Flag of my Disposition

The Capacity to Care

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:41:26 -0500

Something happened at work the other day that got me thinking about our capacity to care.

A project that was my responsibility wasn’t being delivered in a way that exceeded expectations. Heck, it didn’t even meet expectations. Truth be told, it disappointed those who were counting on it. And that is not the Pro-Tech way. It’s not my department’s way. And it’s not my way.

Luckily, the timing was such that we were able to both understand and correct the issue.

I was angry (still am) that it happened. There were many reasons (always are) – but ultimately, as most things do, it comes down throwing all the excuses out the door and taking a good hard look at yourself.

If I cared enough, would this have happened?

If I cared enough…

I thought I did. I love my job. I love this company. I like, trust and admire every single person who works here. The culture of excellence and integrity here is palpable.

I work hard every day. I’m passionate and energetic.

So what was it that allowed for this failure?

Again, I kept coming back to our capacity to care. Are there limits? How do we manage the things we are responsible for so excellence is always delivered?

First of all, our capacity to care can be measured in two ways. The first, the vertical if you will, is our level or degree of caring, which I think is unlimited. I don’t think there’s a cap on how much we can care for or love something. There is no yardstick that can measure the love or care I have for my family. It’s an infinite number, we can always +1, if that makes any sense.

The second, the horizontal if you will, is our capacity of caring, which I think has limits. How many things can you care for? How many things can you give that full degree of caring to? I think this is where we start falling down.

I think this can be understood a bit more when we look at people who devote much of their lives to being great at one single thing. Einstein is a great example. He devoted his life to his one great passion, physics. He changed the world because his degree of caring for theoretical physics was off the charts. But dig a little deeper and you find out he not a good husband. He was not a good father. The width of his caring was limited by the degree of his caring for one thing over everything else.

History is filled with example after example of the same type of individual.

I often wonder if that is one of the key ingredients for greatness – the ability (the weakness?) to let all things in your life take a back seat to your one, great passion.

Is it simply how some people are wired? Is it something we can actually manage?

Most of us, I would guess, are not on the extreme end of things here. Most of us care a lot about many things and care a great deal about select things.

At some point we all tend to overload, and that is when we start dropping the ball.

And this is not an excuse. I think is simply is reality.

Just as you can’t drive your car 100 mph everywhere, you can’t over extend your capacity to care. Both result it crashes.

So what do we do? Well, sometimes we drive our cars at 30 mph, where appropriate. That doesn’t mean we don’t care, it just means we understand there are times when you allow yourself to go fast (express ways) and times when it’s even OK to speed. And there are times, 30 mph is OK.

How does this translate back to us, our commitments, and our capacity to care?

Well, I think it means we need to be careful what we take responsibility for. It means we need to develop an understanding of our capacity limits … maybe it’s three big things and two smaller things – however you want to define them.

Maybe it means while you’re in the 30 mph lane, you ensure someone else is in the 55 lane, and another is speeding like a maniac.

Whatever it means, the important thing is we take these moments, these opportunities that are thrust upon us to reflect, learn and grow.

Week 5 Writing Exercise - You have incredible power over your children

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 21:12:40 -0400

You have incredible power over your children. No matter what age they are. Or what age you are.

With it you have a responsibility to teach. Through your actions, your words, your emotions, your attitudes, your beliefs – you will shape them, you will mold them, you will color their world. Even when you think you are not. Especially then.

When you are quiet, they will hear you most.

When you are silent, they will feel it.

Every time you touch them, they will fee love. Even when you punish.

Punish rarely. Teach often.

There are a thousand teachable moments every day.

Embrace them. They are priceless. As is the brightness of your children’s souls.

When you act in a way that causes you regret, shame or embarrassment - go to them when the quiet sets in and apologize. Let words pour out of you that sooth them. And yourself. You will grow to be a king because of it.

They are innocent long after you think they are not.

They are more knowledgeable than you expect.

They will absorb things that will stay with them, clear as day, until the day they die. What do you think those things might be?

