Speaking to 25,000 in the Moscow Olympic Stadium.
Who I am and what I do…
What's here is "probably way more than you wanted to know". So, read only what interests you, please.
As said on the first page, I'm a writer, editor, speaker—and Lord (only) knows how I got to be any of these. I sure don't.
I'm genuinely proud of being involved with more than 25 books and audio programs and over three-million copies of same sold. The Greatest Networker in the World has close to 3 million readers around the world. I've been blessed to positively impact a lot of people's lives.
I've got a BFA in Photography from the Philadelphia College of Art and have been a go-for, security guard, carpenter, laborer, (very lame) door-to-door salesman, (very good) photographer, director of marketing for a natural health food company, marketing consultant, copy and "ghost" writer, author, coach, Editor-in-Chief (four-times), Chairman of the Board and self-employed working for a boss who was crazy… a whole bunch of working-world stuff.
My speaking has taken me all around America and to Australia, Canada, China (Taiwan), Costa Rica, Crete, Dubai, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia (Moscow, Kazan and Samara), Singapore and Kiev in the Ukraine. Last fall, Katyusha and I (and Ele and Anais) were back to Moscow.
I founded Upline® and Network Marketing Lifestyles. I'm the founder of The GreatestNetworker.com (Web 2.0 back in 2000), created the Upline Master's Weekends. was a Contributing Editor for Success magazine, Founding Editor-in-Chief for Networking Times and was one of the founders of The Network Marketing Magazine.com.
And now I really am back "in the game", suited up and on the playing field (instead of up in the Skybox) building a networking team; learning lots, "failing forward" and having fun doing it.
My life purpose is …
To learn… and I'm compelled to share what I'm learning with millions of people, which is what I do for a living.
My family, home, pets and pleasures
I live in Crozet, Virginia with Jekaterina Koldajeva-Fogg, aka; Katyusha, My Russian redhead, who's my life, my wife, my LOVE and my partner. Katyush is an artist, trained classical violinist, The Greatest Mother in the World and simply the most beautiful wise person I've ever met…
Virginia IS for Lovers and to prove it, we two are the proud parents of Eleonora Milena (age five and bit more) and Anais Polina (age one and a-half and more). Both are two-thirds Russian and English is their second language.
Here's a slide show of "the girls" (with a few pics of my son and me) from my profile page at MySpace.com:
Yes, I am the luckiest man in the world.
Just for fun, and to prove I wanted a dynamic Life: The week of April 29.02; I was divorced on Monday; married on Tuesday; took Wednesday off; and Ele' was born Thursday… Anais was born on March 26.06. It was a much quieter week.
My son Johnny (22) is doing under and over-graduate work at "My University" (is there such a thing as home-school college?). After high school he traveled to Italy, attended The Photography Workshops in Rockland, Maine, worked at a tea house and helped me building a couple of my websites: BeliefBusters.com, SpeakingAndListening.com, WeAllNeed ACoach.com and the latest, a father-and-son project aGreatQuestion, a daily thoughtful, inspirational video on YouTube.
Johnny created a remarkable "traveling community art exhibit" you can learn about here: The Mother:Father Project. He's preparing for a year's scholarship studying tea ceremony in Japan. I begged (and literally paid…) him not to go to college until he was really passionate about studying something important to him. And that's what he's done. I Love It! He's now living and working in New York city. Johnny's got his classic BMWR75 motorcycle. The picture above is the father 37 years ago, not the son today.
Rachel (27 this February 24) graduated top of her class in the Virginia School of Massage, yet works mostly as a bar-tender, "cause "the money's much better". I don't see Rachel often enough… yet in ways more than when we "lived" together. She comes and plays with Ele' and Anais. They are amazing together; like watching the same person as an infant, toddler and a grown woman at the same time.
My children are all extraordinary people! Bright, funny, wise and talented. What I enjoy most about them—and am most proud of—is how much I like them all as human beings. The older ones are each intelligent, authentic and unique individuals. Even if they weren't "my kids," I'd want to know them and be with them for who and how they are. Love AND Like. Amazing!
