There are certain concepts which seem to be almost universal in application.

After leaving Dominic’s Fall sports meeting I heard him point out both of the Honda Fits we drove past. As he told me, “they are everywhere!” Of course they really aren’t all that popular and there aren’t hundreds of them on the roads of La Crosse. The reason he is seeing them is because that’s the vehicle he just got for his first car. We both joked about how he’ll see them everywhere now that he knows they exist. While he’s technically suffering from the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, in many ways it is really just a case of recency.

Over the past week one of my mentors and I have spent much time focused on finding where I choose to put my time. What types of tasks am I focused on – those which are working IN the business or those working ON the business? It’s a subtle difference that can really alter the success of a business. Should I focus energy on setting up a new spreadsheet or on setting the strategy for a new service line? Work on learning how to implement a new process or spend the same time developing my up and coming leaders? In some ways it seems a simple choice, but making the decision in the moment isn’t always easy.

Since we’ve started this conversation there have been many times when I have caught myself doing something that doesn’t quite line up. Due to the recency of this development focus I am seeing it happen more and more often.

Additionally, I am seeing it happen more and more often as I am working with others. When talking with someone about what’s on their plate it has been easy for me to quickly see that they are spending their time on an activity which doesn’t yield nearly as powerful results as other activity they could be doing with that same amount of time. This leads to the second universal concept I’m thankful for today… attaining distance.

When viewing the world from our eyes in an attempt to perceive the world through the eyes of another we’re able to attain distance from ourselves and make a more correct choice. When thinking only from our perspective about ourselves emotion has a much stronger opportunity to step in and divert us from the correct action. In order to make better decisions we can find ways to trick our brain into attaining distance so we can make better decisions.

Both recency and attaining distance have been wildly useful today and I’m thankful for both. They’ve both been big helps both at home and work.

Thanks!!!

I love creating wonderful memories with our boys. Spending time with them on amazing adventures and travels are amongst my favorite activities. Something else that jazzes me up is hearing about the great time they have with others creating additional amazing memories. That’s exactly what I got to spend time doing with the boys today – hearing about the awesome time they had with Grandma DeeDee and Grandpa Brad.

Over the past handful of days they’ve been camping, kayaking, hiking, playing games, and hanging out. The ride home from picking them up halfway was filled with nonstop stories of things they did and how much fun they had.

While I was listening I couldn’t help but smile as I remembered all the fun times I spent with my grandparents during the summer when I was about the same age. Those memories always make me smile and remind me of how lucky I was to have had such incredible grandparents.

Hearing those stories today helped me quickly see that they had created some similar memories which they’ll always have to bring them smiles as well.

A couple of other quick notes of gratitude today. On one of my many drives today I re-listened to one of my favorite podcasts of all time – Jim Collins being interviewed by Tim Ferriss. The deep thoughts Jim shares have been resonating in my brain all day. Those thoughts have helped me set a course for the next week. Secondly, I’ve been doing much thought work on a few other aspects of my life in which Tim & Jim remind me to stay focused on. Both have many additional resources which are helping me find better ways to continue the eternal road of improvement and growth.

Thanks!!!

The past few weeks have been pretty wild and full of life. The thought of taking a deep breath and relaxing has been top of mind but just hadn’t come to fruition. Today was a perfect opportunity to assuage the need for chill… albeit in a perfectly Kreiling way. 😉

The boys are away so we had a ton of options available to us. After a short eleven or so hours of sleep I arose and had breakfast. We took the dogs out on the pontoon so they could enjoy some water time before it got too crazy on the river. They were in heaven and totally enjoyed swimming, shooing away ducks, and shredding dead branches before they were ready to head in. Becky and I enjoyed the time in the sun on the boat both there and back.

We got home and I ate an early lunch. Next we were on our bikes pedaling away on the trails. Twenty miles flew by under the sun in seemingly no time. Halfway through I took my shirt off and enjoyed some extra vitamin D. Just the two of us exercising in the sun and on the trails was totally relaxing and put me deep into the state of chill I was looking for.

Showers, grocery shopping, second lunch, and folding laundry were all on the docket before church. Church was calming in its own awesome way. I may have stumbled upon my new favorite line in the Bible. “Jesus withdrew to the mountain again by himself.” I knew he was a great and wise Dude 😉

At home Becky’s got supper going on the grill and I just made us tasty summer cocktails inspired by our date last night. Gin, Chartreuse, muddled strawberries and basil leaves, syrup, and lemon juice combine for a crisp and refreshing beverage seemingly made just for a night on the back deck like this.

Now I’m typing, sipping, and smelling the dinner on the grill while sitting under the sun with some peaceful tunes courtesy of Pandora. Becky’s reading her book and occasionally getting up to check the salmon. After we eat well most likely chill and call it another early night.

