Isn’t it crazy how I can sometimes get caught in a rut.  I do the same things over and over, listen to the same songs, read the same books.  For someone with a short attention span like me I still haven’t quite figured out why that’s the case.  Maybe it’s because I find comfort in the same things subconsciously, maybe a part of me is being intellectually lazy, or maybe I just am tuned in to what I like.  I’m not sure, and I’m not overly worried about it.  Once in a while something happens that causes me to take note of that idiosyncrasy of mine, and today I had one of those moments.

To be very clear, I really like my church.  It’s upbeat, open minded, and fits closely to my personal faith.  Earlier today I had the opportunity to join my mom at her church, which is very different than ours.  In going it was a wonderful chance to hear the same message and beliefs packaged in a different package.

Sometimes I get caught up in the monotony of doing the same thing each week.  My mind wanders and I start getting my focus in different directions.  When I’m not present I’m missing out on so much of the message that I could be learning and growing from.  Times like this morning break me out of the normal rut and help me hear the stories and thoughts a little differently.  Funny how that works, isn’t it?  That break from tradition helps me appreciate the tradition while helping me view my beliefs from a new perspective.  I am able to appreciate the different delivery and the different views of the same beliefs, all while appreciating the normal delivery.  It doesn’t quite seem like it would make sense, but it totally does.  Today was a wonderful reminder of that.

As we walked out it was cool to hear that the boys had the same mindset and enjoyed it greatly.  I’m not saying that they should switch or anything, but I was very happy that instead of clinging to what they are used to they were open minded of and accepting of a different delivery.  They thoroughly enjoyed the church service – how great is that?  I am so thankful of their open mindedness to others and new ideas!

All in all, it was very successful morning!  Time with my mom, time seeing from a new perspective, time appreciating my usual perspective, and time appreciating the mindsets of my boys.

Thanks!!!

Today was supposed to go way differently than it did. In an alternate universe I went for my morning run, got a ton of work done, and wrapped up the evening at an teammate appreciation party…

Instead of been bed ridden, feeling awful, and will be going to bed shortly with hopes of sleeping for about 16 hours. Being sick really sucks!

But that’s actually what I’m thankful for today. It’s not often at all that I get sick like this. I’m usually healthy and ready to take on just about anything. Very rarely do I miss anything due to a bug like this. I’m usually feeling great and healthy and I sometimes take that for granted. Days like today remind me to be appreciative of that great luck with health and savor it more often.

Thanks!!!

😴

Amongst some of my favorite running related books are:

• Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
• Natural Born Heroes by Christopher McDougall
• Eat & Run by Scott Jurek
• Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes
• Finding Ultra by Rich Roll
• Once a Runner by John L Parker

Just a hunch, but I’m thinking that there’s soon to be a new addition to the list…  North by Scott Jurek.

It’s a book written by Scott and his wife chronicling his attempt to set the Fastest Known Time for completing the entire Appalachian Trail, all 2,000+ miles of it.  Pretty much everything I could ever hope for in this story, trials of endurance and grit, an appreciation of nature and hiking, and even the give and take of a relationship of two individuals who enjoy being outside and moving.  Heck, hiking the entire Appalachian Trail is even on my dream list!

While the past couple of books I’ve read were more leadership focused, this one really is helping to fuel my grittiness.  Funny how hearing stories like this gets me all jazzed up and ready to go!  I might even do a couple of extra miles tomorrow 😉

I’m only halfway through, but I’m already looking forward to some quality drive time to keep hearing more of the story.

Thanks!!!

Our annual Express Employment Professionals Simulcast was today and we had the opportunity to hear from three incredible speakers.  In each of their presentations I was able to pull some great ideas and see things a little differently.

Mark King, CEO of Adidas spun a wonderful tale of how he and his executives at TaylorMade started with a very grand vision of where they wanted to go.  They mapped out their aspirations of future greatness and then used that to lead them in the right direction.  As he spoke my mind ignited with an idea that I had never quite put together in my brain.  There’s this huge crazy view of where I think we can take our business, how we can have an incredible impact on so many, and it’s not actually that totally crazy.  It’s just this side of do-able.  While Mark continued to speak I shut off my ears and started sketching out my vision before it slipped away.  Now as I’ve had some time to think through it more I’ve found that this idea will be a great place to start our planning process for 2019 and I can’t wait to finish it!

