May you remember what so many fought for to provide more independence and freedom for all.

Celebrate the gains.

Appreciate that we live in such peace.

Today being the first day of 2023, Here are a few patterns I encourage you to consider. 

1. Switch from TXT to Signal
2. Make a playlist for your year – listen to it often
3. Open a Coinbase account & do their learning section over time
4. Track your personal finances better
5. Play a board game

1. Switch from TXT to Signal

TXT messages, no matter if it’s Apple Messages or whatever system you use is like sending a post card.

Anyone who picks it up can read it & it probably goes through many peoples’ hands.

Signal is run by a not-for-profit, or for-impact group & cannot read your messages, unlike systems  run my Mr. Z. 

Alternatively – consider Marco Polo for video messages. 

2. Make a playlist for your year – listen to it often

Music is a meditation – the lyrics you put in your brain has an impact on your life. 

Being intentional and having a few songs with the core message you want will have an impact on you. 

Here is my 2022 playlist at the end … it changed over the year. 

Started with a couple songs, added and took away. 

My playlist is for me and my family and addresses messages, beats, and ideas we need at this time.

One example:
Highlight Reel by John Reuben

My kids are getting to a phase where tons of their friends are getting social media accounts & phones.

I want them to know that social media is just a highlight reel.

Reel life is more important.

3. Open a Coinbase account & do their learning section over time

Learning about Crypto is good.
Not encouraging “investing” because to get to the point of investing has a learning curve.

Yet, knowing a bit about Crypto, blockchain, and currencies will be more useful in the future. 

Just opening an account on Coinbase, then going through their “Learning Rewards” section, where they give you a couple dollars worth of different crypto currencies. This will give you a better understanding of something I expect to be more important moving forward.

I’ve made mistakes in this. I’ve forgotten code words I really needed to and learned lessons on managing data better.

Better to make mistakes with very little than bigger amounts.

If you want to learn more on this, let me know – I have a few podcasts and friends who share good info, like Little Might.

4. Track your personal finances better

For years, nearly 20 now, my wife and I have done a monthly budget until early in 2022 when a core system broke. 

It caused us to sit back and look. 

What I realized is early on, those first 19 years, it was important to track every dollar. Where did the money go?

Now, we are shifting our focus a bit because our lifestyle is pretty consistent.

Yet, there were a few areas or items were were both not managing, tracking, or being as intentional on and now we are going to emphasize: 

Investing

This is both for retirement, which we have done to one level, and opportunities or early-retirement. A downside of most retirement accounts set up by the US Federal Government is restrictions on when you can use the money. We are now focused on making more of our current day to day being able to be funded by investments. 

Fun

One of our intentions is for our children to spend significant time in all 50 states. We are down to 20 states left, yet the time windows we can travel with school are smaller (more sports and activities) and the money for some of these are getting larger. We have to be intentional.

Giving
We have giving. 

We have not always done a good job tracking. 

We did not always tell our kids. 

We did not celebrate the difference our giving made … though we don’t always know.

For example we gave at least 23 books in 2022. I only know that because I started tracking some of our giving a few years ago so I would not gift the same book to the same person. 

5. Play a board game, regularly

Being face to face with people, having side conversations, and exploring can such a great time. There can be tears if you have children who are competitive, yet the lessons my children have learned through board games have been invaluable.

Not knowing you, and just considering what you can get at stores like Target and Amazon, here are some recommendations to look at: 

Ones I’ve played:

• 7 Wonders
• Century Spice Road or Golem Edition
• Pandemic
• Space Base
• Azul
• Marvel United X-men
• Carcassonne
• Catan 
• Camel Up
• Ticket To Ride
• The Crew Mission Deep

Here are some I’ve not played, yet believe them to be good

• Small World
• King of Tokyo
• The Isle of Cats: Explore & Draw
• Dixit 
• Canvas
• Codenames

Yet more importantly, how do you find and learn games?


Learning – go to youtube and simply put in “How to play X” with X being the name of the game. 

Beyond that:

Board Game Geek – this is a place with lots of information on most every game. 

Dice Tower Youtube Channel – has tons of videos about games

BoardGame Co & Quackalo are two additional channels.

IV Studios – this is my favorite game producing company, they are local to me & have this mindset I love:

Even just getting a deck of cards and playing regularly with your family or close friends will improve your life. Spades, Hearts, Rummy, there are a ton of options.

6. Eat Less & Move more

This is the simple process to get in better shape.

It could be making sure you average 8,000 steps each day. 

Intermittent Fasting. 

Reduce pasta & bread. 

No ice cream after 7pm. 

See what gains you make & celebrate. 

That really is the key to looking back on 2023 in a year and smiling. 
Focus on the gains you make.

May 2023 be your best year ever, now please commit to at least one thing and tell at least 3 people who would want you to win what you are committing to.

R,T;D,P started early in our marriage. Some years we are great, some years we sorta do it, and a few we have missed. Looking back – the years we do great are great. The years we miss & we would rather not talk about. 

This year, 2021, a book came out that dramatically adjusted this process for us, so much so an update from the 2011 post was called for. 

It’s not about goals. 

