Tag Archives: Dream

Move It!

This past weekend I was in downtown Atlanta for the ING Georgia Marathon & Half Marathon. I’d love to tell you I was there competing in the race but I wasn’t. Honestly I’d rather lance a boil than run a half marathon.

But my daughter had been training and this was to be her first one…so naturally I was there to cheer her on. There were over 16,000 runners partaking in the morning’s activities with 14,000 in the half marathon and another 2500 sickos running in the full marathon.

What I saw surprised me…my expectations were that I would see a bunch of skinny malnourished people looking like they hadn’t eaten a good meal in a month. But that wasn’t the case at all. Ok – honestly there were a bunch of people with bodies resembling rake handles around but I also found a sea of humanity in all shapes and sizes. And get this – they were all happy!

It’s true! All of them smiling, high-fiving, slapping each other on the back! Now keep in mind that it is 6:00am! And it is about to rain!

“What is wrong with these people” I said to myself. And then it occurred to me. They are out here “moving it”. Exercising.

It doesn’t take very much investigative digging to find the benefits of exercising. You see it on the list of ways to reduce stress, relieve anxiety, maintain good health, build self –esteem, increase immunity, lose weight, lower anxiety, improve sleep, inrease alertness and mental sharpness…the list goes on and on!

All these people had tapped into one of the greatest secrets around. Healthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes. But the key is, no matter what your body type – move it. You deserve the benefits!

That’s What I Have Been Looking For

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Thanks to my good friend, Glenn Sessoms, (recently retired Chief Diversity Officer for FedEx who now has the time to help his still “too busy to see what is in front of them” friends like me). Glenn sent me an email last month reminding me not to overlook the blessings in my life and get caught up in trying to find joy, peace, and happiness in other places.

In his book, Money: A User’s Manual, Bob Russell describes a farmer who once grew discontent with his farm. He griped about the lake on his property always needing to be stocked and managed. He complained about all those stupid cows wandering around his land. He lamented about all the fencing, and feeding and upkeep, and maintenance – the list went on and on…what a headache!

So, he called a Realtor and made plans to list the farm. A few days later the agent phoned, wanting approval for the advertisement she intended to place in the local paper. She read the ad to the farmer. It described a lovely farm in an ideal location – quiet and peaceful, contoured with rolling hills, carpeted with soft meadows, nourished by a fresh lake, and blessed with well-bred livestock. The farmer said, “Read that ad to me again.”

After hearing it a second time, he decided, “I’ve changed my mind. I’m not going to sell. I’ve been looking for a place like that all my life.”

Aren’t we like that farmer? I know I am. Sometimes I get so busy working on “all my stuff” that I forget I have it pretty good. I think I just forget to be thankful.

Pause today and take a moment to inventory all the things you are thankful for.

Got Passion?

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My father taught me many great life principles. One of the best things about growing up in the home of a training consultant is that my Dad believed “if it will work at the kitchen table, it will work at the conference table” and he tried out many of his lessons on us before he introduced them to his corporate clients. Now, not everything he taught me was suitable for the workplace (belching at will comes to mind), but still many of the lessons I learned as a boy remain with me today.

Passion is one of those lessons. I can remember, like it was yesterday, my father telling me, “David, figure out what you love to do, and then figure out how to get paid to do it, and you will never work a day in your life.” I did not fully understand it as a boy, but I have seen it to be true the older I get.

I love being a speaker…I mean, I love it!!! I will never retire. People often ask me when I think I will come off the road and stop speaking … I tell them never! I mean why would I stop doing something I love only to try and fill my days doing things I don’t enjoy as much as speaking? That does not make sense to me. I am one of those in life who is truly doing what I was created to do…and, sadly, we are rare.

So, how ‘bout you? Do you love what you are doing? Do you wake up each day filled with anticipation of spending time doing that which you so enjoy? If not, why not?

This past week I met so many people who, in their 40s and 50s, have just now started doing that which “lights their fire”. These were mostly second or third career individuals who had left great jobs because they weren’t fulfilled. What did they move to…teaching! Not only are they happier, but their families are too. And get this, most of them took big paycuts as an added bonus!

Are their jobs perfect? No.
Is there a perfect job? No.

There are aspects of any job that don’t excite us. For me, I get tired of all the time I spend alone on the road, the frustrations of air travel, eating by myself in restaurants, and sleeping in strange beds just to name a few.

But the folks I have met recently seemed to be so fulfilled in their careers. I’ve met software engineers, military personnel, R & D scientists, and others who found themselves simply “going through the motions” of their daily life. It was refreshing to speak with them and see the excitement they now have for their work. One former high paid, big oil engineer said, “I enjoy trying to be a good teacher much more than not caring about being a good engineer.”

So, follow your passion and enjoy your work…you certainly spend a lot of time there. You deserve it!

Conquering the Obstacles

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Like so many other fathers on this little spinning ball in space, I suffer from a syndrome that has plagued man for centuries…my daughter has me wrapped around her little finger. When I look at her I see perfection – pure, unblemished perfection. Now, as her father, I realize that I am probably the only one who can see her through such unbiased and objective eyes so if others fail to see it, I can simply write them off as ignorant buffoons.

And, as my daughter’s 10th birthday approached, she inevitably desired that one gift that made all other gifts pale by comparison…a horse. Well, as you would guess, while I love her more than life itself, I do not have that tree (I have tried to plant it many times but it just won’t grow money). And, as you would also guess, she looked up at me with those sad, big blue eyes and, by golly, Daddy bought her a horse.

Her name was Yoo Hoo (the horse not my daughter) and it was love at first sight. Lindsey wanted to be a show jumper (this is where she competes in a huge arena filled with people and jumps over large walls, fences, and other obstructions that frightened her father to no end).

We got Lindsey an amazing trainer to help her learn how to compete in this sport (honestly, all I knew about horses was which end the food went in and which end it came out and to stay away from both ends). I was more than a little worried when “my baby” climbed up upon this 700 lb “wild beast”.

They trained for months with Lindsey progressing rapidly in her learning. She was a natural. Then one day her trainer, Jason, proclaimed her ready to compete and signed her up for a huge show. We had one week to get ready. Jason informed us that the week before a show was critical and that he wanted to work with Lindsey every afternoon with her completely dressed in her “competition outfit”.

We arrived for the first pre-competition practice and Yoo Hoo was nowhere to be seen. Jason said Yoo Hoo was ready but Lindsey was not. He proceeded to sit her on top of the fence that surrounded the riding area at the stable and they rode the course over and over in Lindsey’s mind. Jason taught her that she had to “see” herself succeeding, that she had to visualize herself flawlessly running the course: elbows in, thumbs up, heels down, change leads, lean into the jump. Time and time again they ran the course in Lindsey’s head.

The following Saturday I watched my girl win her first blue ribbon and learn a lifelong lesson on the importance and the power of vision. Rather than focus on the obstacles in the course she focused on getting over them. A good lesson for all of us as we face the obstacles in our course of life.