Where do you live?
Crozet in right next to Charlottesville, mas o menos in the center of the state snuggled up against the Blue Ridge Mountains. It's a college town. The University of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson's pride and joy, is here. About 19,500 grads and unders come and go with Charlottesville's 49,000 plus population. Every time I go someplace else wondering if I'd like to live there—with perhaps the exception of Hawaii and Maine (both great to visit, but…)—I come back to C'ville and I know I am home! I dearly Love this place.
I'm a card-carrying Capricorn, so "mi casa, mi castillo." I've also been blessed with The Greatest House "karma" in the World, which has enabled me to live in a succession of most special places over the years. The house we're in now is more and better than all the others.
It's big-ish, but not too, at about 4,000+ square feet. It's a dynamic three-level with an nine-plus sided living room topped off by a wooden cathedral ceiling and center fireplace of flagstone. The deck, where I spend most of my weather-permitting time, runs all along the front and is 110 feet long. There's an upper balcony, too.
It is a "people place" a dramatic, peaceful, pleasing artistic space.
The house is up on the side of Buck's Elbow Mountain. You reach it by a bumpy gravel road—one of those beyond the "End State Maintenance" sign. The view is to Live for: Layered Blue Ridge… the Ragged Mountains in the distance, houses and farms in the valley hundreds of feet below that twinkle at night. There are deer (no antelope…), black bear, birds at the feeders and the "Flying squirrel Circus" (no kidding). And the people without legs live here, too. (The ones with the long sharp teeth, scary.)
My home is a living experience and expression—and manifestation—of my values and vision. It's a lot "art" (I even think of plants as sculpture). Asian influence everywhere, from the low "dining room" table (which once was a Chinese day-bed made of Korean Oak and rattan), to the Japanese prints and scrolls and big-bold round paper lanterns, complete with statue of Buddha (with the most serene expression. I suspect he's listening…). A few months ago, Anais broke a 600 year old (Sung Dynasty I believe) bowl carved from solid rock—a thin lacy marvel with dragons circling 'round. It's the only one like it in the world—now in 30ish pieces. After 5 minutes of tears and sadness… I (almost) let it go.
An eccletic mix of "stuff": Tribal rugs—some are old souls; orchids and fresh flowers from the gardens; a model of the Wavertree-a three masted 1885's iron ship my grandfather sailed on as an apprentice seaman—in its case atop a 1730's Captain's footlocker; an original 50's butterfly chair… "treasures and pleasures" indeed.
Still being an "artist," I put found objects—like rocks, driftwood (especially), vacated turtle shells and natural treasures directly onto our white walls. (Everywhere I visit in my travels I bring back rocks and natural things. So much more precious than tourista stuff… and cheaper, too.)
I don't like cages for birds… locking up a creature born to fly is not a good thing. Frames do the same for me sometimes; they limit the partnership (I just noticed the word "art" in partnership. Cool.) of form and space. So, I got rid of them. I just stick things on the wall itself. The dance of how the objects play with each other—a dried twisting kelp stalk, above a goat's horn with a turtle shell underneath arranged vertically up a wall—and the visual sharps and flats of form and space are utterly fascinating to me…
And please, come visit. That's no kidding. There's nothing we like and love better than to spend some time out on the deck or in front of the fire with network marketers. As I've said before, You are The Greatest People in the World.
Pets? One cat left (...over from Rachel. Katyusha is not a cat person, even though she has their eys), Miltosh (formerly Milton, but I can't call him that… who talks! I swear). And then there is Raegay, The Greatest Dog in the World a "schnoodle," some combine of schnauzer and poodle. He is the most remarkable four-legged person I've ever known.
That's enough. As said, probably more than you wanted to know…
If you've a heart and mind to, get in touch.
Comments… questions? Please contact me.
John Fogg
2370 Saddle Hollow Road
Crozet, Virginia 22932 USA
Phone: 434-823-9303