It’s not about achievements.
It’s definitely NOT about controlling your significant other.

Rather – it’s about building the best life you can together, and being able to look back and see how far you have come & be grateful. 

Reflect

The first step is to look back on the past year, or longer, and see where you have come from. What all has happened?

Focus on how you have grown in the past year & moments you would like to happen again. 

When you have gone through this previously, really focus on what gains you made over the past year. Where were you a year ago? How have you grown since then? 

Thank

Be intentional about this part. Have fun with it, and set up whatever rituals or practices work for you. 

We center this around the Thanksgiving holiday in the USA because it just fits.

Not only do I celebrate as a family but also reach out to the people who I am grateful for moments over the past year and beyond. 

This is a time of remembering life is a solo journey yet the people around us are a key in how high we can fly. 

Dream

This moves from the past & present side to the future. Dreaming what the next year or longer should be. Currently I use my model based on relationships for viewing your world, so:

+Yourself+ physical, mental, spiritual, capabilities

+Family+ the special relationships around you

+Business+ if you are an employee – you are a business hiring out your services to your employer. If you own or desire to own one, then you have a slightly different relationship

+Society+ other people who are not in your business, or family.

What are the dreams for those four big areas? What about the subparts? Can you paint a picture that you are aiming for?

This time is brainstorming – go wild. Look at different time horizons too:
25 years out

3 years out

In the next 12 months. 

What headings do you want to aim for? Big Hairy Audacious Goals?
Where do you want to travel to?
What do you want to learn?

Legacy you want to leave?

Causes you want to support? 

Who would you be thrilled to be a hero to?

Plan

Setting the vision for the next while so you can see how you grow, gain, and make giving thanks easier next year. 

Where the Dreaming time was brainstorming and coming up with options; planning is deciding what you are willing to commit to, eliminating options, and defining how you measure success. 

We have 3 things we put down on paper. The best years, this is three giant stickynotes and a number of posted notes. 

3+ years out
1 year out
Today

We need that long term where we are heading – you can choose 25 years or 3 (or have both). For this we settled on 3 because it’s about 1,000 days. We don’t need to redo the 3+ years out every year, it gives us some guidance and helps us have a staring point. 

The one year is the main focus. We can even break it down into seasons. 

When you know where you are heading in the short term and longer term, decide on what needs to grow. 

If your intention is to have 40 paid off rental houses in 25 years, it’s easy to record how many rental houses you have today, and set an intention of having a specific number in one year. 

If your intention is to be able to run a 5k in under 10 minutes, make sure you record what rate you can run a 5k in today. Then when you get a 5k under 10 minutes you record the date and if you don’t reach that 10 min goal, you still look and celebrate your improvement next year. 

That is the key:
Being able to see where you were, and how you are better today. 

If you only record goals you will hit most and growth will happen, yet you are setting yourself up for disappointment, not joy. 

Choose joy. 

Moving forward

A while ago I was talking with one of my good friends. I mentioned – yeah, we need to finish our family budget for this month & it’s only the 14th of the month. He was shocked because his family practice was if they did not have their family budget done before the month began they just forgot about it and moved on. 

It does not matter if it’s November or April or another month. Today is the day you can give thanks, start recording what you are grateful for, and set your intention with where you are today. 

Write now, send a message to someone and tell them something you are grateful for in the past year & your commitment to go through this process starting on the upcoming first of the week or month. People have an easier time continuing something that they start on a first. 

Record what you are grateful for, and put on your calendar to set intentions for now until the end of the year on the next first. 

Avocado Time is the best … 
Face to face where you are all present, ideally in person, present, yet maybe online. 

Moments you want to hold onto and savor forever. 

When separated by space, time or a piece of cloth … there are still ways to strengthen connection and it boils down to evaluating each option on: 

• Quality
• Quantity
• Recency
• An uncontrollable

Quality Improvements

Imagine water running through a pipe. 
Water is life 
Water is love
The amount of water represents the amount, or quality, of the connection. 

Face to face is the best possible, with touching comfort, and other little options simply letting more flow between those involved.

Video calls, in real time, is the next best. 
Audio calls, still in real time might be better or slightly below a recorded video message. No matter if we are talking using Marco Polo, Glide, or Signal. 

Recordings always have an advantage of being able to re-receive them.

Ever seen in a movie where a character will watch a loved oneâ€s video over and over, or call a number just to hear that special voice? 

A picture is worth 1,000 words; more when you care deeply about the photographer for a great image allows you to see through their eyes … what was she seeing, where was she, what does she value? 

Simple text can mean the world to someone who is longing for connection. 

Thank you … or an improved thank you. 

So satisfying yet the impact depends on the other points of evaluation. 

Quantity

The pure amount of connection. 

When his love language is Quality Time, he does desire a high quantity of high quality time. 
If the quality must be lowered … quantity can be raised. 

Instead of a weekly zoom call; maybe a regular morning or evening video message. 

That would still be a slight quality degradation yet the overall quantity is similar. 

Recency

Would you rather hear from a good friend yesterday or last month? 

If you have a wonderful evening with a great friend three months ago … is the connection deeper or wetter than if that same friend sends you a text just now? 