I can’t even begin to state just how chill I’m feeling right now. Zero stress. Not thinking ahead of looking back. In this moment soaking it all in and grinning the entire time with a full and relaxed soul.

Thanks!!!

I’ll never deny that I’m probably older than I really am. It is a fact I’ve come to grips with and am totally comfortable with. 😉

The boys are hanging out with Mom having yet another adventure while Becky and I are working this week. With no kids on a Friday night it was a perfect time for us to get crazy and have an awesome date.

We rolled up to Love Child just before they opened at 5pm, ate a delicious meal complete with dessert and drinks, and left shortly after 6:15. Did we do something crazy afterwards? Hell yeah! We grabbed ice cream from The Pearl and we’re home before 7pm.

More craziness? You know it! Chilling on the couch and sleeping by 8pm. Yessir, we are a wild and crazy couple 😉

…and that’s a perfect date night to me!

After going constantly during the week it’s great to take some time to chill and rest. Tomorrow morning we’ll be up bright and early and head out for a bike ride or hike before the rest of the world wakes up. We get a quiet night together tonight AND a quiet morning together tomorrow.

Time to chill, relax, and head off to sleep!

Thanks!!!

LOL – days like this make me smile. Up a couple of minutes before 4am and going pretty much nonstop since. There’s so much I’d like to type about but my eyelids are getting heavy and I know I am on borrowed time. Decision time, blog in detail and risk falling asleep before finishing or hit the highlights quickly and get two sleep….

😴

Here are the quick highlights of the day:

• Spending time with a mentor
• Finding ways to create cross discipline solutions
• Focus
• Reminders of the importance of different viewpoints
• Hanging out with a team while jamming out on a boat
• Knowing which friends you can count on to jump in the river to find your phone in five feet of water
• Time to think and process

Many awesome moments, lessons, and creations today that I’m grateful for. Time to turn in so I can do it all again tomorrow and process everything from today.

Thanks!!!

Another week and another round of awesome summer adventures for the boys! We just dropped them off with Mom and StepBrad for their next exciting experience. Mom’s got some outstanding plans that will keep them active, having fun, and enjoying time with family without their parents being around.

The number of things Dominic and Gavin have already done this summer boggles my brain. While Dominic’s summer starts to wind down as he gets back into the rhythm of soccer practice Gavin’s excursions continue their breakneck pace for the next few weeks. I was going through my photos since last winter and I was literally laughing out loud as I kept saying, “I’d almost forgotten about that!” Camping, hiking, backpacking, bike riding, boating, driving, canoeing, skiing, snowshoeing, snowboarding, and seemingly every possible thing in between have all happened within the past three quarters of a year.

What gets me so grateful today is the thought of how many wonderful memories the boys are creating this summer. I always had so much fun in our summers, but their summer is exponentially crazier and packed than mine ever were. If I enjoyed mine a much as I did I can only imagine how much fun they’re having!

Another week of adventures are upon you boys! Enjoy them, soak up each amazing moment, and have a blast!

Thanks!!!

Somedays there is one little moment that seems to stick out as one that was so full of joy that it seems to jump out of my memory. Today that moment came on my drive up to Eau Claire. With only a handful of miles left to drive I turned off my podcast and was thinking about my trip to Colorado. I was quickly replaying some of the highlights of my most recent outdoor adventures. My grin grew and I figured there was only one right thing to do.

I rolled down the windows. A couple of clicks on my phone and I had a perfect song pulled up to jam out to for the last stretch of blacktop before the office. Borderlines by Hollow Coves.

For the next few minutes I wasn’t commuting to work. I was lost in a wonderful mix of the present and memory, wind rushing through my hair, singing along to a song that resonates with my wanderer soul, and enjoying every second of it.

I may not be crossing any borderlines today, but I sure was smiling as if I were.

Thanks!!!

I came here alone with a fire in my bones
Plans of distant dream
A traveler at heart with an unknown path
In a world full of sights unseen
Now I sway to and fro like a pendulum
To push and pull on the sea
With shores to the side, to go with the tides
Oh, walk on my own two feet

Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive
Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive

I came to the shore with an urge to explore
The lands of the great unknown
The rhythm inside as I opened my eyes
To see the world unfold
Will you come with me to the sights unseen?
Where no man’s gone before
Let’s take to the road, a life of our own
In search of something moreTo see a different light
That shines on the other side
That shows us there is more to this life

Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive
Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive

And we go to the mountains where our freedom calls
And we pray to the boundaries that are keeping us at home

Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive

Cross the borderlines
Let’s live on the other side
See the way this world
Can come alive

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Ryan Henderson / Matthew Carins

Borderlines lyrics © Secretly Canadian Publishing

One of the reasons I enjoy trips into the wilderness like this past week are the lessons I am able to take away from the experience and then apply to other aspects of life in the future. Quite often I know I could learn the same lessons without the experience, but there’s something about the openness in my mind during those trips. If I boil that down a bit I am pretty sure it is due to the extreme state of serenity and being present that isn’t quite the same in “real life.” That extra space, focus, and peace seem to allow my brain to see things more clearly then.