What are yours? You have them still. Tucked away, in a place, somewhere – that will always be safe.

They want you near them as much as they want to be freed from you – your children. Like magnets, sometimes they repel, sometimes they attract. But always there is that chemistry. That electricity. That gravity.

Within them are the best and worst of you.

They consist of dark as well as the light. They consist of a million different grays. Let them know your preference.

What’s important to them must be important to you. What it’s important to you must be known. Do they know?

I told my son once that I didn’t have any expectations of him, other than to be happy. It was something he needed to hear, but I often wonder if that was a terrible thing to say to him. I think about that conversation a lot.

More than he knows.

At a certain age, you just have to let them wander. And wonder.

I’ve Become the Runner I Once Despised

Wed, 06 Jul 2011 20:49:45 -0400

Racer Turned Fitness Runner

Ok. I admit it. I am now a “fitness” runner. The very thing I once despised.

Let me explain.

Back when I was a walking, talking idiot (high school days) – I thought that if you didn’t run to race, you were a loser. You were in some other category of runner that had no value. It was something I just didn’t understand. One, because I was young and naïve. And two, because I wasn’t a real runner yet.

It was also a position I couldn’t possibly maintain – because, to be honest, I was never ultra-competitive (like the Michael Jordans or Tiger Woods of the world).

My first big race should explain.

It was my junior year in high school, and I was in the county championships – running the 800m. With about 150m to go, I was IN the race. I was in a position to win it - and I will never forget the thrill of that precise moment. A few seconds later I had gotten myself boxed in, lost all momentum and eventually finished out of the medal hunt

Yes, I was disappointed. But the thrill and excitement of being IN the race, being in position to win near the end – that far outweighed any feelings of disappointment I had for losing.
And that pretty much sums up my entire running history.

It was never the wins or losses that mattered – it was always the thrill of the race.

In fact my fondest memories of running are not from races, but from training runs. For example, a number of years ago a buddy of mine and I would go out each Wednesday and hammer an hour run. I always thought that if you were in shape enough to hammer an hour run – that was the epitome of running. I think that alone put me in the “real” runner category.

So now that I only run 3 to 4 times a week – and no longer race [much :-)]. I run for the joy of it, for the amazing sense of freedom it gives me – and yes, the health benefits.

And I’m OK with that. I’m a real runner now.

I Just Kicked Monday's Butt with this Workout #uslivewell

Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:31:24 -0400

Current age / weight / height: 43 / 155 lbs / 5’8”

————————————

Core:

100 reps

Bench Press:

155 x 10
175 x 8
195 x 4
175 x 8
155 x 12

Military Press:

70 x 10
80 x 8
90 x 4
90 x 5
70 x 12

Incline Press:

125 x 10
135 x 8
145 x 8
155 x 5
125 x 10

Core:

100 reps

Pull-Ups:

Dips:

Core:

100 reps

Weak spots seem to be Military Press and Pull-ups. Dips seem good.

Bench and Incline Bench done with barbells. Military done on smith machine. Pull-ups and Dips done with full body weight.

I am lucky to have a great home gym.

Thanks for keeping me accountable Twitter friends!!

Grit – and Other Words I’ve Been Thinking About This Week

Mon, 25 Apr 2011 11:47:40 -0400

Grit – it’s been on my mind a lot this week. After reading an article in ESPN magazine (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft2011/news/story?id=6299428) that concluded the number one factor in determining how successful a quarterback will be in the NFL is Grit – I’m convinced it’s the number one factor in determining success in most everything else.

I don’t think Grit can be taught, learned or otherwise acquired. Either you have it or you don’t. It may take the right combination of cause and passion to spring it to life, but no amount of excitement will translate to Grit.

How much Grit do you have? How much do I have?

What have you worked tirelessly at for weeks, months, years? Because that is what Grit is. It’s crazy work ethic over time.

I’m going to need to test myself on this. How about you?

Innocence – My brother’s daughter learned the secret behind Santa this week. The end of innocence, or at least the start of it.

