I thought you might like to see a few pictures from the recent Japan National Convention.
This picture is of the Ikari family. They were elected MVP for 2008 by the other leaders in Japan. This couple is an outstanding example of leadership. There is a great feeling of team spirit in their organization which they support about as perfectly as it can be done. That is probably why they were selected by their peers to win the MVP award.
This is a picture of Asada-san receiving his special scuba diving vacation. Just one of the rewards for earning the Presidential Ruby rank.
Both Kimura-san and Asada-san also received a beautiful Clerc watch! There were only 12 of these watches in Japan before last Saturday. Asada-san and Kimura-san got numbers 13 and 14!

Here is Kimura-san sharing his feelings after receiving his rewards.






On the way to Thailand I visited Hawaii and Japan and met with some of our great leaders in those markets. Japan had an incredible month in December with some of our young superstars growing by almost 100% month over month. The Japanese leaders tell me that 2009 is their year to break all the records. I won’t argue but Thailand, Europe and Korea may differ with them.