Day 3,040

Growth:

Without an insanely full plan the entire span of time is used to accomplish the less than full plan set forth. With an insanely full plan the same span of time is used to accomplish so much more. The same amount of time will be spent regardless. Plan huge, bust ass, and maximize the time.

Appreciation:

Over the past eight weeks or so there has been a gathering momentum in my life. Pushing further, striving for more, clarifying goals. My sense of purpose has grown, I’m seeing a much more clear view of the gap between who I am and who I should be. I’ve seen this gap in the past, but now it seems I’m also seeing the materials to build the bridge across it. As I take each step forward it seems as if Universe keeps conspiring to make the next step more visible and easier to take. I’m gathering inertia and I can’t stop smiling.

As I look back over the past month and change of tracking I’ve of course noticed a couple of days that were off, they were 0’s (on my scale of -2 to +2 of how joyful the day was), but they are few and far between. I have yet to log a -1 or -2 (though I know they will happen at some point most likely). What’s interesting is that on the 0 days I find I haven’t made progress towards a goal, I haven’t lived into my purpose. When I score myself at night and write notes to myself about what happened I seem to quickly notice the issue and have always bounced back the next day. In some ways those 0’s motivate me to live better into the next day!

So grateful to enjoy this inertia AND so motivated to keep up the hard work that keeps it growing.

Presence:

Today seems to be a collection of moments of presence, especially those focused on connecting with others.

• Excellent conversation during my morning run with Becky
• An early morning meeting with someone I’m helping with their career
• Hand delivering a copy of my book to someone who brought back some wonderful memories
• Celebrating the success of six weeks of a fitness plan with the coach who’s helping to create the success
• Connecting with fellow franchisees on shared challenges and successes
• Starting plans for a future adventure with a friend
• Setting up spontaneous plans with a couple of lifelong buddies
• Talking with Mom on my drive home
• FaceTime with Dominic to catch up on his college experience
• Dinner with Becky and Gavin

So many moments of connection with others, so many smiles, so much presence.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,039

Growth:

Take thirty minutes to distill a book into a usable and memorable summary for future reference. Wonderful investment of time!

Appreciation:

I’m not sure I’ve ever quite covered this before or not, but I’m so appreciative of my passion for reading. There is so much knowledge and wisdom to soak up from others and reading is a wonderful vehicle for learning.

Presence:

There was a specific moment while reading Matthew McConaughey’s book, Greenlights, that snapped my head into an immediate state of presence. So much so that I had to go back and re-read the sentence.

When Matthew told his dad that he was no longer going to pursue being a lawyer and instead attend acting school his dad responded with five words. Five words that emboldened Matthew. Five words that were his dad’s acceptance and encouragement all rolled into one. Five words of advice that would help motivate and push him.

“Well, don’t half assume it.”

So many memories of Dad offering the same advice came flooding back. Many time I received that advice, that blessing, that instillment of hard earned wisdom, that challenge to be the best version of myself.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,038

Growth:

Interesting concept to come back to at another time (aka a breadcrumb for Future Mike to follow sometime)…

Two very different tasks with very different results in the past 48 hours led to an excellent couple of examples of investing time. Learning video editing software is something that will pay large returns in the future as “memory dividends” from travel. Learning how to reconfigure Outlook for a minor improvement after a laptop has been reimaged will not have solid returns. I pushed through on the video editing app and rightfully quit the Outlook change after five minutes and went back to a vastly superior technique – pen and paper.

Rather than diving into time consuming projects I need to remember to pause and evaluate the future return to put my time in the right place.

Appreciation:

There are many times when I have an idea that I get very passionate about. Too often I leave it as an idea and don’t act on it like I really should. Today I realized it was time to start acting on two of those ideas and I’m so glad I did! The sense of purpose has been amazing!

Presence:

Between my small group workout and yoga I’m totally tapped! For reals, my legs will be crying when I wake up for my run tomorrow morning. That said – the clarity, focus, and presence of both workouts today were totally worth it.

There was a specific moment during final rest knight in which my body was exhausted and my brain just let go in which I felt a deep oneness with all. A perfect moment of stillness connected with everything thanks to the intense physical activity.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,037

Growth:

The power of a list is rather incredible. As soon as I have goals, tasks, and projects written down there’s a much higher likelihood that they will be accomplished and I attack them with a stronger sense of urgency. Today I put that power to work and made progress in a couple of directions rather than wasting time.

Appreciation:

This has been a solid weekend at home – no crazy agenda, no big plans, just a lot of time with Becky, Gavin, and Leia and time to myself. A wonderful opportunity to pause the world and enjoy time at home. Exactly what the doctor ordered! Throughout my brain has had the space to wander to a handful of conclusions that will help out in the future – both for work and personal stuff. I love travel and vacations, but sometimes the time at home is exactly what I need.

