The majority of my drive to Winona this morning was spent with one thing on my mind – the breathtaking sunrise behind me. It was one of those awesome ones when the sky starts changing into that deep dark red on the horizon. There was a beam of light that slowly ascended from the earth to the heavens and stood like a pillar without any peek at the sun below it. The sky slowly shifted to all different shades of purple and pink as the sun slowly rose. Even though I was viewing it largely from my mirrors it took my breath away. How awesome to view such a spectacular sight in the morning? Having all of it unfold above the bluffs and the Mississippi made it all the more majestic. I’m grateful for those moments of extreme natural beauty.

On one of my seven Zoom/Teams calls today I was laughing pretty hard. We were talking about “way back in the day” and having to actually pay for long distance calls. My friend Justin reminded me of one of the items almost every college student had back in the mid to late ’90’s… a phone card. This was the wonderful piece of plastic that was pre-loaded with a certain number of minutes so you could call home and talk without having to pay for long distance. I still remember burning through many of those back in the day when I’d call my parents at a very reasonable hour – usually after 10pm!

The phone card in of itself isn’t what I’m really grateful for today, but rather a symbol of something I’m thankful for. Think about it – that was only 20-25 years ago! Isn’t it wild to think of just how far technology has come in such a short period of time? I can’t remember the last time I looked at a phone bill that showed long distance charges other than when I leave the country.

It also reminded me of my first “real” job when I got my first pager. Just over 21 years ago I was mesmerized by my ability to see baseball scores being updated in almost real time when I wasn’t by a TV, computer, or radio. I still have a couple of old fantasy football magazines from back in the day showing the newer and fancier versions of the pager. What a change over a couple of decades!

What I’m thankful for is the reminder to pause and be grateful for what we have, while imaging a better tomorrow. Sometimes it’s easier to appreciate something when I can look back to something from the past to remind myself of how much better life is today. That little mention of a “phone card” did just that for me today.

Thanks!!!

This evening our Winona, MN team completed a focus group of our employees to pick their brains on many topics related to employment. Without giving away any spoilers it was an incredible success! In addition to the wealth of ideas and information we were able to receive there was no short supply of compliments as well. I was very grateful for the opportunity for my team to hear about all of the great work they’ve been doing firsthand from the people they serve on a daily basis.

What really struck me was just how differently I assumed some people saw the world. In my head I thought I had many of the motivations figured out. I’ve been doing this for so many years I thought it would all tie back to what I’ve learned throughout that time. Sure, there were some pretty staple answers too, but there were many more times in which I was left surprised.

Back in the day I was fortunate to be selected to go to a training in London, Ontario focused on thinking with an “Outside In” mindset rather than an “Inside Out” mindset. Using the Outside In approach you gather info from outside the organization and use it to drive strategy. Inside Out is making assumptions from within and then taking action. Of course it is clear to see that Outside In is the preferred method, but it is so easy to put the blinders on without knowing it and to think Inside Out.

The focus group today was an excellent reminder of why it is important to take a step back and get that outside opinion. The insights we gleaned will have an impact on our strategy and direction and I’m so thankful for them. I can honestly say our 2021 will be even more successful as a result of having that knowledge.

Where else in life should I remember to pause and listen to outside voices? Maybe not just listen to them, but actively seek them out. This is a lesson that will bounce through my brain for many months I’m sure.

Thanks!!!

Whew!!! What a day it’s been! From an early morning drive up north to time in the workshop with Dominic tonight it’s been a full one.

