I am so thankful for the love and support of friends.  Today I had a couple of reminders of how blessed I am to be surrounded by friends who love and support me.  It was even more awesome by the way that they showed it in their own unique ways which I appreciate greatly.  They reminded me and motivated me to be better at providing that type of support and love for my friends more in the future.

Late in the day I was feeling my batteries pretty much zapped.  I leaned back, read a little of a great book (Designing Your Life) and took a short but perfectly relaxing 5 minute nap.  Taking the time to pause briefly and let myself relax to that level so quickly felt amazing.  Upon waking I felt so much more ready to slay some dragons and take on the rest of the day.

Before and after supper I spent some time outside with the boys as the storm started to roll in.  The clouds were cruising by and darkening in front of our eyes.  The breeze felt amazing in my face.  I could feel the pressure building as the storm gathered up momentum.  The sounds of almost continuous thunder echoed.  It was awesome.  There’s something I’ve always loved about those moments before the storm rolls in.  All of my senses seem to be heightened as Mother Nature prepares an awesome show for us.  To spend part of that time with Becky and the boys made it all the more enjoyable.

Thanks!!!

Over the past month or so we’ve been thinking a lot about finding a hunting rifle for Gavin.  He’s right handed but left eye dominant which makes it difficult to find a used rifle.  After Camp Grandpa Gavin has the opportunity to shoot the rifle Dominic’s been using over the past few year.

Dominic has been using my old hunting rifle (a sweet little Ruger Mini Thirty).  My parents bought it for me when I started deer hunting way back in the day.  I still remember going to pick it up with my dad.  That rifle was always fun to shoot, super dependable, and easy to carry through the woods.  I’d say it was accurate, but that was never one of my strengths 😉

When Gavin used Dominic’s rifle (my old one) he had some successful shooting.  The size of the rifle is a little smaller and the kick is a little lighter than most.  After asking my father-in-law (Ken) for some advice he suggested I find another rifle just like that one for Gavin.  When I hopped online I just about fell out of my chair when I saw the price of that model now a days.  I figured I’d do some searching and see what I could find over the next few months until hunting season.

Today Ken and Mary made a day trip down south to spend the day with us.  At one point we were talking about hunting rifles and I mentioned that I had an old family rifle that was jammed.  I figured I would take it in to a gunsmith to have it fixed.  It’s pretty old and hasn’t been shot in a while so I’d put it on the back burner.  After Ken and I talked about it he asked me to bring it out to show him.  At that time I was grilling some ribs for lunch so I handed him the rifle and went out to the grill.

When I came back in he was laughing and told me he’d figured out the problem.  He opened up the action and had me look way deep inside the chamber.  An old expended round was jammed in the chamber.  After only a couple of minutes of work with my Leatherman he had the rifle up and ready again.  I had no idea that my father-in-law had such excellent gunsmith skills!

Thanks to the skills and wisdom of Ken we’ve now got the hunting rifle situation all figured out for the boys this year.  Gavin will be using my old Mini Thirty and Dominic will be using the other old rifle.  The other old rifle, the one Ken fixed, has quite the history to it.  It is so fitting that Dominic will be using it this year for a couple of reasons, but I’ll save those for a future blog 😉

Thanks!!!

Over the past week and change I’ve received some very kind compliments.  They’ve included comments about how I’m “always happy,” “always high energy,” and “always positive.”  For clarity, this isn’t to brag – these moments help remind me of how important it is to keep my brain focused in the right directions at the right times.  While flattering, each of those three statements are completely incorrect.  I am not always happy, I am not always high energy, and I am not always positive.

I get angry, I lose my patience, I sulk, I worry about all the horrible things my imagination can dream up.  Sometimes things just suck compared to how I’d like to have them work out.  Things don’t go as I desire, what I want to have happen doesn’t materialize.  In many cases it’s not even anything serious that can set me off and frustrate me.  Even simple little things can set me off and cause me to not be the person people say I “always” am.