Presence:

This one may seem a little weird, but I’m grateful for the moment of presence I am currently in as I type this blog. Even though I’ve done this over three thousand days in a row it is still something I look forward to every single day, an opportunity to pause and chill. Today it was exactly the moment I needed to pause and focus.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,036

Growth:

Knock out the to do list early and enjoy time focused on relaxing and recharging, preferably in way which works towards our goals and purpose.

Appreciation:

Becky mentioned it while we were snowshoeing today – “I’m glad you enjoy doing stuff like this!” Ditto!

Life is better when shared with someone while doing something you are both passionate about. Being outside, physically active, and appreciating all the splendor of nature together is one of each of our favorite activities. I’m grateful for sharing life with someone else who also feels a profound sense of wonder in experiencing the outdoors.

Presence:

Our almost two hours of snowshoeing was glorious!!! The sun was out, we had half of the state park all to ourselves, and got a nice sweat going while wandering the trails together.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,035

Growth:

I’m sticking with the theme you’re about to read in the next sections, I’m going with multiple growth moments and lessons.

• Our presence can make a positive impact – pause, be still, listen, be present.
• Everything is figure-outable.
• Vision without action is a dream, action without vision is a nightmare.
• When in doubt check in with a friend for another perspective.

Appreciation:

Today has had quite the combination of time alone and time with others. Both have led to many highlights and created a bevy of memorable moments.

It has been a full day in so many ways. So many life lessons. So many moments of right and purposeful action. So many shared moments. A full day throughout!

Presence:

There were a handful of moments today that really stuck out including hearing a new version of an old favorite song, a surprised smile, laughs with a team, moments of insight, family game night, and laughs on the couch with Gavin watching a movie. so many moments of presence and focus!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,033

Growth:

Beyond grateful for having the wisdom to take a couple of days off before lifting again after tweaking my back! Hit the weights and treadmill today and felt 100%. More of a test tomorrow as I’m sure there will be some more back work, but so far so good.

Slow is fast sometimes, and this was one of those times.

Appreciation:

While on my laptop for a different project tonight I stumbled upon some videos Dominic recorded about seven years ago. I was laughing and smiling as I took a very unexpected trip down memory lane.

So glad we take so many pictures and videos, they are profoundly powerful memory enhancers. Going through so many old clips will leave me smiling as I fall asleep tonight.

Presence:

Quiet time at home watching old videos was priceless. Exactly what my soul needed even though I didn’t know it did.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,032

Growth:

In tracking my daily joy levels it has become very clear that the more I live towards a purpose or goal the higher my joy. The more unfocused I am, the more distracted I am by meaningless things the lower my score. Tonight that logic propelled me to finish a project I’ve been working on for quite some time and I’m feeling so much more fulfilled.

Appreciation:

Today I finished reading The Wager by David Grann. It is a historical nonfiction about a British shipwreck in the 1740’s and documents the story of the sailors involved. At times I had to pause to remember that this really happened AND that many of those involved were less than a year older than Gavin is today. Such a difference between expectations from then until now!

It was also quite a contrast to the story of the Endurance under the leadership of Ernest Shackleton. So many leadership ideals and concepts to pull from both!

Gotta love mixing in history to see how much has changed AND how much has stayed the same!

Presence:

After dinner Gavin went to his studying and I folded laundry, packed my workout clothes for tomorrow, and prepared tomorrow’s lunch. I turned on my audiobook and went to town on my tasks. The calming sensation of working on the mundane with my hands was incredibly centering and caused a profound state of chill presence.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,031

Growth:

Take time to heal when necessary, but not so much time as to cause further injury. Today I let my tweaked lower back rest and heal. I skipped the morning run and the late day lifting to give it a little time off. I still went to yoga tonight to stretch and relax it. Tomorrow will see a light morning workout, but no lifting until Wednesday.

Just enough time off to let it fix itself, but not so much time off that I lose fitness. A delicate balance.

Appreciation:

During my work morning I had an awful downward spiral. I was frustrated and seemingly every moment saw a new reason to sink. When I realized what I was doing I paused and utilized a lesson from Awareness.

I sat in stillness and observed the thoughts in my head. I did nothing to change them, I just listened to them, became more aware of them. As I listened I saw patterns and started to trace where they came from. I wrote notes to myself about what I was hearing in my own mind.

Just like being scared of ghosts in a dark room, as soon as I started shining a flashlight on the rogue thoughts they all dispersed. I was left with my notes, a journal of the thoughts, to help me move forward in a more productive way.

So grateful for remembering to take time for awareness of my thoughts today, it made all the difference!

Presence:

Yoga, one of three best ways to pause, breathe, and be fully in the moment. My brain quiets. Stress dissolves. There is no ego. Only breath, motion, and calm presence remain.

Thanks!!!