celebrities in attendance included actress and model Nicky Whelan, actress and model Bria Murphy, actor Bill Smitrovich, actor Kevin Dobson, actor Bob Cotanzo, actor Joe Torrey, Lakers great Mitch Richmond, NBA star Pooh Richardson, NFL star Billy Miller, NBA Star Thomas Robinson, NBA Stars Marcus and Markeiff Morris, StockCross owners David and Richard Gebbia.

There were over 100 golfers participating in the inaugural event with the winning team led by Shervin Mirahshemi, shooting 15 under par. This year's sponsors include AEG, Ken and Carol Shultz, Wells Fargo Private Bank, Rival Sports Management Group, Plaza Home Mortgage, Tosh Classic, Incapital, the Grill on the Alley, Anheuser-Busch, Leblon Cachaca, Mercedes-Benz Calabasas, Nathaniel James and EASi.

About StockCross Financial Services

StockCross was founded in 1971 in downtown Boston's financial district and over the years has grown into one of the premiere international financial services companies.

StockCross today is headquartered in Beverly Hills, with offices in major cities nationwide. Our robust online platform serves individual and corporate investors coast-to-coast and around the world, while we continue to offer the personal, one on one attention and service our clients expect and deserve.

Our goal is to exceed the expectations of our clients, while holding true to our values of honesty, integrity, trust and respect.

StockCross' formula for success from 1971 remains unchanged today: get to know our customers as well as we know the market, and provide them with the resources and expertise they need to make educated investment decisions.

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Golf For A Cure Benefitting John Wayne Cancer Institute A Smashing Success

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Autodesk, Inc. (ADSK) has named BMC a leader in the Turkish automotive industry as the September Autodesk Inventor of the Month for using Autodesk Inventor 3D CAD software as part of Autodesk Product Design Suite to improve design and production processes at its main plant in Izmir, Turkey.

These productivity enhancements allow the company to more efficiently produce a wide range of vehicles from light and heavy trucks, to buses and military vehicles which are supplied to international as well as local markets, helping BMC move towards becoming a global brand.

During R&D and design stages, the company uses 3D modeling, visualization and simulation applications included in Autodesk Product Design Suite Ultimate 2013 and Autodesk Product Design Suite Premium 2013. In addition, BMC utilizes AutoCAD LT 2013 for 2D drafting and detailing, as well as Autodesk Revit Architecture for architectural design purposes.

In todays competitive market, 3D modeling is an indispensable tool, said Cuneyt Targotay, Chief Information Officer at BMC. Autodesk, with its ongoing technology development, fulfills all our expectations in the best possible way.

Delivering Better Products Through Digital Design

BMC worked with Autodesk Gold partner CADBIM to identify areas where the array of digital prototyping tools and functionality within Autodesk Product Design Suite could benefit its product design workflow.

To start, BMC is able to more easily identify potential assembly problems or interferences between product parts during the digital modeling phase by using Autodesk Inventor software. Sophisticated simulation and analysis tools, such as the plastic injection molding simulation and finite element analysis (FEA) features in Autodesk Inventor Professional software, help to further optimize the design process.

Once a product part or assembly is complete, Autodesk Product Design Suite also plays an important role in helping to create molds that are free of defects the first time around. Mold creation is one of the most costly processes for manufacturing companies.

The company estimates that its comprehensive approach to visualization and simulation has already brought important benefits. Whereas designers used to spend three to four days on design revisions, they can now produce a complete design within a day. Additionally, revision demands during the production stage are reduced because defects can more easily be identified beforehand on computer screens helping to reduce time-to-market cycles.

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Autodesk Product Design Suite Helps Position Turkish Auto Company for Global Success