My youngest son is 7 and I still see him as innocent being. It’s one of the most beautiful things to observe in this world – and I will miss it when it’s gone.

He’s not yet tainted by all the darkness the world has to offer. Life is still …. perfect, in a way.

We all still have some degree of innocence to us. I just wonder if it’s a good or bad thing. There are so many things we don’t know. So many things we refuse to know. So many things we will never know.

Is innocence good or bad? Would love your thoughts.

Rhythm – It’s a beautiful sounding word. It has a flow and beauty all to itself. Not many words do.

A friend of mine announced he was getting into a rhythm this week – and that it was a wonderful feeling. I agree completely.

We all like routine to some degree. But rhythm goes a bit deeper. It means we are in sync with the world and its workings – and in that flow there is beauty.

We can never actively get into rhythm – it just kind of happens. But you sense when you are there, as it creates a peace and flow to our lives that help us get to point A from point B without the usual effort.

Have you been in a rhythm lately? Tell me about it. How is it different than other states you are in?

Joe Fresco - Franchise Concept - It was going so well, until the alarm went off

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 12:04:01 -0400

This is the “Joe Fresco” pitch I was making to Guy Kawasaki in my dream last night. My alarm went off just as he was smiling and shaking his head, “yes, yes” - and probably about to hand me over millions in venture money. Damn you alarm clock! It’s basically taking TLC’s “What Not To Wear” concept and turning it into a brick & mortar store franchise – for men.

- Focus on the “Dad” – age 30-60
- Who, after being married and with kids, has let style creep away

- Put the stores in malls for walk-thru traffic & partnering opportunities
- Focus on business casual type clothes, but will do everything from weekend style to suits
- Will not sell the clothes, but will help them shop for clothes (at partner sites in the mall)
- Will offer tailoring, as that is the easiest way to improve any look
- Will offer haircuts
- Will sell “packages”: style consultation & shopping guide, tailoring, haircut
- Will even tailor his existing wardrobe

- Our value is, “We hand-hold you to cool

- Deliverables:

Full set of measurements
Style guide for their body shape
Color matching guidelines
Seasonal style tips
Personal shopping assistance
Discounts at partner stores
Tailoring
Haircuts/grooming

How Do You Provide Value When None is Given?

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 11:33:01 -0500

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately.

First of all, value is not given – it is earned. Whether you like it or not.

And whether or not you are valued sometimes has less to do with you, and more to do with the other person or people involved, in whatever relationship dynamic is at work.

If what you are providing is not perceived or understood as valuable, then you have a big disconnect. There is no situation where a disconnect of this type has ever led to anything good.

If you feel you are not being valued, you have two choices:

1) Give up trying until both parties realize neither one provides any value. At this point, a break up of some sorts will happen. Trust me.

2) Bust your ass every single minute of every day until your value can no longer be ignored

This is how you do it.

You start by having an incredibly awkward conversation. You tell your partner, your boss or whomever that there appears to be a gap. And in this gap, all the stuff you are doing or think you are doing to provide value falls. And therefore, can not be seen by him or her.

This is the interesting part: How your partner or boss responds or reacts to this statement will tell you exactly the nature of the gap. It will be an eye-opener of all eye-openers.

Or you can simply say, “How can I better provide value to you?”

Too often we just don’t know what’s truly important to the people, departments or organizations we are trying to provide value to. And that’s everyone’s fault. Poor communication on both sides.

Don’t let this happen. Take charge of the situation.

Have the awkward conversation. Ask the question.

In the end, you should have a vey clear understanding of what you need to be doing to provide value. On the flip side, you’ll be able to share what you need in return.