Josh Sundquist is an incredibly inspirational speaker who I’ve had the privilege of experiencing once before.  At age 9 he lost his leg due to cancer and has been a poster child of gratitude, grit, and dreaming big ever since.  In his speech he shared the story of how he was attempting to play baseball at a church function after losing his leg and struggled mightily.  Each swing and a miss sent him falling to the ground.  After seven strikes he was ready to quit, but his dad talked him into continuing to try…  “Just keep swinging.”  Finally, after 13 strikes and spills to the ground he made contact!  Later in life he continued to use that mindset and focused on the mantra 1MT1MT…  One More Thing, One More Time.  What a powerful statement that is.  We are capable of accomplishing anything, when we first fail we need to follow that mindset…  One More Thing, One More Time.  To say that I was motivated to take on anything (including the crazy big vision I’d started to write down during Mark’s presentation).

Later in the day I was able to let several thoughts and ideas gel into one solid and concise whole.  Lately I’ve wanted to be in multiple places doing multiple things all at the same time.  While I haven’t found a way to do One More Thing One More Time to master the space time continuum, I was able to find a way to bend it a little today.  Using several ideas from some teammates I was able to formulate a way to accomplish about four different days with four different tasks with about eight teammates all at once and in a more impactful way than had I split into several directions.  To say I’m giddy about the solution would be an understatement!  I’m so thankful for all of those thoughts and ideas swirling in the chaos of my brain colliding into one wonderfully holistic answer.

So many things to be thankful for today…  Yet again my mind is blown with all I’ve been blessed with…  Family around me, my health and ability to run and be physically active, my friends, wonderful teammates, great mentors, inspirational stories, the ability to positively impact others, huge and awesome dreams, and the beautiful natural world around me.  I am so grateful for each of these things and so much more.

Thanks!!!

Special thanks to KathiJo for the idea tonight!

Tonight Becky and I went off on a different type of “workout date” than what we’re used to.  Thanks to a recommendation from Becky’s friend KathiJo we left the boys behind and headed out to try something completely outside of what we’ve done before…  a cycling class!

We headed out to Uptown Cycle for our first time and had a blast!  The was only the second class like that I’ve been to in my life, and the last one was about a decade ago.  I had no idea that riding on a bike that went absolutely nowhere could be so much fun.  The changes in pace felt great, my heart rate was absolutely pounding much of the time, and I’m pretty sure I’m going to be pretty sore when I get out of bed in the morning (you know me, I’m never one to ease my way into anything!).  Long story short, I’ll definitely be doing that again in the not too distant future.

Becky and I are so fortunate to enjoy these types of crazy things together, it clearly shows me that we’ll have no shortage of things to do when we retire at some point.  Getting a great sweat on always feels good, but it feels even better when we’re going on a “workout date” together.

Thanks!!!

When the alarm went off this morning all I wanted to do was turn it off and go back to sleep.  Instead I took a deep breath, stretched out, checked the weather, and got out of bed.  From there everything else just seemed to click.  Next thing I knew I was on a mission.

My day today was pretty much planned out from my run through the evening including a stretch of non-stop calls and meetings from 8:00am through 2:45pm.  With that in mind I got this weird and twisted notion that I was going to enjoy a crazy busy day…  Not just enjoy it, but crush it.  I had a plan, it was time to execute.

On my drive into work I found myself smiling at the prospect of the day in front of me.  There was much to be done and I was going to make it happen.  It was pretty wild!  Seriously, I wish I could pinpoint what specifically it was that got me this fired up this morning, I’d try to simulate it each morning.  I was pumped up, motivated and ready to kick Monday’s butt!

Now as I wind down I’ve got a couple more things to cover and then it’s off to bed for this old guy…  Tuesday’s got some big plans for me, I need to be rested and ready to kick its butt too!

