When possible, prepare long in advance. The more prepared I am the earlier the higher the likelihood of success. This evening I had an opportunity to get ready not only for the next couple of days of work, but for my long hike this weekend. There are many things I need to get right for a successful hike on Saturday and the preparation tonight really helped to get me there!
Appreciation:
Holy buckets, what a day! From running with Becky in the morning to a ridiculously busy and productive day at work to finishing a great book to dinner at home with Becky to time on the couch with the boys talking travel today has been all over the place. Nothing like the crazy high speed of a weekday during the summer!
Honestly, it’s been wild, but very fulfilling.
Presence:
While reading one of the final chapters of the fiction series Gavin recommended I became so entranced in the story that my heart rate was spiking! I had slow down and re-read a couple of parts as the blur of activity was so fast moving and dense with guttural emotion that I was having a difficult taking in exactly what the author was doing. This book series (the first trilogy of Red Rising by Pierce Brown) had me laughing, crying, stressing, screaming, shaking, thinking, and cheering all at different times – what a roller coaster!!!
Time blocks can be so helpful to stay focused. At work today I used that mindset to stay 100% focused on the project I needed to be focused on and it really helped my productivity. So much easier to step away from everything when I realize that one hour isn’t going to be a mater of life or death AND I turn off my cellphone and email. Less distraction, more production.
Appreciation:
After work Becky and I went to Pleasureland RV in West Salem to check out camper cans! While we’re still a long ways away from getting one it is officially starting to feel real as we are narrowing down what type would be best for us. Today we went a step further than we had by getting into over half a dozen different models to see all the different floor plans. So many things to consider as we start picking one out.
What I’m most grateful for is the excitement of a long held dream slowly but surely coming into view. This has been a dream for Becky and I for many years, at long last we’re almost in position to take action on it. We’ve kept it in our view for a very long time, so much fun as it seems to get closer and closer to reality.
Presence:
My teammate, Mike, and I had an awesome meeting with a client this afternoon to take on a new opportunity. It is one that we know, that we’ve done, but it is completely different in so many ways for so many reasons. In quite a few ways it is a completely different venture using the same tools we’ve been honing for decades. The 75 minutes of our meeting went by in a flash, total engagement all the way from start to finish. Nothing like that balance of something new and a challenge to get into that flow state!
Tired and want to go back to sleep? Suck it up, put on the running shoes, and get after it. You’ll never regret it, you’ll only regret NOT doing it.
Feeling wore out after work and want to sit on the couch? Suck it up, grab your yoga gear, and get to the studio. You’ll never regret it, you’ll only regret NOT doing it.
When in doubt get moving, get some exercise.
Appreciation:
For over 5 years I’ve had the same watch on my left wrist, my Garmin Instinct. It was on sale for $249 and I figured it would be exactly what I needed for the next two or three years before it slowly fell apart and the battery died. Instead this bad boy has been kicking butt and taking names while showing ZERO sings of slowing down. The original battery is still going so strong that I still only charge it once every two weeks or so. This watch is a beast!!!
Over the past 5 years my Garmin Instinct and I have done the following:
20.6 million steps
10,800 total miles
1,124 miles hiked
2,500 miles run
All that use and abuse and there isn’t even a scratch on the face. The only work I’ve done on it is replacing the band.
In a world in which everything seems to be made to be replaced within a couple of years this watch has been one of the best investments I’ve made. Cheers to Garmin for making such an incredibly durable and useful product!!!
Presence:
This moment right here – what a few seconds of awesome.
When there’s a lot to get done making a task list always seems to be the right answer. Even though I often feel almost stifled by a long list there are other times when the initial enormity lends itself to a focus on attacking it one step at a time knowing it will all have to get done regardless. In contrast to yesterday’s post it is an intentional skipping of the emotion and going straight into action – with a plan. Today I knocked everything off my list and then some, a solid day for sure!
