Anyone out there watching Shark Tank on Friday nights? That's the ABC reality show in which entrepreneurs and inventors pitch new products or services to actual investors -- successful business people, who have made millions of dollars through their own ventures. The show prefaces each presentation with brief back stories on the entrepreneurs so that we might have a rooting interest in them. But as the series name implies, the investors can be cold, even ruthless in assessing the profit potential of the schemes and dreams laid out before them.

It can be amusing listening to some of the more fanciful ideas that get rejected. It can also be heartbreaking to hear someone tell how they've invested their live savings in something they believe in, only to have the Sharks rip it apart. Their caustic remarks serve as a nasty reminder that there's a fine line between passion and delusion.

As producer of the Career Changers TV show on OC16, I have met local inventors and entrepreneurs who have been candidates for appearing on Shark Tank, but didn't make the cut. One of them is Daniel Ward, creator of Hawaiian Chariot wheelchair motorbikes. We featured him in last month's episode, and recounted how an accident put him in a wheelchair several years ago. Yet his passion for motorcycles, and ability to think outside the box kept him moving forward in pursuit of a dream: making an affordable vehicle for wheelchair users that was practical and could be mass produced. The only real vehicle option for people like him has been adapted vans, which cost around $40,000 each.

Daniel received grant money that enabled him to design a prototype and meet with manufacturers in China. In fact, while he was having dinner with Chinese engineers there, Daniel got the idea from the Lazy Susan on the table for his turntable design so the wheelchair user could enter the vehicle, then easily rotate inside the cab area to face the steering handle. There were a number of things he had to figure out before he could market the Hawaiian Chariot motorbikes... getting financing was part of that.

He would up going in front of the Sharks, and says they were brutal. Despite the research he presented showing there were millions of wheelchair users that could be potential buyers, the Sharks didn't feel it would be a profitable business. According to Daniel, one of the producers called him afterwards and said they would not be airing the segment because they felt the Sharks were too hard on him. Translation: beating up on a guy in a wheelchair made the Sharks look like insensitive you-know-whats. Their rejection did not deter him, however.

When we filmed the segment towards the end of last year, he had just gotten necessary federal approvals that made his vehicle street legal -- one of the last obstacles to selling his product. Then just before we were about to start running the finished piece on Career Changers, Daniel contacted me and said we might have to pull it. Over the holidays, his health took a turn for the worse. People in wheelchairs are susceptible to infections, and his infection was bad enough to require surgery. On top of that, while driving in his adapted van, he was in a car accident that led to other physical problems. He was concerned that he couldn't continue running the Hawaiian Chariots company, and was looking to sell it.

We talked it over and decided to run the segment as is, but added an introduction saying he's looking for a partner or investor to keep his dream alive. The thing is, it's not just about making money for him. He's committed to helping wounded war veterans and is donating vehicles to that cause. And at an estimated retail cost of $16,000 per unit, Daniel believes many wheelchair users' lives would be greatly improved by having more mobility at a price they can afford. I've searched online to see if there are any similar vehicles to his on the marketplace, and could only find high end custom made models or home-made models that haven't met federal or state standards for road safety.

Daniel's health has improved, and he maintains his optimistic outlook. But if anyone can offer suggestions or is interested in partnering with him, please drop me an email < richfigel@gmail.com > or call Daniel at (808) 636-2014. You can watch the video segment we produced by clicking here.

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On a related note, I'm in the process of trying to do a smaller scale local version of the Shark Tank idea as an on-going Career Changers TV segment. I have a couple of local "angel" investors/business consultants who are interested in participating. Now I just need to find some worthy pitch candidates! If you have a new product or service and are looking for investors, send your elevator pitch to me via email. At the very least, you may get some local exposure... as many Shark Tank "rejects" have found, just being on the show has increased sales for many of them.

For daily viewing times, please visit www.CareerChangers.TV. You can also watch segments from past and current shows on the CCTV YouTube Channel.

I stopped making New Year resolutions a long time ago. Instead, I start each day with a new to-do list and try my best to get stuff done, beginning with the easier tasks. The harder things -- big goals, long range projects -- are on a separate list that I keep nearby as a subconscious reminder of why I'm doing the less exciting, yet necessary work first.

While reading through emails and comments posted in response to my blogs the past year, I've noticed that many job-seekers and wannabe entrepreneurs seem to lack resolve. By that, I mean they want easy answers and quick fixes. For instance, recently a reader posted a comment on my Holiday Networking blog entry. She wrote that she had been networking for over a year and still had no job. I asked what her skills were and what kind of job was she searching for, since I couldn't offer advice without knowing more details. Never heard back from her.