Relationships take work like it takes additional water to keep something wet sitting out in the sun. 

Who do you care about, wish you have a better connection with? 

Reach out, today & regularly. 

Not out of obligation, yet out of a desire to be closer. 

Ask Questions. 
Share the mundane. 
The beauty around you.
Thank him for being him. 
Praise her for how she made your life better. 

The Uncontrollable

With all that is within your control, there is one thing that is 100% not. 

The other person. 

More important, the story that the other person is telling himself about the relationship, connection, and the future of us. 

He might have a demon he has carried all his life around abandonment or worthiness. 
She might have scars from a past where she was treated poorly, the relationship ended bad and her world crumbled. 

He might be a perfectionist and hold you to an unstated standard. 

She might not know what her desired future is. 

Past, pain & expectations lead to a story she tells herself. 

Owning it & making it known can turn a hindrance in a relationship into a strength. Vulnerability is a key to deeper connections. 

Doing a monthly budget is statistically one of the best habits that decreases the odds of a divorce.

Why?

Itâ€s not about control. 
When you do a monthly budget you face your world as it is today. 

Then you set a vision for 30 days out … when both agree you have common expectations, vision, and a story to tell. 

Yet just saying your desires or expectations once might not be enough. 

Actions speak louder than words. 

I listen to what you do more than what you say, or txt. 

Yet without the words the pattern, frequency & level of water can be lacking. Your pattern of action impacts the story he tells himself, just as his actions impacts your story you tell yourself, but you are still in control of the stories you tell yourself.

There are seasons for all relationships. 

Just like a venture, project or podcast. 

Itâ€s good to have extra checkpoints in addition to the intentional day to day activities. 

Connections are connections. 

Some are well worth fighting for – others are worth letting go – you have a role to play, yet the other person must do her part too. 

The closest to you, the deepest & most foundational relationships have the biggest impact on the achievements you will achieve, 
The fun you have, 
The places you will go, and
The ripples you will cause as you sail through life. 

Please reach out to each person who came to mind as a good example, share this, and thank them for being awesome because the world needs stronger connections … especially … in a distant world. 

Yet, it can be better. 

When possible, and there are times of overwhelming gratitude that all a person can say is “thank you” … you can improve your goal of connection and praise for the other person with this one tip: 

Add “for …” 

• Thank you for sharing. 
• Thank you for being here.
• Thank you for listening.
• Thank you for caring. 
• Thank you for taking the time to go the extra mile. 
• Thank you for your investment in my winning.
• Thank you for doing what you do so naturally, it really helps me because I struggle with this. 

That little bit more increases the connection between yourself and the person you are grateful for. 

It also increases the odds of that person being clear on what you would like them to do more of. 

If you want to take it one step even further, add how you intend to move forward in a better way because of what the person said or did:

“Thank you for sharing that, I am going to add it to my Happy File, to pull out when I need some encouragement.”

So, with that said … 

Thank you for reading, sharing, and adding what you are grateful for when you express your thanksgiving because it amplifies what you are already grateful for.

One morning a door to door salesman was walking down an old country road. 

At the end of a road was a farmhouse. 

Around the yard and at the edge of the road  was a board fence. 

In the middle of the front yard was a huge apple tree. 

Full of red ripe apples. 

Blown over from a storm the night before. 

The farmer was leaning against the fence looking at the tree. 

The salesman walk up to the fence, and look at the damage for a little while. 

Finally the salesman says:

“Man, that is terrible. Such a beautiful tree & all those apples. What are you gonna do?”

The farmer sorta looks over at him, then back at his apple tree and simply replies:

“Pick the fruit & burn the rest”

Birds are singing 
Owls are loud

The sun has not yet broken through the clouds

The past has passed
Today is a new day

How shall I measure success when I reach this moment a year away? 

Differences unfelt, yet real all the same

Birds sing of hope with this brand new day
Light grows brighter, owl flys away. 

Will I be intentional or just ride this ship today

Day by day I have this choice 
Hide in the darkness or step into the light

Own who I am, strengths and flaws 
Or aim for the shadows, darkness and fog

This spaceship is spinning faster than I realize

It will be back her in a blink of an eye 

Now is the chance
Take it or not

Build, experiment & train … or focus on snot

A day will never be the same
A question that is not

Will I be the same or will I build with what I got? 

100% safe is impossible
Unless you aim for nothing at all

Dream, again, decide and take the first step
Follow it up again and again

When the earth reaches the same spot you will have progressed with those you have brought

Celebrate now
Celebrate then
The path forward starts in your head
Accelerated with each friend

Few might get you, that is ok

Your path is different and special today. 

You choose intentional, joy & light
A life sweet as honey and ready for a fight

Obstacles are either hindrances or challenges to help you prepare
Difference is in between your ears

Countdown restarts
Another year today 

How similar will you be from the start of today? 

Aim Higher
Aim Bigger

Start with your room
Your bed
Your plate, eat better food
Move your body, weights or dance

Write down your dreams and share your plans. 

In a year, then two, five and ten. 

The earth might be in the same position yet you will never be again. 