Appreciation:
One of the “tasks” on my list today was gathering some information about a huge long term dream Becky and I share, buying a camper van. On my way back from the Cities I passed a dealership which ignited my desire to start looking. Over lunch Becky and I did a quick local search and found one available at a dealership less than a 20 minute drive away. After diving into the details of it we sent a message online to set up a time to go in and take a look. While the actual purchase is a long time away it is nice taking the time to reality test this dream a little more, physically checking out one of the other models to determine what we like and don’t like. Working on a dream felt pretty awesome today!
Presence:
Sometimes it seems as if the best times of life are spent together traveling and on vacation. Sometimes it is almost easy to put my brain on auto pilot and take some of our “ordinary” time together for granted. This afternoon Becky and I ran a couple of errands including grocery shopping. We talked, we laughed, and we enjoyed each other’s company. In those moments there wasn’t much for distraction, just us and our errands. This gave us some pretty sweet bonus time together, so glad I was present in it!
I’ve already typed about yoga in the Presence section (yessir, I have completely written my blog out of order tonight), but it is really worth mentioning again (or for the first time tonight). Towards the end we were invited to go into Wheel as we were on our backs with our feet planted and hands on either side of our head. The move is to lift our hips up and basically hold ourselves up while arching our back and activating our hips and glutes as our shoulders hold up much of our weight also. As you can guess, this gets pretty tiring, especially after an already strenuous workout.
While in wheel I heard the voice in my head telling me how tired I was, how this was really getting uncomfortable, and how I should just lower myself down early. The second time we did the move the voice was saying the same things. In both cases I told the voice to shut up and I continued to press past the discomfort and stay up until we were instructed to drop. Both times the denial of that voice had me smiling.
Way back when I was helping Dad cut down trees I remember how he used to use a wedge to both help get the tree to fall correctly and help get a chainsaw unstuck. He’d pound that plastic wedge into the cut and then use the leverage to help point the tree a certain way or to take the pressure off the saw blade so he could get cutting again. In either situation this little wedge of plastic had incredible leverage over the massive tree.
One of my favorite books shared the concept of using similar “mental” wedges to help us gain control over our own actions. He said that each time we found a way to push against that voice in our head we were using a wedge to get more and more leverage in our lives. The more we push back against the voice that tells us to quit the deeper we pound the wedge to give us more strength to say no in the future.
Today I smiled as I realized each Wheel was an opportunity to drive the wedge a little deeper, a chance to grow. I made up my mind in both cases that the only way I was going down early was if my muscles literally gave up. I held, I shook, I burned, and I suffered, but I held. One more opportunity to prove to myself that I am stronger than I give myself credit for.
I’m thankful for using a wedge today, it made all the difference!
Appreciation:
Always fun watching the boys do the things they love! Today that involved me watching Gavin at RiverVault doing some pole vaulting purely for fun. While driving him to the meet I couldn’t help but smile when he said he really had no thoughts of hitting a new personal best, he just wanted to enjoy the time vaulting. Mission accomplished!
Not only did he do well vaulting, Gavin also really got into the 4th of July costume contest and won for his session! Always an adventure watching this chucklehead do the things he loves!
Presence:
Yoga tonight was a beast! My brain was initially a bit scattered as class started. Once we were about 12 minutes in my mind was absolutely no where but focused on the task at hand and the position of my body. Joanna had us bending and twisting in so many epic ways that I was dripping with sweat. For reals, at one point the studio was super quiet and all I could hear was the pitter patter of my drops of sweating falling from my arms and face and dripping onto the hardwood floor and my mat. It was intense!
What another profoundly awesome reminder of the power of exercise to keep up going!
Today was a wonderful reminder of the power of journaling. My blog post from four years ago popped up and flooded me with so many memories. Had I not taken the time to write my thoughts down I would have likely forgotten a day like this.
“Gratitude leads to abundance. Abundance leads to giving. Giving leads to joy.”