There are a handful of things I’d like to blog about, but they aren’t things that can always be shared in detail. I know, sounds suspenseful, right? Totally not intentional, and certainly nothing scandalous. Here are some of the high level highlights:

• Laying in bed after waking up and seeing how low I can drop my heart rate (39bpm)
• Reading my daily Stoic meditation before getting up
• Re-listening to the Jim Collins podcast I wrote about last night and gleaning more ideas and insights
• Enjoying the quiet and calm of being in an office before anyone else comes in
• Enjoying the rapidly increasing sounds of teammates coming into the office
• Learning from past mistakes
• Seeing others view mistakes as their biggest successes as it was an opportunity for hem to learn (living the Growth Mindset)
• Learning from the advice of mentors
• Patience – from others, for others
• Well timed jokes
• Having the confidence to say no to potential business deal that isn’t a favorable one
• Seeing how excited Becky is when she’s talking about her work day
• Teaching Dominic how to grill
• The smells of different species of sawdust
• The stinging in my eyes from sawdust
• Learning I can get my favorite Old Fashioneds to go
• The weight of LuLu leaning up against me as she whines and insists I should be rubbing her belly instead of typing my blog

There are those and so many other moments of awesomeness in my life for which I’m grateful for today.

Life, thanks for all you gave me today – the good, the bad, the motivating, the frustrating, and everything in between. I’m grateful for each moment and the opportunity to exist today.

Thanks!!!

Last week I caught a new podcast in my feed that stopped me in my tracks. Tim Ferriss was interviewing Jim Collins. If you’d like to check it out you can find it here: The Tim Ferriss Show Transcripts: Jim Collins on The Value of Small Gestures, Unseen Sources of Power, and More (#483) – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

Jim Collins is by far and away my favorite business strategy author. Meeting him almost three years ago knocked off #17 on my dream list. The way his brain works is nothing short of incredible. When making an important business decision I can virtually guarantee that his advice from one of his books (including Good to Great and Great by Choice) will be running through my brain.

Hearing his interview with Tim blew my mind even more than I ever would have expected. What I appreciate about Jim’s style is his inquisitiveness, logic, and thought process. While I of course got some of his sage like business advice as well, what really has had me thinking often came from several other directions. Here’s just a short snippet of some of the topics / thoughts that have had me thinking long since first listening to it.

• What is it that really drives you?
• Seeking out and appreciating the dichotomy of “light” and “dark” forces our heroes exhibit. Seeing the jump from their difficult times to their peaks.
• “30 years and 30 minutes” – how the past dean of admissions at Princeton makes great admission decisions. The example of the potential student who’s vocation of choice was demolition derby.
• The power of spontaneous gratitude for someone
• The importance of preparation and deep research
• The many lessons that can be gleaned from reading biographies and autobiographies
• The power of questions and curiosity in business

So many wonderful stories and concepts from this podcast that my mind is still reeling. I’m so thankful for hearing this podcast, I am excited to listen to it again tomorrow on my drive to let it fully sink in.

Thanks!!!

Over the past few Christmases we’ve offered the boys the option of gifts or a vacation. Part of the reasoning behind it is to help them learn to appreciate experiences more than stuff. The deeper we’ve gone into the pandemic the more we’ve all appreciated the travel we’ve done in the last. There have been many times the conversation will go back to some excellent memories we have made together while on vacation.

This year has obviously been different and vacations aren’t really on the agenda until more gets sorted out with COVID. That said, there’s one we’ve got planned for June of next year that it would be very difficult for COVID to disrupt. Through Scouts we’re going to backpack as we hike across Isle Royale all 40+ miles.

Instead of travel itself we went back to the well in a different way and got the boys a Christmas gift geared towards travel – nice backpacking bags. As luck would have it we found some at REI in Appleton last night and picked up their Christmas presents early (I also got an early Christmas present of Chick-fil-A in the drive through, but that’s another blog for another day 😉).

Rather than wrapping them up and putting them under the tree we busted them out for a trial run this morning. Loading up for church had me chuckling to myself. It wasn’t just us loading up like usual, it was each of bringing hiking clothes to change into and the boys and I each loading fully packed backpacks into the back of the car. As soon as we left church we hit County Road B, parked, and took off on a 5 mile test hike with the packs.

Not only was it fun busting out Christmas presets early, but it caused so much conversation about the upcoming trip (only a couple of months away). Sure, it wasn’t the same as actually traveling, but all of the parts that make family travel awesome were rolled into one. We had time as a family. We were outside doing physical activity together. We talked about travel memories. We talked about future travel. It was a crazy mini-vacation while we prepped for a future vacation.

Thanks!!!