Now, I'm not saying I could have gotten her a job. But I have helped others make connections and land new positions after they told me more about their experience and background. The difference is they showed a willingness to follow through, even if it was just answering a couple of simple questions from me. I've also gotten emails from people who say they have a great idea for an invention or new service, and want me to give them advice on how to launch their biz or get their product into the marketplace. Yet when I ask them for more info -- an elevator pitch, fact sheet, whatever -- they either tell me they don't have anything they can send me, or don't want to divulge any details because they're afraid I might steal their idea. Sheesh.

The reality is if you can't sell yourself or your idea in less than a couple of well thought-out sentences, chances are you're not going to get your foot in the door of the places you want to be. Moreover, if you don't have special skills or experience in the field you wish to be working in, then you have to go out and get those skills somehow. Maybe that means going back to college or doing an unpaid internship. It means tapping into your personal and professional network -- btw, networking isn't just for people who are currently looking for work. You should be making friends and useful contacts throughout your life. The earlier, the better. Why do you think so many Ivy League and business school grads wind up in high places? The same holds true for film school. You can learn the basics anywhere, but in college you can make lifelong connections based on mutual professional interests.

However, you also have to be in the right place at the right time. Yesterday I got a call from a guy who read my blog and was coming to Hawaii from Australia. He wanted to meet with me to see about jobs in our TV and film industry here. Only one problem... actually, a few. He's originally from Switzerland and speaks with a heavy French accent. Secondly, he has virtually no experience in film or television. As I told him, I respect his pluck in seeking out contacts like myself. But even if he was willing to start at the very bottom and work for free, Hawaii is not the best place to try and make it in American movies or television. You really have to be in L.A., where the action is. The bigger problem though was he didn't have a clearly defined goal. When I asked what his skills were or what he wanted to do, his response was so vague that I could not see myself spending more time talking to him since it would be pointless. Merely wanting to do something isn't the same as having the resolve to do whatever it takes to make it happen.

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On a more positive note, I'd like to share a Sanskrit proverb that is in the very front of my "Twenty-Four Hours a Day" AA book, which I read religiously even though I've been sober for over 23 years now. That's part of my resolve: to never forget the simple things I must do each day to keep sober, and why sobriety is my top priority. I have reread the daily passages year after year because the advice has served me well. Find your own source of inspiration, then stick with it.

Look to this day,

For it is life,

The very life of life.

In its brief course lie all

The realities and verities of existence,

The bliss of growth,

The splendor of action,

The glory of power --

For yesterday is but a dream,

And tomorrow is only a vision,

But today, well lived,

Makes every yesterday a dream of happiness

And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Look well, therefore, to this day.

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Our new January episode of Career Changers TV premieres Thursday night on OC 16 at 8:30 pm. We have some really good stories, so check it out! For other daily viewing times, please visit www.CareerChangers.TV. You can also watch low-res versions of segments on the CCTV YouTube Channel by clicking here. Mahalo!

In this month's Career Changers TV episode, which premieres Thurs. night at 8:30 pm on OC16, we have a fascinating story about a local filmmaker whose interest in old mystery novels set in Hawaii, led to the discovery of a missing Oscar-winning documentary from the 1940s. The movie, KUKAN, introduced many Americans to a China they had never seen before, which was at war with Japan. But after winning an Academy Award -- the first feature-length documentary to earn that distinction -- it seemed all traces of the film itself had disappeared... until Kailua resident Robin Lung found a copy.

I first heard about the project awhile back from my wife, who plays tennis with Robin. As it happens, Robin is actually the reason I started producing the CCTV show. She had been making videos for local families -- sort of like oral histories captured on tape. That led to other projects, which is how she began working with Ron Darby, an experienced videographer (he produces the OC16 shows, Island Driver and The Pet Hui). When her documentary about Washington Place -- Hawaii's historic governor's mansion -- aired on PBS in 2008, she had a small premiere party at her home. Which is where I first met Ron. A couple of months later, we got together for coffee and I pitched him the idea for CCTV.

Back to Robin's real life detective story: as you'll see in the segment we did, her background in the publishing biz and love of books was the catalyst for the FINDING KUKAN film. A friend from her Random House days sent her some old novels that featured a Chinese-American female detective in Hawaii, who Robin suspected was inspired by a real person... and she was right: Li Ling-Ai was a very unconventional, independent-minded lady. Somehow, this exotic, enigmatic woman wound up being listed as "Technical Adviser" on the KUKAN documentary. But Robin had a feeling that Li may have played a much more significant role in the movie than she was being given credit for. Was it possible she was shortchanged because she was a Chinese-American woman? And just who was Li Ling-Ai?