~Jonathan Nation 
2020-05-20

“Win the morning … Win the day”

Iâ€ve heard this mindset in many ways over many years. 

Itâ€s simple:

How can you do something that is an easy win ASAP each morning?

That makes you a winner. 

What do winners do?

WIN MORE

And if you have won the morning it means you day is also a win. 

You will always have something to look back on & say:

“I did good there; I won” 

Make each day an easy win by stacking some easy wins first thing in the morning. 

Then hit your one big thing for the day. 

Want easy wins? 

Try one or multiple SAVERS from The Miracle Morning:

• Silence – prayer/meditation/reflection/stillness
• Admonitions - affirm your good points, abilities, and successes
• Visualization – who you are doing the work
• Exercise – get your body moving
• Read – gather fuel that makes you better
• Scribe – write out express of gratitude, lessons learned or future you are building. 

All six is best, when Iâ€m at my best Iâ€m typically doing five of them. 

Trouble identifying that one big thing ->

• Book: The One Thing
• Book: Essentialism 
• Talk with a good Coach

Can you do something good now? 

Earn that little win, then earn one more.

~ Jonathan Nation .com / Early Wins To Bigger Wins

I donâ€t choose the path

I donâ€t want the sorrow, 
yet I lift my eyes to see the good in today and hope for tomorrow. 

The music is nice gets me jumping, rocking & bumping. 

There are those who are precious to me; 
friends, family, and my honey. 

Sometimes close & sometimes far away, 
yet never really far away. 

The Son has risen. 
joy in my life
shining bright both day and night. 

Acknowledge the pain,
understand the anger and fear,
they are all indicators of what is in the air. 

Then turn the page, the sadness is still there
yet my focus goes elsewhere.

Who shall I help? 

Who shall I grow near? 

What beauty can I find
when I shift my gaze 
and see what is out there? 

Turn the page. 
Focus elsewhere. 
For the Son is shining, and will always be near.

~ JonathanNation.com/in the Air

First we start with Halloween, the one time of year we wear en masse external masks and acknowledge there is evil in the world.

Pain, suffering, heartache – all made easier by heroes and villains coming to life. 

We all wear masks.

We pretend to be who we want to be,
Who we feel like,
Who we believe others wish we were.

Today we take off the mask.

We can put on a crown.
Celebrate all the saints now. 

The changes will come faster each day. 

Giving thanks maybe one day
Winter is on the way.
Gifts & Christmas Day.

A new year will be here in a blink of an eye. 

If not careful I will forget to cry.
For there have been highs and lows as the seasons go. 

Right here, right now, two focus in my eyes.

First remember the saints,
The past, the joy in all things that last.

Second set my intentions for this month, this week, this day.
I can only live one moment at a time anyway.

Take off the mask. 
Put on the crown. 
We are all saints now. 

This season goes past like a blink of an eye.

Now set your intentions, and remember to cry.

~Jonathan Nation.com

Her son found him lying face down on the ground.
She thought they were playing around … at first.

She is now living my wife’s and many others’ worst nightmare.

Widowed with young kids.

It’s probably a common fear for women;
It’s an unspoken fear for men, especially fathers of daughters.

Years ago I faced this fear.

Not because my wife was dying; there could have been a medical concern, yet this was more intentional on my part.

So, what did I do?

Road Trip

My parents and grandmother provided a wonderful gift even though our financial situation was around the median household income & there were five of us kids.

They found ways for us to travel, see areas, experience nature & I’ve been in just about every log cabin there is in a Tennessee State Park … They all basically look the same; yet the natural wonders I’ve experienced have been marvelous.

A lesson I learned in all that was anyone in the USA can travel; experience culture and wonder different from your normal & without spending huge money too.

When I face one of my greatest fears: that my wife would die, leaving me with three small daughters … I pushed into that fear.

Our first Road trip fit with a work trip my wife had.

She flew to Norfolk, Virginia where she had an apartment.
The next morning my children and I started driving.

It was not the first road trip; not the first time staying in a hotel; not the first time exploring without a set schedule other than “arrive in Norfolk by bedtime two days from now” … yet it was the first without my wife.

On that first trip, we dropped my wife off at the airport to fly home. She had spent some time with us and other time working a 24 hour shift, a norm for her career. We went to Charlotte, NC instead of directly home and stayed with a cousin of mine for a few days.

Again, this was the first trip, having people around was important – just knowing I would be alone with them for a day or two made it an easier step.

We have done multiple trips since. Just me and my children.
It’s not that we don’t want Mommy to be with us, we do this in part due to the career and travel my wife does without us, but it’s bigger than that.

At this point, my children are 8, 8, and 6 … they have spent significant time in 17 states (either a lot of time, or overnight), and been to 2 more that just don’t quite qualify.

The last big trip added three new states, with diamond mining in Arkansas, exploring Houston, Texas, and wandering around New Orleans where we parked the car and either walked or rode the mass transit that they have there.

Sometimes we stay in hotels, though if we are in a city for 3 or more days we prefer to find a short-term rental (VRBO or AirBnB) so that I can have a seperate room from where the kids will sleep – they still go to bed many hours before I do and that time is important.

