"No, I couldn't do that," he replied. "So many times things get delayed for reasons outside of my control."

"What do you mean, then, by 'guaranteed'?"

"Never mind, then. Strike that out. We couldn't give people their money back every time an appraisal was late."

He'd come close to landing his business in serious trouble. The word "guarantee," like word "free," has a specific meaning that Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general enforce. Without any explicit qualifiers attached, "guarantee" means that customer has right to a 100 percent refund if product or service disappoints them -- no "ifs," "ands" or "buts."

Further, because of well-known strength of word, a guarantee holds a powerful potential to increase business. I explained to appraiser that an on-time guarantee would probably boost his business enough to cover occasional refund. We then restated his guarantee to read, "We guarantee that we'll deliver your appraisal by promised time, or it's free." He'd cover his flanks by being careful about promises he made.

Like a sharp knife, guarantees can cut through a prospect's skepticism and fears. Handle them with care, but include them in your business's toolbox.

We battle with dragons. We grapple with demons. With emotional and psychological monsters.

Ages ago,it was Theseus embroiled in maze on island of Crete, wrestling with, and slaying dreaded Minotaur. It was David facing Goliath armed with only a slingshot and 5 smooth stones. And it was Hercules rescuing Theseus and Persephone from Hades.

In last century, it was Harry Truman, a sure loser according to every poll, bravely facing up to and defeating powerful Thomas Dewey. It was Mohandas K Gandhi, armed with only a loincloth and a relentless will, freeing Indian subcontinent from British rule. And let's not forget gallant Nelson Mandela who, battling from his bleak jail cell ultimately ended apartheid in South Africa, winning emancipation and equality for millions of his native people.

These days, it’s depravity and moral vacuum in executive offices of corporations and even in White House. It’s real threat of terrorist attacks within United States of America. It’s economic and emotional uncertainty that enshrouds our life experiences.

What about you? What about your aspirations? Are you one of struggling ones, aching and yearning, out in cold, with nose pressed up against store window, gazing wistfully at glowing success only a heartbeat away; what are your demons? What dragons, what Minotaur, what swamps swarming with alligators, what precipices and crevasses wait to swallow up your hopes and dreams?

What else blocks your illusive path to abundance and success? And, most important of all, how are all these monsters to be put to rest forever by you as you advance from struggle and lack to success and abundance.

I've been there, dead broke, flat on my assets,and those only in my unswerving imagination, sustained only by vision. Perhaps this glimpse of my journey, shared in present tense, may yield hope:

1. It starts with implacable will, iron determination, bulldog blood, an inner spirit that’s simply not going to surrender to defeat as long as there’s breath in my body.