Robin is still searching for answers, so FINDING KUKAN is a work in progress. What many people don't realize is that documentaries such as this one rely on grants and donations to get produced. They rarely receive any Hollywood studio financial backing. She's already gotten some grant money and interest from people on the Mainland and in China. If you'd like to know more about the project, please visit the Finding Kukan website or become a Facebook friend by clicking here.

Here's the links for the low-res YouTube version of the segment about Robin and the trailer for Finding Kukan. Talk about coming full circle -- she introduces me to Ron Darby, who became the co-creator of Career Changers TV, and now Robin is being featured on my show. Cool, huh?

For daily viewing times and other useful links, go to www.CareerChangers. TV or check out the CCTV YouTube Channel.

We just wrapped shooting for our Halloween Career Changers TV show, which will start running next week, but I wanted to give readers a heads-up on some Goodwill news. For the first time in Hawaii, they will be sponsoring a Halloween costume contest in conjunction with the big Celebrate Kaimuki Kanikapila block party on Sat., Oct. 29. Waialae Avenue will be closed off between Koko Head and 11th Avenue from 9 am to 3 pm that day.

But you don't have to wait until then to enter the contest, which offers a grand prize of one year of free shopping at Goodwill (not sure what the total value will be). As part of their revamped marketing efforts, Goodwill is making a big push into social media and building up their customer database through the introduction of a Goodwill shoppers card program, and a mobile app for smart phones.

If you buy something from Goodwill that is incorporated into your Halloween outfit, you can take a photo and send it in through the Goodwill app. Click here for more info. They hope to have the card ready to go by the end of the month. Besides the high tech upgrades, they will also be unveiling a new window display at the Kaimuki store location on Halloween weekend -- but it won't be spooky stuff, unless you consider haute coutoure glam kind of scary. Which come to think of it, is sometimes pretty bizarre looking.

It's an unusual marketing melange they're putting together: glam fashion events, featuring clothes from their shops, and thrift store mix-and-match costumes. What's cool though is you're only limited by your imagination and creativity when putting together outfits for either look.

At left is a photo of stylist Rene Rodriguez, who did the make up for Allie Lee, and created her costumes from items he got at Goodwill for our shoot. For last year's Halloween show, he transformed CCTV host Theresa Tilley into an obake woman, which was a lot of fun. (Video link here.)

At the time, Rene had recently done freelance work on The Pirates of the Caribbean movie that was filmed here (he did wigs and zombie pirates make-up). Since then, he has worked on the short-lived TV series, Off the Map, and is now doing casting for The River series through his job at Niche Models and Talent.

In my next post, I'll have some costume shop options for those who aren't inclined to create their own outfits, or do not have access to a celebrity stylist to do their make-up.

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Did you see the L.A. Times story about UH researchers using maggots to treat diabetes wounds? Sounds a little creepy, but makes sense. Here's the link. I knew leeches were making a comeback in medical circles, but maggot therapy was news to me!

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As for the boos, Wayne Harada hit the nail on the head in his blog about what's wrong with Hawaii Five-O: TOO MANY EXTRANEOUS CHARACTERS AND SUBPLOTS! Seems like every week they're introducing new cast members with more back stories than anyone can follow or care about -- and they have nothing to do with Hawaii, the people or the culture here or actual crime issues. Meanwhile, the core characters spend more time dealing with internal affairs investigations than actually investigating cases.

In the first two episodes, the villains or antagonists are barely even seen on screen. On Monday night's show, I don't think there was any direct reference to the antagonist until the last 15 minutes or so. And do we really need Tom "Celebrity Rehab" Sizemore as another mainland-imported character? Sheesh. The plots of the first two episodes this season were so weak and convoluted, it required major exposition in which the characters literally explain what happened and why.

If you want to see examples of great television writing, check out Breaking Bad and Damages, which are available through Netflix. Both have riveting plots, and truly scary characters -- and that's the "heroes" I'm talking about. My nomination for best TV series ever though is Friday Night Lights. Those series remind me why I wanted to be a screenwriter in the first place.

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For daily viewing times and other useful links, please visit www.CareerChangers.TV. You can also watch video segments from past and current episodes on the CCTV YouTube Channel. So what are YOU gonna be for Halloween?