As a for instance, this morning I was painting and putting a second coat of paint in Gavin’s room.  After a variety of mishaps including stepping in wet paint, bumping my wet brush on a very different colored wall, and a mistake or two by Gavin that just torqued me the right way, I finally blew a gasket when the paint peeled right off the wall along with the tape protecting the trim.  I totally lost it, was seeing red, and was ready to scream (which I may have a little).

That’s when some wonderful words of advice started to sneak into my head:

• What can I learn from this?
• Does what’s happened keep me from acting with justice, generosity, self-control, sanity, prudence, honesty, humility, straightforwardness, and all the other qualities that allow a person’s nature to fulfill itself?  The thing itself was no misfortune at all; to endure it and prevail is great good fortune.
• Imagine that my life should have rightfully ended now, and therefore live the remainder, this gracious addition, according to nature.
• How would the best version of me respond in this situation?

As those thoughts slipped into my head I realized how poorly I’d acted and reacted to the moment.  I pause and consider how I should have acted in that moment and see the gap between who I was and who I should be.  With that in mind I’m able to take a deep breath, think, and do my best to live into that right version of me.  It’s not perfect, it doesn’t undo my initial reaction, but it makes me smile as I realize that I can do something to be better as a result of it.

Those words of advice and so many others help me put my brain in the right place.  Today it was something relatively minor that caused those anecdotes to come to mind, I’m so thankful they popped into my head and helped me live into a better version of me today.  While I would’ve rather not had those frustrations I’m thankful for them as they’ve helped me be a better me.

Thanks!!!

After work tonight I headed up to Camp Pepin to pick Dominic up from his week at YMCA camp. While we had friends who were more than happy to pick him up I saw an opportunity to spend some bonus time with him. I’m so thankful I did, he talked my ear off all the way home! It was awesome!

Last week Gavin and I had a very similar experience when I picked him up from camp. The time alone with both boys was so special. To hear the excitement in there voices, to hear the stories of what they did and to just spend time with them was fantastic. While I truly enjoy time with my entire family there is something so special about those rare times when there are only two of us.

Once home I was able to jump right into the company of a great group of friends at our house. Tonight was round two of our childhood comfort food dinner tour. The main course Becky fired up was Mexican Hero Sandwiches, Funeral Potatoes, and Kenny’s Dessert. The additional shrimp salad by Jeremy was an awesome bonus. The food was great, the time with our groups of friends was exceptional!

I’m so grateful for the time spent with friends like this, who you can open up to about anything, talk about anything, and laugh with constantly. I’m pretty sure the balance of talking versus laughing was more weighted towards laughing. What an awesome time we had!

How interesting that my gratitude lays with a single person and with a singular group of people? It seems like an odd balance but at the same time it is perfectly understandable.

Thanks!!!

Tonight we got everything done around the house right after dinner Gavin had an awesome idea that I couldn’t say no to…  Watching the TV show Good Omens.  It’s an awesome series based on one of my all time favorite books.

After being out of town, Gavin being at camp for a week before, and all the running around in different directions chilling on the couch having a few good laughs while hanging out watching a silly show has been exactly what I needed.  Becky’s been sitting right near us and has been setting her book down once in a while to join in with us.

I’m really looking forward to Saturday night when all four of us are home at once, chilling with no plans, playing games and probably ending the night on the couch just like this!

Thanks!!!

What a day it’s been!

The last day of Express Leadership Academy didn’t disappoint – more fantastic leadership training and development today. Throughout the day I had many moments to continue bonding with my ELA cohorts to continue strengthening ongoing relationships and building new ones. I’ve had time with business partners to walk alongside the ocean while talking strategy and seeing just how much we all have in common.

While on the airplane and at the airport I’ve had time to go through all of my notes from the past few days. This exercise has helped me embed so much of the learning into my brain more deeply. While reviewing and typing my notes there were a few mind blowing realizations that will stick with me. I’m so thankful for them.

Even though I’ve been out my teams have stepped up daily in so many ways to help each other out. There were more than a couple of moments when I caught myself grinning like a fool and almost moved to tears as they helped each other while helping our clients – all without direction. It was so clear to see that they truly live our values and I’m so thankful for them.