My encouragement to you is two fold:

1. Travel as a family – my mother was told she should never worry about her kids being ready for school simply because she traveled with them.

2. Travel with just your kids – there is no better way to help that relationship & prep for a potential scary future, than forcing yourself for a short period of time to have less support, less backup, less normal … at least for a short period of time.

One final piece of encouragement, and this is to me as much as it is to you …

Take care of yourself.

Physically with what you eat and exercise.

Mentally with the media you consume – read a book, listen to an audiobook, take a class, study a new subject, develop a new skill.

Emotionally – be a friend, express gratitude, journal, pray, meditate, acknowledge your emotions, name them, share them with specific people.

Spiritually – you have a spiritual side. Beliefs that go beyond what you can see, touch, and feel. Even if you consider yourself an Atheist, or Agnostic … this is a part of you that if you ignore you will eventually discover a major missing part of your life, or you are rejecting specific words and your actions are still very belief based.

Relationships – relationships make the world go around. Find the right people. Connect with them. Strengthen the relationships, but more importantly, support the relationships between people who care about you.

• You do need a Doctor.
• You do need a Dentist, and other special medical professionals.
• You do need a coach, at least one.
• You do need friends, at least 2, ideally who also care about each other too.
• You do need to contribute to others.
• You do need to grow, regularly – and travel can help that.
• You do need to get stronger.

Then take care of your Significant Other by recording all the little things you do.

Make sure they have access to passwords to log into accounts.
Make sure they know what accounts to really access.
Make sure they know where your Will is.

Have Family Photos captured every year or two; more is better.

Do they know the daily, weekly & monthly schedule for your kids?
If it’s not written down, the answer is no.

Keep sailing,

no matter what vehicle you use for your voyage.

~ Sanford Meisner

“Your freedom depends on your ability to forgive.”

~ Brady Cooper

“Your freedom depends on your ability to forgive.”

~ Brady Cooper

Today most people who visit the park drive through it, stopping along the way at specific historic spots.

 

There is lots of pavement a person can follow for running, yet when training for an Obstacle Course Race (OCR) you want to avoid pavement.

 

There are two things I aim for when in parks like this:
– avoid pavement
– elevation changes
At this location the elevation changes are minimal, yet there are lots of trails throughout the park, and grass areas alongside roads that are easy to run on.

You also donâ€t run in just a straight line, having to avoid rocks, boulders, and even go over walls or fences.

Wake Me Up by 2CELLOS

This song, and many other on the album released recently is on constant play in my house and mind right now, yet when I saw the video for this one I loved it even more.

Watch the video before your read on:

The story of two guys going through life making stuff together is wonderful.

The disapproval by many throughout life.

Yet

They find their tribe.

Knowing the story of these two artists, who grew up really competing for many of the same gigs until they started working together is amazing.

I’ve also really enjoyed their videos for it shows how they could make much of their music in creative ways to play.

“Each obstacle we overcome makes us stronger for the next one.”

~Ryan Holiday
The Obstacle Is The Way

Vision is simply the answer to the question

“what do I truly want for it’s own sake?”

~ Peter Senge

You multiply your time by giving yourself the emotional permission to invest time on things today that will give you more time tomorrow.

~ Rory Vaden

If you want to know where your heart is, look where your mind goes when it wanders.

You get the culture you pay for.

~Jeff Allen

One thing I am trying to keep in mind is that I often have to go through those weeks of internal work, messing with ideas, before I am really to really sail with the skill of an expert. It is those times that magic really is happening, building up, so that when it finally comes out of me I can sit back and say:

That … That is progress. That is what I could not do before, yet now I have. That is what I could not even see before, yet there it is now.

The hard work of entrepreneurs, leaders, owners is often not in the moments when we are typing, speaking, or meeting but in the hours leading up to that moment.

When art is made.

Day 5 of 5
I really appreciate & want to express gratitude for:

1. Seth Godin, John C. Maxwell, Jim Collins, Brian Clark, Dave Ramsey, Robert Kiyosaki and other thought leaders who have had a dramatic effect on me for years now.

2. the volunteers who organize great events, like BarCamp Nashville, PodCamp Nashville , and the many other rather informal events I have been to in the recent years. Face to face changes everything & allows me to find people who end up having a great impact on my life for years to come. Next event is October 18th

3. Audible – the only thing that has made having audiobooks from them better has been how many work with the Kindle version, so I can get to the text of a book & copy/paste parts into a document. Since I am such a slow reader & am reading it outloud in my head anyway – Audible has really enabled me to consume so much more great books, by the authors in #1 for today and others.

Today I nominate Helen

Directions: For the next 5 days, share three things you appreciate & then nominate one person to do the same. Itâ€s nice to tag the person who challenged you too.
This is my last of this 5 day challenge. If you have not been nominated, just consider this as my nomination of you too. It is well worth looking at the world around you and appreciate what is there, and be grateful for what might not be there.

Thanks to Juliana & Justin and others who went before me and lead to me being challenged.