Last week, you may have noticed I didn't post anything... or maybe you didn't, since the newspaper no longer promotes the blogs in its print edition, and the StarAdvertiser.com home page blog box only has room for the ten most recent  posts, which are sometimes three or four consecutive short volleyball/football/political items. The non-staff blogs get squeezed off the home page quickly, so there's not much motivation for other SA bloggers to post stuff that isn't being promoted or read.

However, that's not within my control. So when I write something, I want it to be meaningful and not merely random notes or thoughts. The problem is good essay-style writing takes a lot more time and effort than your basic blog filler. And time has been in short supply since I took over editing duties on my Career Changers TV show. Anyhow, I just finished the new September episode that will begin airing Thursday night on OC16, and think it's pretty good. More on that later in the week.

What I really wanted to comment on are two recent Scientific American articles about lessons from Sherlock Holmes on "seeing" versus observing, and paying attention to what isn't there (or "non-choices" being a choice that we should also think about). For instance, have any of you wondered whether the newspaper's new paywall would affect online content or bloggers and the Star-Advertiser's internet readership? Does the lack of comments or public outcry signal something worse than indifference -- apathy?

We live in curious times. Never before has there been so much emphasis on the need to succeed and finding a competitive edge due to the dicey economic conditions. Yet at the same time, never before have there been so many self-help books/programs about "being in the moment" and finding spiritual contentment instead of focusing on specific material goals. This hit home for me over the weekend while watching two diametrically-opposed movies that embody this existential dilemma.

The films came from two different countries with very different cultures: the U.S. and South Korea. There was the Hollywood high concept movie, LIMITLESS, which is about a loser writer guy who becomes addicted to smart pills that turn him into an opportunistic genius. He is able to make millions in weeks, but the downside is others are willing to kill him to get their hands on the wonder drug -- that is, if the drug doesn't kill him first. Essentially it's the New American Dream: get rich fast by using the financial markets to make money instead of having to actually work for it. And success is the ultimate high.

The next night, my wife and I watched POETRY, a slow-moving, poignant portrayal of a simple Korean grandmother, who works as a maid. She's been forgetting everyday words and is diagnosed as having Alzheimer's. Then she learns that the teenage grandson she is taking care of, is one of six boys who repeatedly had forced sex with a school girl, leading to her suicide. The woman wrestles with the moral dilemma of what to do about the boy, while struggling to write a poem for a class she signed up for on a whim... well, not a whim, but more of a long-delayed need to express herself before dementia robs her of the words she can still remember.

LIMITLESS is a so-so film. Too much voiceover narration by the protagonist telling us the story. Despite all the snazzy visual effects and pumped up music, in the end, it felt lifeless. Artificial. POETRY is the opposite: the characters don't actually say a lot -- in fact, the protagonist doesn't say anything about what she's really thinking about her grandson and what he did. The movie shows us through her simple heart-breaking actions what she's feeling inside. At the end, she finds the words for her poem, and it speaks volumes about her character and what matters in life. In LIMITLESS, the protagonist's big goal at the end is to win a political office! Oh, yeah, like he's gonna change the world because he's super smart now. Obviously, that movie bears no relation to the real world where intelligence is not an asset in politics.

Lastly, on this theme of seeing versus observing, it reminded me of driving in the car with my wife. The other day, Isabel noticed there was a new shop in Kailua. It had actually been open for awhile. I knew that because she always does the driving, and I'm the passenger.  As the driver, she has to focus on the road ahead and immediate concerns such as oncoming cars, while I have the luxury of time to look out the window and take in the changing landscape. But as a writer, I also try to make it a habit to "observe" my surroundings wherever I am. In a way, I'm like that Korean woman, jotting down notes and details for the poem -- or scripts, in my case, that I want to write.

In my own quest for success as a screenwriter, I've often written with blinders on, focusing on the high concept Hollywood story -- fast-moving page turners like LIMITLESS. But in the process, I may have missed smaller details that would have made my stories more personal and moving. More human. I look around at all the people who are driven to succeed in the corporate or financial world, and wonder if they too are missing the little details that transform mundane moments around us into poetry. The irony -- or paradox? -- is life is all about limits. But what makes us human is the need to push beyond limitations and rules, for better or worse.

Here's the links to the aforementioned Scientific American pieces that got me to thinking about this topic:

Lessons from Sherlock Holmes

Don't Just See, Observe

Last chance to see the August episode of Career Changers TV before the new show premieres on Thursday night! Click here for daily viewing times... or check out video segments on the CCTV YouTube Channel.