What I've Learned ... So Far (good writing exercise)

Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:06:03 -0500

Living legends are not as rare as I once thought
Whitman must have experienced little or no resistance or friction as his words traveled from his mind to his pen. The path mine take are riddled with obstacles
Whether you are a boy or a man, one of the hardest things you can do is to tell your father that you love him
There is a freedom and a joy in running that I have never experienced anywhere else
If the only thing you ever do for your children is to give them the knowledge and the feeling that they are loved, then you’re doing OK
Wishing for things will never make it so
The greatest thing a teacher can do for you is to give you some attention
If you don’t know what you stand for, and you don’t know where to draw the line, then all of your decisions become a nebulous mess
Once regret enters into your life, your soul never burns as bright
Never stop reading. Never stop learning. Never stop growing. Your “aha moment” may depend on it
I’d rather be comfortable than stylish
Don’t be hesitant or afraid to say what is necessary
Do not take lightly the hope you offer to others
Most relationships can tolerate more honesty than you think
Agreeing with you and Believing in you are two very different things
People who do not have idealist thoughts are missing something special – the joy and excitement of striving for that ideal – whether possible or not
Whenever we label ourselves as something, we limit ourselves
We are always trying to fill some kind of emptiness
To be truly in-tune with your body is an awareness I can not live without
To learn, sometimes we have to let go of our beliefs
An addictive personality, without proper focus, usually leads to more bad than good

The First 100 Books for Our New Corporate Library

Fri, 11 Feb 2011 23:04:21 -0500

1 Rework - Jason Fried
2 The Orange Revolution - Chester Elton
3 Crush It - Gary Vaynerchuk
4 Let My People Go Surfing - Yvon Chouinard
5 Behind the Cloud - Marc Benioff
6 Delivering Happiness - Tony Hsieh
7 It’s Your Ship - Michael Abrashoff
8 Influence - Robert Cialdini
9 Economics in One Lesson - Henry Hazlitt
10 You Don’t Need a Title to be a Leader - Mark Sanborn
11 The Fred Factor - Mark Sangorn
12 The Art of Influence - Chris Widener
13 Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell
14 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey
15 Good to Great - Jim Collins
16 Switch - Chip Heath
17 Shift - Peter Arnell
18 The Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell
19 How to Win Friends & Influence People - Dale Carnegie
20 Crucial Conversations - Ron McMillan
21 Made to Stick - Chip Heath
22 The Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni
23 The Pursuit of Wow - Tome Peters
24 Swim with the Sharks - Harvey Mackay
25 The Art of War - Sun Tzu
26 Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill
27 Little Red Book of Selling - Jeffrey Gitomer
28 Multipliers - Liz Wiseman
29 The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind - William Kamkwamba
30 Presentation Zen - Garr Reynolds
31 Purple Cow - Seth Godin
32 Linchpin - Set Godin
33 Built to Last - Jim Collins
34 The World is Flat - Thomas Friedman
35 The Fifth Discipline - Peter Senge
36 Competitive Strategy - Michael Porter
37 In Search of Excellence - Tom Peters
38 The Little Big Things - Tom Peters
38 When Pride Still Mattered - David Maraniss
40 Washington - Ron Cherno
41 Be Great - Peter Thomas
42 The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch
43 Enchantment - Guy Kawasaki
44 How Full is Your Bucket - Tom Rath
45 The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding - Al Ries
46 Fish - Stephen Lundin
47 Business Playground - Dave Stewart
48 Fascinate - Sally Hogshead
49 59 Seconds - Richard Wiseman
50 Baden-Power: The Two Lives of a Hero - William Hillcourt
51 Peak - Chip Conley
52 Tribal Leadership - Dave Logan
53 Achieving the Impossible - Lewis Gordon Pugh
54 The Secret - Rhonda Byrne
55 Green Eggs and Ham - Dr. Suess
56 Principle Centered Leadership - Stephen Covey
57 Pour Your Heart Into It - Howard Schultz
58 Never Eat Alone - Keith Ferrazzi
59 The Orange Revolution - Adrian Gostick
60 The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho
61 Visioneering - Andy Stanley
62 Finance for Managers - Harvard Business School Press
63 It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be - Paul Arden
64 Flow - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
65 The Leadership Moment - Michael Useem
66 Discovering the Soul of Service - Leonard Berry
67 Zag - Marty Neumeier
68 First, Break All the Rules - Markus Buchingham
69 Orbiting the Giant Hairball - Gordon MacKenzie
70 What the CEO Wants You To Know - Ram Charan
71 Thinker Toys - Michael Michalko
72 Getting Things Done - David Allen
73 Freakonomics - Stephen Levitt
74 The Mentor Leader - Tony Dungy
75 The Personal MBA - Josh Kaufman
76 Strategy - Sir Basil Lidell Hart
77 MBA: Management by Auerbach - Red Auerbach
78 The Essential Drucker - Peter Drucker
79 Innovation and Entrepreneurship - Peter Drucker
80 Capital Markets - Franco Modigliiani
81 Crossing the Chasm - Geoffrey Moore
82 A Whack on the Side of the Head - Roger von Oech
83 Creating - Robert Fritz
84 The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership - John Maxwell
85 As a Man Thinketh - James Allen
86 The Happiness Hypothesis - Jonathan Haidt
87 The Greatest Salesman in the World - Og Mandino
88 Five Frogs on a Log - Mark Feldman
89 Jack Welch and the GE Way - Robert Slater
90 We - Rudy Karsan
91 What Every Body is Saying - Joe Navarro
92 On Becoming a Leader - Warren Bennis
93 Jack - Jack Welch
94 War - Sebastian Junger
95 Naked Economics - Burton G. Malkiel
96 The Speed of Trust - Stephen Covey
97 Winning - Jack Welch
98 Brand Simple - Allen Adamson
99 How the Mighty Fall - Jim Collins
100 Nuts - Kevin Freiberg