[All Posts in this series]

Day 4 of 5
I really appreciate & want to express gratitude for:

1. Helen, my wife, who has empowered, pushed & inspired me so much and so often over the past roughly 15 years we have known each other.

2. people who step up & lead groups, causes, and events where I am not in the main leadership roll. Some examples from my past: Jacob, Justin, Bill, Dave, Rick, Brad, Amy, Jeff, Dave, Ed, Clay, Bill, and many more

3. Facebook Messenger – the absolute best part of Facebook. If it were not for Messenger I might have moved on from Facebook all together long ago. It is such a powerful system, both in browser & as an app. The app is even better allowing for sending audio or video.
Today I nominate Stacy

Directions: For the next 5 days, share three things you appreciate & then nominate one person to do the same. Itâ€s nice to tag the person who challenged you too.

[All Posts in this series]

Day 3 of 5
I really appreciate & want to express gratitude for:

1. My three children, who are amazing even at a young age & have such

2. My college housemates & those in other organizations around campus like Jacob, Justin, Steven, Matt, Jeff, Honey, Summer, Wayne and many more

3. Pocket Casts – how I listen to most of the podcasts I do, on my phone & able to sync with my tablet. Both on Android & iOS.

Today I nominate Ben

Directions: For the next 5 days, share three things you appreciate & then nominate one person to do the same. Itâ€s nice to tag the person who challenged you too.

[All Posts in this series]

Day 2 of 5
I really appreciate & want to express gratitude for:

1. the mentors and advisers I have had over the years, especially people who have spoke truth into my life like Chris Snoddy, Ray Capp & Daniel Himel – those three & many others, have no clue how different my life would be without some specific words at just the right time.

2. Patrick Terry bringing Krav Maga to Nashville & the friendship we have developed since. Many people, including myself, are in better shape & safer due to the direct & indirect work.

3. Google Apps & Google+ – the systems basically allows me to work anywhere I have an internet connection & has been a backbone of me being able to work from my phone for over 4 years now.

Today I nominate Renata

Directions: For the next 5 days, share three things you appreciate & then nominate one person to do the same. Itâ€s nice to tag the person who challenged you too.

[All Posts in this series]

Day 1 of 5
I really appreciate & want to express gratitude for:

1. How my parents raised me to be the best I could be. Looking first at who I was & where I desired to go.

2. The circle of entrepreneurs who I have been sailing with recently. You know who you are, even if you donâ€t know how much you have helped me.

3. LastPass – a system that allows me to have a super long & complex password unique to each system I log onto & I donâ€t have to remember them.  Try it, especially if your passwords are less secure than this: W3%qYN5!wLWfALw*^7s

Today I nominate Jessie

Directions: For the next 5 days, share three things you appreciate & then nominate one person to do the same. Itâ€s nice to tag the person who challenged you too.
Thank you: Juliana

[All Posts in this series]

Discipline is looking as where you are today, where you are heading & doing the hard thing that will increase your odds of success.

For many, what seems like inaction is often the hardest discipline to do or understand when others are in that phase.

Do you want to build a snowman?

She asks you so much, prompts you, disturbs you with this question that you both love and wish would end.

When you give in, go and do your magic, it is wonderful. You play and have fun, while creating something so few really can.

This is your life, this is your ideal life. You have people in it who love you, who respect you, who want you to bring your brilliance to the world … then something happens.

A mistake.

You blame yourself & are so scared of making another mistake that you decide to hide yourself.

That sweet small voice, she still calls for you. Asks you … prompts you …

Do you want to build a snowman?

What is your Snowman?

We all have it. That thing that we love to do. Itâ€s an intersection of our natural strengths, what we could be the best in the world at, and our passions, the activities, people, topics, or places that energize us when we are producing for, with, or in.

Itâ€s something so natural to you that it might take work, at least to an outside person, yet you would rather do it than most anything else. Itâ€s both work and play to you.

The results are magical.

How long since the last time you built a snowman?

It had been years for me.

For many years I hid my brilliance. Like taking a lamp and putting it under a basket so that nobody could see.

I was miserable.

Maybe I was building mini snowmen in my backyard … like Calvin often did with Hobbs, yet thatâ€s not the level I should be playing at.

Has it been months?
A Year?
5 Years?
10 Years?
Can you even remember a time when you were really working with the who, what, when, where, and or why that causes you to come alive; bringing your unique magic in a flow that people around you would think is so simple until they tried it?

Now the question really is … when was the last time you heard:

Do you want to build a snowman?

Who is asking you to build a snowman?

That person, that sister, that brother, that friend, that co-worker, that sweet small voice inside of you. Knocking at the door, asking you to open it, and magically play in a way that only you can.

Thatâ€s someone to hold onto.

Thatâ€s someone you need.

In all of your life, only you can provide your unique magic, yet itâ€s not for you alone & you canâ€t gain the fulfillment, joy, or happiness by building miniature snowmen in your backyard with a stuffed tiger. Not at the level you desire today.
To achieve your greatness you need a combination of your magic and a group who values your magic.

It might not be as you dreamed. Your art, your magic, your work might not fit the desires, problems, and pains to have the lifestyle you desire.