With all of those blessings and so many other there is one thing I’m most thankful for though. I’m going home. Very soon I’ll be home. I’ll snuggle up in bed next to Becky and drift off to sleep with the dogs on their beds in the corner of the bedroom and Gavin asleep in his room (Dominic is still at camp). We’ll all be sleeping, but it will still be magic to me – I’ll be home.

I love my work, I love my teams, I love my friends, and I love my family – and I really love being at home with my family. Of all the possibilities in the world home with them is always the best option (unless we’re on vacation 😉).

Thanks!!!

The past couple of days have been filled with so many excellent ideas – leadership concepts, tactical techniques, jaw dropping realizations, and thoughts about life in general.  There’ve been so many of those ideas all mixed with great times with so many of my Express Leadership Academy cohorts that by the evening my brain was getting full.  Instead of adding more to the mix I paused and listened to hear where the Universe was leading me.  I’m so thankful I did.

Over the past couple of months I’ve been so focused on a couple of specific aspects of my life that I’ve found that there are other areas I’ve been neglecting.  With all the running around on the weekends I haven’t been to church in well over a month.  There’ve only been a couple of times in which I’ve gone to yoga in the past month.  My eating has taken a turn for the worse and I’m catching myself have a drink more often.  Exercising has gone right down the tubes and I’ve put too many pounds back on in a short time.  I’m so wore down by the end of the day that I’ve spent more time on meaningless and mindless crap at the end of the day instead of focusing on something productive.  In short, I’ve focused on only a couple of the most important aspects of my life, let many others go by the wayside, and instead have filled my time with “stuff” that doesn’t lead me towards my dreams.  Over the past few days this has really moved more and more into my line of sight and I must change it immediately.  To be clear, this isn’t a “feel sorry for Mike moment” or anything, it’s a simple realization that I have some decisions that I need to do a better job of making.

This afternoon we had some free time and decided to listen to what my soul needed.  I opted for a run and it felt incredible.  Once showered up I knocked out a bunch of work that was on my mind and that needed to be done.  Instead of going out to eat I ordered in room service and kept working – it actually felt fantastic to have quiet time to be productive!  After working I realized it was getting close to the sunset so I put in my earbuds and headed out to the beach.  I Facetimed Becky so I could experience the sunset with my travel buddy.  I sat in a chair on the beach and just soaked in the ocean air and the beauty of nature all around me.  The clouds changed color and shifted across the sky while I sat back and enjoyed the view.  No thought, no focus, no worry, only the heightened sense of truly experiencing the present moment and all it had to offer.  I could hear the waves washing up on the shore underneath my quiet music.  The ocean air was salty on my lips and I could smell that sea smell.  I walked and felt the powdery white sand in between my toes as I stepped.  I looked out over the ocean and saw such beautiful sights.  It was amazing and reminded me to pause and remember why I do what I do.  In those moments all of my senses combined to play the music my soul needed to hear…  the simplicity of the beauty of nature in the present moment.  Soaking in the joy that comes not from possessions or accomplishment, the pure joy of appreciating the wonder of life in the moment and being so thankful to be alive and experiencing that moment.

The time I spent on the beach will be fresh in my brain and has already been catalogued with so many of my dearest memories of being totally lost in the moment.  Listening to the Universe reminded me to pause and be thoughtful in my actions.  To focus on the right directions.  To enjoy and appreciate the present moment as tomorrow is not a promise.  To live and appreciate each day as if it were my last.  So much to be thankful for and to remember when making a decision which could lead me in a wrong direction.

Thanks!!!

In our leadership retreat today our speaker was very much future and technologically focused. His presentation helped me imagine some of the possibilities of our future – both in leadership and digital application. To take time and pause to consider just where we may be heading as a society and its implications was nothing short of mind blowing. To think of all the change we will see, both humanitarian and technological is wild… Thinking realistically about what that means in our industry within the next decade or so is amazing. When I go to bed after writing this I’m sure I’ll spend a fair amount of time looking at the ceiling and imagining. What a feeling!