Customer Engagement Zone Do you map your markets/customers...

Mon, 24 Jan 2011 21:52:25 -0500

Customer Engagement Zone

Do you map your markets/customers through to an engagement zone? The above is a sample (not real) of how I map markets to decision makers/customers to an engagement zone.

This enables me develop specific tactics for each customer sub-set, ensuring I’m engaging with each in a way that is meaningful to them.

I do this for each market until I reach a specific customer set I am trying to have a relationship with.

It provides a clarity and a specificity needed to provide real content/messaging to each interaction.

How to Get Your Boss to Sign Up for Social Media: a Silly Skit

Fri, 14 Jan 2011 12:56:00 -0500

Current Phase – Not Using Social Media

1. Have two people stand outside her doorway and start a conversation.
2. Shut the door.
3. Tell her the people behind that door are talking about her, but she doesn’t know what they’re saying and she can’t engage with them in any way.

No awareness of the conversation

Phase 2 – The Start

1. Open the door.
2. Have the two people continue the conversation about her. Make sure one of them is commenting about her “horribly ugly bright green polka dot shirt” (or any other ridiculous or inaccurate comment)
3. Your boss will have the urge to correct them, but let her know she can’t. All she can do is listen and take notes.

Listening to the conversation. Gathering data.

Phase 3 – Foot in the Door

1. Have your boss shout, in the direction of the doorway, the correction – “I’m wearing a nice pink shirt!”
2. Have one of the people in the doorway, pick up her cell phone and say, “Oh, she’s wearing a nice pink shirt.” Have the other person pick up her cell phone and continue to comment on her ugly polka dot shirt.

Broadcasting. One way communication.

Phase 4 – Joining In

1. Now have your boss walk up to the person still bashing her ugly shirt, and talk to her - showing her the nice pink shirt she is wearing.
2. The person on the phone corrects herself, saying, “Whoops, I made a mistake, her shirt is really nice. It’s pink.”

Joining the Conversation

Phase 5 – Making Friends

1. Have your boss take her seat again.
2. Have one of the people from the doorway walk in to the office and ask the boss what type of shoes would go with a pink shirt.
3. Have your boss answer.
4. Now the person walks out and tells her friend how much the boss knows about shoes. And that she’s really nice.