Today was an awesome dose of normalcy that I’m extremely grateful for. Thanks to a combination of a few factors we were able to spend time with my little brother and his family without any fear of COVID. The hours flew by and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Hanging out with my brother. Meeting my new little nephew, Cooper. Spending time with my niece, Lauren. Talking with my sister in law, Jennifer. My boys hanging out with their Uncle Nick. Shooting the bull, watching a little football, eating lunch together, and chilling. How perfect is that?

For a handful of hours there was no pandemic – a perfect bubble of normalcy.

Thanks!!!

Dominic said he needed some supplies for a Christmas present or two. After work we loaded into the car and headed off to Menards together.

When Dad and I used to work on projects at our house we’d normally take a few trips to Menards throughout the course of the weekend. Despite our best efforts to get everything we needed the first time we always ended up missing something. Each time we would jump in the car we would shoot the bull and have a great time. We’d talk about project ideas, talk sports, talk about what we each had going on, and spent some quality chill time together. Who ever would have thought we could have such a wonderful time together running an errand like that?

On the drive tonight Dominic and I had a lot of fun shooting the bull. We talked about projects we both had in mind, we talked about what he was up to in school, we talked about work, and spent some quality chill time together. Precisely because I knew from experience we could have a wonderful time running errands together I enjoyed every single minute of it.

We walked through the store, talked about the pros and cons of different types of wood. We covered different types of joints. We made a lot of jokes as we walked through the store. We had a blast.

By the time we got home I was smiling from ear to ear.

I’m so grateful for the Menards trip with Dominic tonight. It brought back some awesome memories while creating some new ones at the same time.

Thanks!!!

This morning my ride to Winona was pretty much perfect! Everything about the drive as ideal. The beauty of the bluffs was on full display courtesy of the sunrise casting a vibrant mix of oranges, pinks, and purples. The way the sun was peeking over the bluffs caused only the tops of the bluffs to light up which brought out even more of the contrast between exposed sandstone, forest, and valleys. The river was almost completely still and had the shimmer of liquid mercury.

As if all of that wasn’t quite enough there was even a point when a bald eagle was sitting in a tree, its head glowing an orange-ish pink as the rising sun hit it just right. I swear, it looked like the eagle was shining from an inner light. Talk about amazing!!!

To add to the visual beauty I somehow had the inspiration to fire up Lord Huron’s Meet Me In the Woods. The song added the perfect soundtrack to the views. You can check it out here: https://youtu.be/t3i0Kz5ZV8o if you want to get the full experience the next time you’re driving up the Mississippi River.

I promised myself long ago that I would never ever take this mind blowing commute for granted. There are even a couple of points on the road I use as a trip wire to remind me to stop and take it all in. Almost twenty one years later and I’m still loving what must be one of the most spectacular commutes in the Midwest.

While I always pause to soak it in this morning was just a little different. This morning it was exactly where I was supposed to be at the exact moment I was there. Do you know what I mean? Everything was lined up in the specific way it was supposed to be, so much so that I could feel it in my bones. There was a profoundly deep sensation of peace and serenity in living in the present. There was a time when I very briefly considered stopping to snap a quick pic, but that wasn’t what the moment called for. It was one of those moments in which I could hear Sean Penn’s line in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty:

If I like a moment, I mean me, personally… I don’t like to have the distraction of the camera. I just want to stay in it. Right there… Right here.

https://youtu.be/_jxbLj_Px_M

It was a moment of cosmic perfection. Nothing else in life mattered, I was in that moment completely. I’m so grateful for The Big Dude Upstairs both putting me in that moment and for helping me realize it was where I was meant to be.

Thanks!!!

I am exhausted! As soon as this is done I’ll set up my bike trainer for my ride tomorrow morning (if I don’t do it the night before there’s a possibility of me sleeping in a bit instead) and then I’m off to bed. A couple of weekends ago I was struggling to sleep so I watched “Dead Poets Society.” One of the quotes they use was from Walden, “I wanted to live deep and suck all the marrow of life.” When I think of today I can’t help but think of that quote.