Throughout the day I was caught by a feeling that I’m so thankful for. At no point was I panicked and nervous about being away from any of my offices. It’s a wonderful feeling that only comes in those moments of stillness when I see someone else hop out of class to take a call or to send an email. In those moments I pause and feel this gravitational pull towards my phone to check it and make sure all is well. Instead I caught myself before I’d subconsciously grab my phone and I could feel my heart rate slow. I remembered that I have great people in each location that I trust greatly. With that thought in mind I didn’t even lift my phone. At the end of the day when we had some time I checked my emails and, just as I’d assumed, they had everything covered. For me to be able to take time away from being in the office to focus on growth is so greatly enhanced by having great teammates who are able to thrive without me. I’m so thankful for them!

Throughout the day I also spend time in thought about how grateful i am for such a loving and supportive family. To leave on a leadership training trip like this certainly doesn’t make life easy, especially when life throws a few curveballs. I’m so thankful for having such a loving and supportive family who not only allows me the opportunity to attend trainings like this, but actively push me to reach for my dreams. I can’t even imagine what life would be like without them (or maybe I just don’t want to).

It’s been a wild day, ups, downs, and everything in between. At several moments I caught myself pausing to think about just how blessed I am for all the incredible people in my life. So much love, so much support, so much friendship, so much motivation. If today were my last day on earth I would go on to the next with a heart full of joy. I love you all so much!

Thanks!!!

I’m really enjoying The Name of the Wind, but today a different book started calling out to me. It’s one I’ve read a few times in the past. Over the past handful of years I’m pretty sure it’s gone on more trips with me than any other which is very fitting as I still remember buying the paperback copy of it in the San Francisco airport while headed to New Zealand with the boys. Funny how even after eighteen hundred years it is still so relevant.

One of the things I appreciate most about Meditations is how easy it is to apply to life in a short period of time. To be sure, it is very dense and many paragraphs need to be reread a time or to in order to fully sink in, but the concepts are so simplistic. As is the case with so many simplistic things the actual living out and execution of those simple things is much more difficult.

A few of the lines that really hit home today were:

• Time is a river, a violent current of events, glimpsed once and already carried past us, and another follows and is gone.
• If you seek tranquility, do less. Do less, better. Eliminate the nonessential by asking every moment, “ is this necessary?”
• Uncomplicate yourself. Life is short, get what you can from the present- thoughtfully, justly.
• …run through the list of those you knew yourself. Those who worked in vain, who failed to do what they should have – what they should have remained fixed on and found satisfaction in. You’re better off not giving the small things more time than they deserve.
• Nothing that goes on in anyone else’s mind can harm you.

And the line that really hit home today:

It is fortunate that this has happened and I’ve remained unharmed by it-not shattered by the present or frightened of the future. Does what’s happened keep you from acting with justice, generosity, self-control, sanity, prudence, honesty, humility, straightforwardness, and all the other qualities that allow a person’s nature to fulfill itself? The thing itself was no misfortune at all; to endure it and prevail is great good fortune.

So many wonderful reminders and thoughts to ponder and take action on. I’m thankful for taking the time to put these thoughts and several others into my head today. Now begins the much more difficult work of putting them to action and practice.

Thanks!!!

Times like this are amongst my favorites.  While the boys and I have been together this afternoon and this evening they’ve been truly enjoying each other’s company.  They usually get along to be sure, but there are just some occasions like today when they act  like great friends.  We’ve played many games together and there was never a sore loser or frustration – it was truly a ton of fun!

This summer has been pretty crazy for both of them – Gavin was gone last week at camp and now Dominic will be gone next week for camp.  I’m sure the time away from each other reminds them to appreciate each other more, but it seems like there might be more to it than just that.  Regardless, I enjoyed every moment of I had with them today and am so thankful for how well they got along with each other.  It’s so cool seeing their relationship continue to grow and develop.

Thanks!!!