Now you have engaged and built a relationship

The 75 Greatest Walt Whitman Quotes

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 17:10:00 -0500

If there was one book that “spoke to me” - it was Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. Perhaps some of these quotes will do the same for you.

1. One’s self I sing, a simple separate person, Yet utter the word Democratic, the word En-Masse

2. I project the history of the future

3. Once unquestioning obedience, once fully enslaved, Once fully enslaved, no nation, state, city, of this earth, ever afterward resumes its liberty

4. None has begun to think how divine he himself is, and how certain the future is

5. I will not sing with reference to a day, but with reference to all days

6. I celebrate myself, and sing myself

7. I harbor for good or bad, I permit to speak at every hazard, Nature without check with original energy

8. There was never any more inception than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now

9. Clear and sweet is my soul, and clear and sweet is all that is not my soul

10. Apart from the pulling and hauling stands what I am

11. A child said What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands, How could I answer the child? I do not know what it is any more than he. I guess it must be the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven

12. The smallest sprout shows there is really no death

13. what is that you express in your eyes? It seems to me more than all the print I have read in my life

14. The press of my foot to the earth springs forward a hundred affections, They scorn the best I can do to relate them

15. And these tend inward to me, and I tend outward to them, And such as it is to be of these more or less I am, And of these one and all I weave the song of myself

16. I am … stuff’d with the stuff that is coarse and stuff’d with the stuff that is fine

17. I resist any thing less than my own diversity

18. battles are lost in the same spirit in which they are won

19. Does the daylight astonish?

20. How is it I extract strength from the beef I eat?

21. Having pried through the strata, analyzed to a hair, counsel’d with doctors and calculated close, I find no sweeter fat than sticks to my own bones

22. I exist as I am, that is enough

23. The minute that comes to me over the past decillions, There is no better than it and now

24. Walt Whitman, a kosmos

25. A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books

26. I carry the plenum of proof and every thing else in my face, With the hush of my lips I wholly confound the skeptic

27. All truths wait in all things

28. What is more or less than a touch?

29. I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars, And the narrowest hinge of my hand puts to scorn all machinery

30. The friendly and flowing savage, who is he? Is he waiting for civilization, or past it and mastering it?

31. When I give I give myself

32. Immense have been the preparations for me

33. I know I have the best of time and space

34. Not I, not any one else can travel that road for you, You must travel it for yourself

35. You must habit yourself to the dazzle of the light and of every moment of your life

36. He that by me spreads a wider breast than my own proves the width of my own, He most honors my style who learns under it to destroy the teacher

37. There is no object so soft but it makes a hub for the wheel’d universe

38. Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes

39. But where is what I started for so long ago? And why is it yet unfound?

40. I am surely far different from what you suppose

41. Passing stranger … I have somewhere surely lived a life of joy with you, All is recall’d as we flit by each other, fluid, affectionate, chaste, matured

42. Within me is the longest day

43. I myself am good-fortune

44. From this hour I ordain myself loos’d of limits and imaginary lines

45. I inhale great draughts of space

46. Wisdom is not finally tested in schools

47. I did not know I contained such goodness

48. Only the kernel of every object nourishes; Where is he who tears off the husks for you and me?

49. The earth never tires

50. It is not upon you alone the dark patches fall

51. The true poets are not the followers of beauty but the august masters of beauty

52. It is not enough to have this globe or a certain time, I will have thousands of globes and all time

53. Nothing exterior shall ever take control of me

54. A great city is that which has the greatest me and women, If it be a few ragged huts it is still the greatest city in the whole world

55. If you remember your foolish and outlaw’d deeds, do you think I cannot remember my own foolish and outlaw’d deeds?

56. All architecture is what you do to it when you look upon it

57. Whoever you are! claim your own at any hazard!

58. I perceive I have not really understood any thing, not a single object, and that no man ever can

59. A vast similitude interlocks all

60. That you are here – that life exists and identity, That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse

61. Of Equality – as if it harm’d me, giving others the same chances and rights as myself

62. What stays with you latest and deepest?

63. affection shall solve the problems of freedom yet, Those who love each other shall become invincible