So, how might you let your light shine & also achieve your dreams?
How do you appreciate and accept the promptings from your supporter who keeps encouraging you?

Understand what the voice is wanting. She wants you to be the best you can be.

She wants you to be full of joy.
She wants you to let go and own who you are.

She wants you to do magic and building a snowman is simply the only words she has that represents that for her.
Itâ€s not about balls of snow, with coal, sticks, and a carrot nose … itâ€s about you performing at a high level in a way that is hard, creative and fun.

There are many ways that your abilities, talents, strengths, connections and passions can be developed and used.
Will you?

What would be your snowman?

Do you want to build a snowman?

Will you do it, today?

Do I focus on all the great things …

I just spent a week as I dream every week could be – having the flexibility to do spontaneous activities – play time, travel time, time with family & friends, both local & in other cities.

Monday on a whim my family all packed up and drove a few hours to a friendâ€s house. The next two nights were long full of talking, working, and having fun. My family went to a great Zoo we had not been to. We had dinner one night with another set of friends, and a lunch with some extended family we had not seen in awhile.

Another day was a day of sailing, hammocks, and catching up with great people. It was wonderful to take my children out on a sailboat & they enjoy it this time.

The rest of the week involved my wife working her job at the hospital … and me either taking care of the kids, or the kids with a private sitter and me spending time on different fun projects.

The thought I had Monday, between the time we decided to take the trip and actually leaving, was that this really is the life we want – flexibility to go, take opportunities, travel, meet and spend time with great people & be financially secure.

so ….

Why would I say I am doing anything other than great?

Because I am building a business, and this week the amount of work I have put towards that is next to nothing.

How am I doing?
I did practically nothing this week.

• no calls to prospects
• no emails to prospects
• no writing
• not much thinking on my business

Do I choose to focus on the great things that happened … or do I choose to focus on negatives?

It’s natural for negative emotions, events, and lack to be the primary focus.

It takes work and practice to celebrate the wins, enjoy the serenity, and still drive forward towards the future you desire.

As I move forward I intend to acknowledge the brutal facts of my situation and celebrate wins in the recent  past, hope for the future and the joy in the present.

How are you doing?

Don’t Take Anything Personally

Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you wonâ€t be the victim of needless suffering.

~ Don Miguel Ruiz

Being able to see progress & having a plan to achieve the dream are the two primary ways to fill your hope tank.

Hope is the fuel used for the hard work needed to start a great voyage & finish, overcoming all challenges.

Vision gives pain a purpose; hope converts obstacles into trophies.

Yet, there are so many.

For many years people have asked me some variation of the question Should I be on X?

The process for a business to make that decision is pretty similar to what you as an individual should consider & today I released a full post on it on my main business site Ally Nation.

I don’t do much on Twitter, except when I’m at an event where a lot of people are.

Google+ is my preferred system & I post a lot to it  to specific groups like my family, yet most of my time is spent in Facebook for two reasons:

1. Facebook Messenger is better for connecting with the people I talk with the most since Google screwed up GTalk.
2. I have a group who uses a Facebook group as the primary online meeting place.

See how the ideas apply to me as an individual?

Worldâ€s Toughest Mudder

Everyone has a threshold for when your mind acknowledges the pain that your body feels.

For me, I thought I had no tolerance for pain. When things hurt it brought me to my knees or just stared crying. What I have learned is that I really have a high pain tolerance.

It works this way.

If the level of pain is not above a line say here ——————– 

Than my mind does not acknowledge it. Anything on this page below that line simply would not register in my mind as pain.

The thing is, I can still be in pain without it registering.

Needs Thresholds

We all have needs. The simplest are food, shelter, clothing, transportation, and then later on things like to know and be known, love and be loved, serve and be served.

If you are more introverted you have a threshold for needing alone time & deep connection with specific people. Extroverts – stimulus in the form of other people.

The thing is that as something builds to be a need thatâ€s above your threshold … itâ€s still a need. Just as I feel pain long before it reaches a threshold in my mind that causes me to go into a fetal position.

Reaching a Threshold

There are two ways you can build to and bust through a threshold:

1. a single event

2. compounding events

An introvert at a big party & is around lots of different people can cause the need for solitude to spike. News of someone in an accident can cause a need for connection. An all nighter, no matter if itâ€s due to a sick child or pushing on a deadline, can cause a need for sleep. Compounding events are much more complex and often work in other ways. You can skip a meal at most times, but if you skip enough then you have reached a threshold and eating goes from non-urgent to urgent.

Thatâ€s what Stephen Covey is talking about in First Things First. The difference between an important & urgent task vs an important & non-urgent task is generally the amount of time you have put it off.

If you are on a 24 hour race, resting & fueling your body is non-urgent until you cross a threshold.

The winners, they are the people who donâ€t wait until a need hits urgent, but takes care of those needs while they are still under the threshold.

One of the hard parts is when we choose to not acknowledge that we have these needs at all.

What are real needs that you often ignore before they reach your threshold?

There is magic in long-distance friendships. They let you relate to other human beings in a way that goes beyond being physically together and is often more profound.

~Diana Cortes

To live is to love & to love is to live … my life is a reflection of my love, and my love is shaped by my life.

