If you work for Suncoast Internet you will have no choice but to hear our team leaders ranting on about the power of positive thinking and “Mr Motivation” himself, Pat Mesiti.

They think the sun shines out of his receding hairline and after attending his Kickstart Conference they bombarded the rest of us with how effective a speaker and motivator he is. As the rest of us did not get an invitation we can only grunt in acknowledgement and hope the attraction passes without further ado.

But no! We are constantly reminded day-in-day-out of this individual’s sense of humour, his passion, and his ability to empower people to produce results. And, just for good measure we were obliged to watch his promotional video and listen to his values and beliefs, which can be summed up in one sentence.

“My philosophy for successful business is simple – your mind is the most valuable asset you have.”

To get our own back we have designed “We Love Pat” placards for our team leaders to wave the next time they venture to one of “Mr Motivation’s” performances.

Hopefully the other speakers at the Kickstart Conference, Peter Miller, Amanda Stevens, Jennie Armato, Rick Otto, Declan Barnett and Daniel Kertcher, won’t take offence by the “We Love Pat” placards.

Now don’t get me wrong, motivational speakers have their place. I’ve heard a few in my time, including Richard DeVos and Jay Van Andel, co-founders of Amway. Sure, they do motivate and they speak a lot of sense. But if it is that easy why haven’t we got more millionaires than you can poke a stick at?

Could it be because they haven’t attended a Pat Mesiti motivational conference yet?