64. I am more resolute because all have denied than I could ever have been had all accepted me

65. Here is not merely a nation but a teeming Nation of nations

66. He judges not as the judge judges but as the sun falling around a helpless thing

67. When Liberty goes out of a place it is not the first to go, nor the second or third to go, It waits for all the rest to go, it is the last

68. I do not sound your name, but I understand you

69. Beneath this face that appears so impassive hell’s tides continually run

70. It is no lesson – it lets down the bars to a good lesson

71. Whoever is not in his coffin and the dark grave let him know he has enough

72. Peace is always beautiful

73. I was thinking the day most splendid till I saw what the not-day exhibited

74. We know not why or what, yet weave, forever weave

75. Camerado, this is not book. Who touches this touches a man

I Hate Winer, but Love Winter Running. Read this to find out why

Fri, 24 Dec 2010 12:41:45 -0500

I do, I really hate winters. My soul belongs in the Southwest, but for whatever reason, my body is living in the Northeast.

But as a runner, I love winter running.

Maybe it’s the purity of the snow covered landscape. The clean white blanketing everything.

Maybe it’s that everything is a little quieter. Sometimes eerily so, save for my crunching steps and the peeps of birds.

Maybe it’s that I feel a little bit tougher than the average guy or girl. Not many of us are out there on a Saturday morning, when it’s 15 degrees and the wind is howling. I kind of like throwing on the gear and heading out for a run, just to feel like a tough guy.

Maybe it’s that I feel a bit more lonely on a winter run - and that’s OK, given we’re now a 24/7 society - with more noise, interruptions and distractions than we know what to do with.

Maybe it’s the crispness of the air. So refreshing and cool.

Maybe it’s the cover up, the extra clothes I wear - before the shedding of Spring. When there is the freedom and joy of running in nothing but a pair of shorts.

Maybe it’s the slower pace. The calm before the storm of summer running.

Maybe it’s the mere fact that I am outside - something we do much less of during the winter months.

Maybe it’s my only chance to play in the sun. Or even see it.

I don’t know. I can’t put my finger on it. Maybe it’s all of those things. Perhaps more.

Why do you like winter running?

I’d love to hear your stories.

Never Give Up on the Possibility

Wed, 08 Dec 2010 13:50:00 -0500

Recently I attended an employee recognition dinner where I heard a nice story that recounted the hiring of one of those being honored.

The manager telling the story said he interviewed this employee first, and was so impressed he begged HR to cancel all the other interviews - as he found “the guy” on interview #1. It was a great tribute to the employee and we all were impressed that someone could knock the socks off a hiring manager like that. We certainly were lucky to have him on our team.

Then I started thinking about it.

And I realized this: what the manager did was Give Up on the Possibility. The possibility that interview #2, 10 or 25 could have knocked his socks off even more. That someone else could have reshaped what he thought the perfect employee might look like. The possibility that better is out there.

An even better story would have been this: I interviewed “Ron” first and he absolutely blew me away. He was the guy I wanted to hire. But I wanted to be sure, so I interviewed 30 more outstanding candidates wondering if one of those could top “Ron” – and none of them even came close. The first interview ended up being the best and the right fit for us.

Now that’s a story worth telling.

When you give up on the possibility, what you end up doing more often than not is settling. Settling for good enough, when great is just around the corner. Settling is no way to win the game.

Please, please, please – never give up on the possibility.

There is magic in possibility. There is hope. Dreams. Perfection. Happiness. Greatness.

There is everything in the possibility.

But you’ll never experience it if you take what’s behind door number one.

Inspired by @DavidMcGraw’s tweet thread, I’d like to offer this random bit of thanks. #30Gratitude

Mon, 01 Nov 2010 20:49:20 -0400

- To my oldest son Nathaniel, thank you for giving me the gift, the ability, the capacity and the chance to care for someone else more than myself. While the majority of our life together was on a part-time basis, you never, ever made me feel less of father to you. You’ll never know how generous that makes you.