Throughout the day there have been a handful of ideas for my blog. I’ve paused and been grateful for many things – so many that by the time I sat down to type my mind was racing. Then I started trying to put my thoughts in order from start to finish and all I could think was “that all happened today???”

I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for our run. My mind was still racing with ideas from the book I’m currently reading, What Doesn’t Kill Us by Scott Carney. I took an idea from the book and ran the full four miles in only shorts, a very light t-shirt, a hat and gloves. It was chilly but very invigorating.

On our run Becky and I had time to talk about quite a few things. It was our quiet time together for the day, our chance to be alone enjoying life, physical activity, and the oudoors.

Also on the run I saw one of the best shooting stars I’ve seen in a long time. It slowly ran in a bright long streak just to the south of Orion’s Belt. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to see it.

At home I sent an email to the author of the book to thank him for the motivation. By the time I was out of the shower I’d received and email back thanking me for sharing the experience. How awesome to have the ability to connect so easily with others we never would have imagined we’d be able to even just a few decades ago.

My breathing practice went very well and I was able to calm my mind. The depth of the meditative state was an amazing counterbalance to the activity of running outside in the cold.

In the shower I opted for a podcast instead of music. My favorite business author of all time, Jim Collins, recently did a podcast on the Tim Ferris Show. Hearing how his brain works got my mind running in a handful of directions and led to an increase in my future reading list.

At the end of the shower I was thinking I’d skip the cold water as I’d already had the cold run. Instead I decided to do what I should and embrace the discomfort. Next thing I knew I was back to a cold shower and it honestly felt incredible.

And this was all before 6:45am!

The rest of the day followed suit. I went from one activity to another. From one memory to another. There were so many moments when I just paused and was grateful for the experience – good or bad. Not everything went to plan, but I was able to grow through each of those moments as well. The majority of the moments were easy to be thankful for.

Which leads back to my blog post tonight. I’m thankful for having a day when my brain keeps thinking “that all happened today???” If I choose to live my life in this fashion each and every day I am certain of a couple of things. First, I’ll be totally exhausted by the time I die and ready for the nap. Secondly, what an incredibly fulfilling life I would have led! Surrounded by family, doing what I love, thinking, feeling, loving, and be thankful for all that is in my life. Days like this are welcome anytime, even if they may leave me tired.

Thanks!!!

Before I went to bed on Sunday night I knew this week was going to be a wild one. There’s a lot on my plate at work this week, a lot. That said, it’s a manageable amount, nothing too crazy. What’s weird is that I find an interesting sense of enjoyment in timeframes like this. I’ve written about them before, but I look at a week like this as a sprint. It’s going to be busy, there’s a lot to get done, and there’s a very small margin for error. I’ve got to use my time efficiently and focus on exactly what needs to be done. This may sound crazy, but I’m finding a level of inner peace in the forced focus of this week.

This evening I was grilling supper outside on the deck. Usually at this time of the year we’ve moved the grill inside the garage and get it out once in a while. We decided to leave it out this year and grill all winter long. Sure, there’s no snow yet, but so far so good! Some bacon wrapped beefy goodness always tastes so much better fresh off the grill. What’s funny is that I’m also enjoying the extra minutes of cold air exposure! I never would’ve thought that’d be a benefit I’d enjoy!

A few months ago (June/July?) I ordered a camping hammock. It was still in development but was due to be out in August. Due to circumstances outside the control of the manufacturer I kept watching the expected delivery date slide further and further back. As luck would have it the hammock arrived exactly an hour and a half AFTER we left for camping this weekend. I couldn’t help but laugh at the timing of that one! The boys helped me unpackaged it on Sunday to see what it all looked like. Tonight I was able to get it up briefly to test out a couple of the features. I’ll get a better test run with it in the near future, but for now it was great getting to set it up and have some fun. The boys and I were all smiles as we figured it out in the front yard, like kids at Christmas. Sure, it would have been awesome to have had it for camping this weekend, but sometimes the anticipation enhances the experience. I’m grateful for that tonight, and I’m even more grateful for having had time to set it up!

Thanks!!!