This trip was so similar in many ways. Here are a few of the lessons that have been running through my head over the past few days.

Everyone hikes their own mountain. We all have our own mountain and follow our own trail. Each of us has a different goal, a different why, and a different drive. Rather than minding others’ mountains I should focus on hiking mine. Always remember to help others when they need it on their mountain, but in the end it is their mountain to climb. Remember to not judge, envy, or curse the mountain of another. Mine is perfectly mine as long as I truly choose mine just as theirs is perfectly their own.

Pushing beyond fear can lead to incredible experiences. When doing something that causes fear I must remember what the worst case is. Will I die in this scenario? If so, maybe I shouldn’t do it unless I’m positive it is the last thing I wish to do. If I am very unlikely to die, I must be smart and safe, but I should also push past the fear. But what if I die? What’s the real loss – it was going to happen eventually anyway. So often the most beautiful, serene, and truly joyful experiences live just past fear. By avoiding all risk I would also avoid true joy.

Preparation helps create beauty and success through adversity. The more I prepare for all the possible contingencies the more likely I am to find success when confronting an obstacle.

The further away I am the more easily I can see the full picture and set my direction. The tighter I focus on each footstep the more likely I am to lose the trail. By focusing on each individual footstep one can climb the entire mountain. By focusing on the entire mountain I can quickly be intimidated by the size of the task at hand. The right answer to step back, set the vision, step close, and take one step at a time.

Always leave at least one mountain behind to haunt my dreams. The desire to hike it will bring me back to it in time more so than the desire to climb another mountain again. The mountain isn’t going anywhere before I go 😉

Great lessons for me to remember and apply to life. Great reminders of why I need to travel into the wilderness more 😉

Thanks!!!

Over the past few days we’ve been packed into a Honda Pilot with two people in each of the three rows of seating. We drove a total of well over 2,400 miles over blacktop, concrete, gravel, rock, and dirt. On the mountains and trails we hiked many miles and went well over 7,000 feet up in total elevation gain. We had rain, sun, heat, cold, frosty rocks, and wind. Much of the time everything went as well as or better than planned, but there were also a few times when things didn’t work out as we’d hoped. We went to bed early and rose by 3:15am each day to get out the door by 4am so we could be well on the trail by 5am. We put in a lot of work on this trip.

Why did we do it? There are certainly more than a handful of very accurate answers including:

• Because we could
• To enjoy the outdoors
• To experience new wilderness activities
• To explore
• To push ourselves physically and mentally
• To rejuvenate and re-focus
• To become closer to the people we are meant to be
• To satisfy our wanderlust
• To enjoy time together doing something we love

While all of those answers are true to a point and 100% acceptable, there is something else that really drives me to to things like this. Technically, I guess there is one reason split three ways 😉

Dreams. Something like this comes from initially from one person’s dream. “I want to summit a mountain.” Once the dream is thought up it can be manifest. After the dream is completed it will quite often lead to another dream – “I want to climb a 14er.” From that dream this trip was sparked.

From this trip, the completion of a dream, more dreams spring up.

“I want to climb more mountains – specifically these dozen or so, including multiples in one day.”

“I want to bring a camper out to Colorado for an entire summer to climb as many mountains as I can.”

“When we get older we should hike the 400-ish mile Colorado Trail together.”

“I’m coming for you Mt Massive!”

“I want to watch a sunrise from either Hope Pass or atop Quail Mountain.”

One simple dream, completed. Another dreamt up from the success of the first. A bigger dream completed. More dreams, grander in scale, created through the success of the second. Dream momentum. That is what I am thankful for today, the dream momentum each of us has as a result of an intensely awesome experience like this.

Dream momentum, worth every single ounce of blood, sweat, tears, and sacrifice. One of the greatest forces in all of life… and now my boys and I have it rolling stronger and stronger. I can’t wait to see where our next sets of crazy big dreams take us!

Thanks!!!

Nothing like starting the day off with a hot cup of coffee on a cool morning while sitting out on the deck… especially with a view like this!

What a perfect start to our last day in the mountains. Chilling out, sipping a mug of hot coffee, enjoying the quiet that is only broken up by the sound of hummingbirds flying a few feet from my head, and savoring the view of the mountains in the distance. What made it even more serene was the sight of both the mountain we climbed yesterday, Quail Mountain, and the mountain I’ll be back to climb one day, Mount Massive. My eyes slowly shifted focus from one to another and then to the rest of the range in front of me.

I didn’t have a book. I only used my phone to take a photo. I didn’t listen to music. I simply sat and existed in the presence of the majestic behemoths in front of me. It was perfect. Another moment I’ll hold in my souls for eternity.

Thanks!!!