Becky and I were expecting to have a quiet house to the two of us after our hike this morning. As luck would have it we had both boys and their girlfriends for the majority of the day and evening! So many games and laughs, dinner as a family – all completely unexpected and greatly appreciated! Times like these are always moments I am grateful for.
Presence:
During our hike we reached a very scenic viewpoint just before the storm and rain rolled in. As I recorded the video below the wind picked up, the temperature dropped, and everything in the air seemed to shift as if there was an immense inhale. What a moment! Nothing quite like the moment the front rolls in.
When in doubt, get a great night of sleep! Seriously, life is so much easier after a rejuvenating night of sleep. well over eight hours today and I felt like a brand new person!
Appreciation:
In addition to knocking out everything I wanted on my task list for the day I did something Future Mike will be very thankful for… I wrote out my task list for Monday when I’m back in office. Rather than trying to get back on track after four days off I’ll be able to jump right in and have an awesomely productive Monday!
Presence:
There were several wonderful and engaging conversations with friends today. Each brought a big smile for slightly different reasons. So much love, so many smiles, so many shared moments!
Over coffee this morning a friend shared how he keeps a Decision Journal for work. Each time he and the leadership team make a decision they write it down, work through what they hope to accomplish, identify potential challenges, and any other useful notes. In six months after the decision they go back to the journal and compare their notes to reality.
I’ve heard of this strategy before, but I haven’t talked with anyone who has followed through on it to this level. As he shared his experiences with it I couldn’t help but wonder how much this practice could help me in the future. Definitely worth practicing!
Appreciation:
It was raining and cloudy as I drove to Eau Claire this morning. It was dreary and foggy as I went to Menomonie for a meeting. The clouds were just as dark as I went back to Eau Claire. The monotonous rhythm of the windshield wipers were hypnotic as I drove for an hour and a half lulled me almost to sleep. Even now as I blog I’m serenaded by the raindrops falling outside my bedroom window.
In days gone by I’d stay awake just out of spite rather than succumb to tiredness. Today I’m making the right call. I’m writing my blog from bed. I’ve got my book on my nightstand, and I’ve already said good night to the boys. As soon as I’m done typing I’m picking up my book for a chapter or two and then heading off to sleep. Sometimes I need to remember to take a cue from nature and get some extra rest.
Leia embodies how I am feeling right now 😉
Presence:
As I wrapped up the fiction I’ve been reading my breath was almost taken away by the surprise ending! Gavin never gave me any warning about a very dramatic U turn the story was about to take as it concluded. Honestly, I wish I would have watching my heart and breathing rates as I finished it, it was a nail biter!
I am such a fan of how well told stories can pull us in so completely and get our emotions moving.
Hmm…. There were a handful of nuggets today worthy of note:
An example of the beauty of forgiveness in the fiction I’m currently reading (Golden Son).
The act of writing uncomfortable notes about myself in a journal is more difficult than it should be yet also more rewarding than I think it will be.
Clarity, clarity, clarity. If we as leaders can be successful at only one thing please let it be in providing clarity.
Accept the world as it is, be the best us we can be, if our best self is meant to make a positive impact on the world we will.
Appreciation:
What a wonderful day full of introspection! There were many moments of pause and reflection. With a little space and some quiet the mind can really reconnect with the soul. One of the practices to which I give credit for days like today is asking myself the question “If I only had 10 years to live what would I stop doing today?” At the end of each day and then typing my answer. As I drift off to sleep it seems to open my mind to so much more and the next day I live a little nudge closer into the me I should be.
Presence:
One of the reasons I love yoga so much is the fairly regular sensation of being a beginner even several years into the practice. Tonight Mandi used a common pose with a subtle twist and shift that caused everything to feel brand new. My presence was immediately pulled into the tension in my outer hip as I had to really force myself to move in a way I’m not sure I have ever done before. Talk about 100% focus! In many ways it reminded me of log rolling.
Nothing like being knocked off balance to regain balance!
Thankful for Forty 