~Jonathan Nation

Here is a video:

Join me at Tough Mudder Nashville

on Team TPC – it’s easy to join it here

I like friends who, when you tell them you need a moment alone, know enough not to stray too far.

~Robert Brault

2. work my body

3. grow my mind

4. show love to my wife

5. work on my legacy

6. stop, rest, observe beauty & celebrate it

Doing something to fill each of those six actions causes my day to be complete, wonderful … a success worth celebrating.

Not every field will be checked off every day. Some days you just have to rest. Other days you miss a workout.

How do you measure the level of success for your day?

For years, there was only one time of year that I could get them: Christmas.

Thankfully I can generally get them any day of the year, yet the Christmas bags are cheaper per ounce than what it normally stocked on the shelf.

I hope you take advantage of this wonderful mint chocolate treat.

P.S. I think what you can find the rest of the year does have less of a mint flavor, or a different one.

“Own your dreams. There is no better way to make them happen.”

~ Seth Godin

It was a good run. Running on limestone is odd. You have soft points you hit. Every step is hitting something at a different elevation, hitting soft points in between the rocks, or the ground you hit is often curved in some way.

Running in woods is different too, with leaves & sticks.

I intend to do more off-road runs, granted almost all my runs are off pavement – mostly in grass – I should get more limestone, mud, and sticks under my feet.

I’m on a journey and part of it is trying to develop a habit of getting into spiritual materials every day. Some times I have done well, other times I have sucked, but I am trying to do one thing of keep it small and just be consistent. Where it does not require a lot of effort & little or no will power.

A couple years ago I took up Obstacle Course Races. It was the first time in my life that I consistently ran for any real training & cut 13 minutes off my second Warrior Dash time … in less than six months between them. It was just starting slow, one day at a time, doing just a little bit.

This time

Instead of a bible reading plan from YouVersion/Bible.com – I was reminded of a lesson James Ryle taught about life, Grace & God’s will.

It’s a series of blog posts, one post per day. For those over really wanting to over achieve, you could blow through all the posts in one setting … but the key here is really to have a bit to ponder on for a period of time.

The dates work with when I am going to read each post. Feel free to ask me about it.

Day 01 – Clearing the Way So We can Move Forward  – 10/21 – an intro

Day 02 – A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words – 10/22 – final intro parts

Day 03 – The Measure of Godâ€s Will for You – 10/23

Day 04 – The Two Great Temptations – 10/24

Day 05 – The Heart of the Matter – 10/25

Day 06 – The Measure of Grace – 10/26

Day 07 – The Moment When Everything Changed – 10/27

Day 08 – A Conversation with the Apostle of Grace – 10/28

Day 09 – On the Road Again…with New Provisions – 10/29

Day 10 – The Final Measure – 10/30

Day 11 – Life Outside the Measure…a Real Bad Deal – 10/31

Day 12 – The Merciful God – 11/01

Day 13 – “So, Whatâ€s the Funnel All About?” – 11/02

Here are those on a Google Calendar. You should be able to add it & get updates each day.

Anything Else?

No meetings, no discussion – unless you want it.

If you want to be known to be doing this – leave a comment below.

This is the third bible study thing that I’ve done with several. It’s always low pressure & respectful of your desires.

Either publicaly in the comments, or privatly – let me know if you are joining me.

The chance of failure is almost always better than the guarantee of never knowing.

~ Aaron Levie

There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else.

~ Sam Walton

If you decide that youâ€re going to do only the things you know are going to work, youâ€re going to leave a lot of opportunity on the table.

~Jeff Bezos

A little while ago I started using short little bible study plans from youversion / bible.com.

I and a few others just finished doing a 10 day series focused on the most popular verses in the bible.

Now, we are ready to start a new series.

How does this work?

It’s really simple, get the bible app for your phone or tablet. Get an account from bible.com & subscribe.

Each day you go into the app, watch a short video and read a single sentence or two.

DONE

You can do it on a computer too, but most of us are using our handheld devices.

What’s next?

I asked the people I know did this past session & the feedback I got was that the video element really helped, I agree. I’m down to two options & would life feedback. You can send it either in the comments here or message me directly.

Release, Revive, Repair, Rebuild from Brian Houston

Release, Revive, Repair, Rebuild is a 12-day devotional based on Ezra 9, which was designed to teach you how to get your life on track and on mission with God.

The Ten Commandments

 The 10 Commandments are important for our lives! Buck Denver & Friends take you on a journey to understand why God gave the commandments to the Israelites and then dive into each commandment for a deeper understanding of what they mean for our lives today. Each day includes a short video, verse and reflection.

Let me know …

Which do you want to do?

Our passion is to know that we are fulfilling the purpose for which we are on earth. All other standards of success – wealth, power, position, knowledge, friendships – grow tiny and hollow if we do not satisfy this deeper longing.

~Os Guinness

I’m not a huge fan of eggs of this style, but I know some people are. Now you can get the “same great taste” at least twice a year.

Maybe they could do Irish eggs for St Patties Day, Love Eggs for Valentines, Independence Eggs for Independence Day, etc …