GET MOTIVATED!

I was able to go to this event on Monday and I really enjoyed the experience. I have been twice before when I was living in California but this was the first time that I was able to go to this event here in Texas. First off, I wish that I would have taken the train. It would have been a 2 hour train ride but I would have been able to sleep (which I needed), read or listen to my iPod. Instead I drove there and it was a nightmare. It was raining...again and I left early enough to beat Dallas traffic but when I got to Fort Worth it took me a half hour to get off the freeway and another half hour to get to the convention center. When I finally got to the venue there was no parking...anywhere! It took me an hour to find parking! Once inside I was able to get a seat in the over flow seating which was a bonus because not only was I near the stage but I was also about 15 feet from where the speakers came out from backstage. Sure enough after a while there were a lot of secret service agents in that area As the speakers came out to go and come from the stage I was able to see them up close. At the end of the event I made my way up to Keller and spent time with my In-laws and then got a haircut from Liz's niece, Amie. Needless to say I was very tired when I finally made my way home but ready to be a success in sales and cleaning up our personal finances.

Bush makes debut as motivational speaker at Fort Worth Convention Center



Posted Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009


By AMAN BATHEJA


abatheja@star-telegram.com


FORT WORTH — Joining the ranks of Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins and several past leaders of the free world, former President George W. Bush made his first foray into motivational speaking Monday at the Fort Worth Convention Center. "Every single day, I was honored to be your president by bringing honor and dignity to the office," Bush said to more than 11,000 people as the premier guest of the Get Motivated business seminar. Bush, who lives in Dallas, spoke in a relaxed tone about how he stands by the decisions he made as president and encouraged others to stick to their principles and live each day to its fullest. "It’s so simple in life to chase popularity, but popularity is fleeting," said Bush, who battled low approval ratings during his second term. "It’s not real." The former Texas governor was greeted warmly by the Metroplex crowd. "I was ready to put him back in office," said Richard Jones of Cleburne following Bush’s speech. Get Motivated is the latest incarnation of Peter and Tamara Lowe’s traveling convoy of celebrity-delivered entrepreneurial optimism, still strong after more than 20 years. The couple launched Tampa, Fla.-based Get Motivated Seminars Inc., after Success Events International shut down in 2001, owing millions in unpaid bills and facing complaints from attendees of false advertising. Before that, the Lowes’ daylong events had been held under other company names including Peter Lowe International, a nonprofit. Bush joins a long line of presidents, including his father, George H.W. Bush, who have spoken at Lowe seminars. Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford have all headlined Lowe’s events. Other Texans who have been a part of the series include former first lady Laura Bush and late Gov. Ann Richards. Other speakers at Monday’s event included long-standing Lowe speakers: former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Secretary of State Colin Powell and motivational speaker Ziglar. A spokesperson for Get Motivated would not say how much the company pays its speakers, but personal finance disclosure forms filed by Giuliani in 2007 during his presidential campaign showed that he was paid $100,000 per Get Motivated speech in 2006.

Sales pitches

Though tickets at the door were $225, most attendees paid far less, many as little as $4.95 a ticket. The low admission price was made up for in part by various pitches throughout the day for future investment seminars and tools. Real estate guru James Smith and investment adviser Phil Town promised in separate speeches that it’s easy to make money through investing.

They both offered attendees the chance to sign up for future investment seminars, discounted from thousands of dollars to under $100. Following each of their speeches, hundreds hurried to tables set up around the convention center where a small army of Get Motivated staff members were ready with stacks of order forms. "The investment opportunities — I felt like they were sales pitches," said Greta DeWitt of Arlington, who said she enjoyed hearing Bush and the other high-profile speakers. Michael Walker of Little Elm signed up for one of the follow-up investment events. "I thought the speakers made good points about the need for us all to create more financial stability," Walker said. While the advertisements for Monday’s event emphasized business success, a spiritual side popped up throughout the day. Several speakers made connections between Jesus or a higher power and more success at work or investing. "God has given you a new deck and a new deal, and you’re not willing to open it up," Smith said while speaking about how to improve credit scores. Bush also spoke about his faith, promising everyone in the audience that those who prayed for him and his wife while they lived in the White House made the first couple’s lives better. "From a personal perspective, I don’t see how you can be president without relying upon an almighty," Bush said. During a speech focused on how to motivate yourself and others, Tamara Lowe devoted the last few minutes to Jesus but warned the audience in advance so they could leave if they were uncomfortable. She said in an e-mail that the business seminars are not religious. "We do not prohibit our speakers from talking about any aspect of their lives, including spirituality," she said. "We give them the liberty to say anything that they think may benefit our audiences, and for some people that includes an expression of faith." Megan Brooks of Irving, who came to the event with others from her company, Eaton Corp., said she the event’s advertising did not prepare her for the spiritual talk, but she did not mind it. "I appreciate the morals they were talking about, but as far as the business side, I don’t see myself learning that much," Brooks said.

Veering into politics


A couple of speakers other than Bush veered briefly into politics Monday. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell praised Bush’s policies related to terrorism and foreign policy. "We are safer than we were before 9-11 because of President Bush," Powell said. John Walsh of America’s Most Wanted praised Bush for creating the National Sex Offender Registry and then sharply criticized President Barack Obama for not funding the Adam Walsh Act, named after his son.He urged people in the crowd to lobby their members of Congress.


AMAN BATHEJA, 817-390-7695

Here is a posting for the Dallas Morning News review: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/102709dnmetbush.44374f6.html