Special congrats to Dominic on an excellent Cross Country season!  He did an excellent job and really found a new gear this year.  Huge kudos to him and thanks to his coaches  – including Becky 😉

Thanks!!!

When I picked up the boys from camping this morning I got there before they’d broken camp.  This provided me the opportunity to help them take down tents and bring back a bunch of old memories, but it also let me see Dominic’s leadership skills in action.  He was helping younger scouts roll tents, fold tents, and stay on task.  It was so awesome seeing how patient he was with each of them, how supportive he was, and how he was directive in a very positive way.  I’m so proud of the strong leader he’s already becoming.

Once we got home Dominic started feeling a little under the weather and stayed in his room to sleep so it was Gavin and I all morning and afternoon.  We had a great time doing basic things around the house, he was a great help today.

Once we’d gotten most of the stuff done that we had to we headed up to the workshop where he was ready to start working on his “Kiwi Closet,” the cabinet he started a while back.  He sanded everything down while I put up another wall panel to finish the nearly completed insulation of the workshop.  Once the sanding was complete the two of us worked together to put the wood conditioner on and then his first coat of stain.  He picked up on it pretty quick and it turned out great!

Throughout the day the two of us had a lot of time together and it was great having my buddy along with for almost every ride I went on (he opted out of the grocery store run with Becky and I).  It reminded me of when Dominic was in a similar stage at about the same age and we’d spend a ton of time together.  This time with Gavin was great to create new memories and reminded me of the fun Dominic and I have also had.  Kind of an awesome daily double if you will!

There’s been much to be thankful for today, but seeing Dominic’s growing leadership skills in action followed up with a healthy dose of Gavin was about two of the best things I could’ve hoped for today!

Thanks!!!

Very bittersweet day today. It was the end of an ear that’s gone on for the past nine years or so. Each October is Spook O Ree for Cub Scouts. This annual event consists of heading out to Camp Decorah to have fun on giant inflatables, haunted hayrides, and have a great time hanging out as a father and son(s). Today was the last day of Spook O Ree for the Gavin as a Cub Scout.

The boys and I have had many great memories over the years at this event and have started several traditions like going out to eat before we head out to camp. There were so many crazy weather patterns including snow, rain, frost and wind. Regardless, we always had an awesome time together. Knowing that this chapter is now completed leaves me feeling thankful for the experience and a little sad knowing it’s over.

Keeping that in mind, one of the best things about something coming to an end is the new beginning that it results in. Tonight Gavin is out with the Boy Scouts camping. This is the first time he’s camping solo with Boy Scouts without Dad. Similar to the feelings of the end of our Spook O Ree Cub Scout days it’s very bittersweet. Gavin is growing up so fast and then seeing Dominic in a leadership role has me seeing how quickly he’s growing up as well. It’s also pretty cool seeing them together as scouts again.

Seeing Gavin grow from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts has effectively started and I’m very thankful that it will keep going like this for the next four months or so. It will give me a chance to fully grasp the transition and appreciate the growth of the boys. In the meantime I’m so thankful for all the time we’ve already had together at Spook O Rees in the past and all the adventures for us yet to come.

Thanks!!!

Today I’m reminded of the power of clearly defined values. Decisions are just so much easier to make when run through the filter of values. Let’s not get overzealous, it’s still brutal to take difficult action when warranted, but the decision itself is so clear.

Today’s been filled with many wonderful moments including time at Spook O Ree with my bestest buddy Gavin (the term he calls me), fun growth conversations with teammates, and little moments of appreciation like the smell of pine needles on a fire and perfectly cool sleeping weather. There were also difficult moments like having to let go, having some tough conversations, realizing mistakes I made. When I think about almost all of those moments they were shaped by little decisions based on my values.

While I haven’t lived perfectly today there’ve been so many times I’ve caught myself going back to my “values playbook” to help make a decision. In one instance in particular I was reminded of the importance of living a specific value so other eyes watching me were able so see that we live our values even through difficult decisions. In so many times throughout the day I rely on those values to guide me, and today I’m thankful for how they’d made my life easier.

Thanks!!!