- To my youngest son Shane, thank you for continually showing me that one of the most beautiful things this world has to offer is the innocence of youth. I’m not sure I can ever repay the vast amount of smiles you have already given me.

- To my daughter Casey, thank you for the gentle nudges that reinforce the fact that to be a good father, I need to be a good man. If you see me as such, then I have won the game.

- To my wife, thank you for still being a mystery to me. After more than 15 years together, I’m still looking forward to the clues and pondering if I have what it takes to piece them together. Keep dropping those crumbs!

- To my mother, thank you for proving that a patiently yielded life can be anything but.

- To my father, thank you for showing me what it means to be a professional. When I find it hard to get up in the morning, I think back to you always being gone to work before we were even up.

- To my 5th grade teacher Mrs. Klinger, thank you for being the first teacher to make me feel like someone special. Her real gift was that everyone else in that classroom probably felt the same way.

- To Ken, thank you for being a living legend - and showing me that living a genuine and authentic life was the right thing to do long before social media pushed the buzz words.

- To Shawn, thank you considering me a liked-minded person. It is an honor to be among those in that circle.

- To people I really barely know, like Jody, thank you for being an inspiration and a hero to many. You have the gift of being a remarkable human being.

- To Andy, thank you for being an inspiration to me as runner. Whenever I’m feeling beat, I think of you in Kona and become instantly stronger.

- To my high school track coach, thank you for being what I consider a friend.

- To Dr. Heyen, thank you for introducing me to Walt Whitman. His words, his philosophies, his spirit have helped to shape many of the things I stand for and believe in.

- To Doug, thank you for the painting. It was one of the most generous things anyone has ever done for me. It’s hard to give away what we create….

Fear Exposed (Your Decision Making Sucks)

Tue, 19 Oct 2010 10:13:32 -0400

Fear Exposed (Your Decision Making Sucks):

Check out my guest post on the Middle Finger Project

What Do You Think of the New Gap Logo?

Thu, 07 Oct 2010 16:13:05 -0400

What Do You Think of the New Gap Logo?:

Horrible. What are they thinking?

Walking is the Key to Running

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 19:46:38 -0400

I’ve heard this before, specifically for marathon running: walk thru the water stops, walk once a mile, etc.

But it never really made sense to me. If you’re RACING, why the heck would you walk!?!

It wasn’t until Christopher McDougal put it in the context of the ultra-runners that it finally made sense. If you’re running a 135 mile race, why kill yourself on a steep incline? Just walk it - and save your energy for another battle. The goal is the finish line. Stop trying to be so manly. Think long term.

OK. I get it.

Then I tried it.

I’m turning over a new leaf. I’m giving up my speed demon days for endurance events. So I’ve been hitting the trails the last few weekends - leaving the watch at home, and just having fun.

This past weekend, I hit a super hilly trail section in town and decided to try the walking thing. Whenever I found my breathing getting out of control, I’d walk for a short while. Whenever a steep hill was blasting me, I walked up the remainder of it.

Come to find out, the walking is a remarkable recovery method - that actually happens quite quickly. Within 15 to 30 seconds of walking, I felt refreshed and ready to go again.

I didn’t feel like a wimp, or less manly - I actually felt smart! Because I knew I was going to be out there a long time, why blow all my energy on a monster hill 5 minutes into the run.

By walking less than a handful of times, I was able to run longer than I normally would have - and I enjoyed it a hell of a lot more.

I’m sold.

I think with this strategy, I’ll be able to run more rugged miles each week and go much farther on my long days.

I’ll keep you posted.

Groupon Revealed: The Pros and Cons of Daily Deals

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 11:56:46 -0400

Groupon Revealed: The Pros and Cons of Daily Deals:

Another great info graphic.

Scientists finish first sea census

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 11:39:31 -0400

Scientists finish first sea census:

Fascinating: Scientists wrapped up their first global census of sea life today, documenting an underwater world that turns out to be livelier and more connected than they thought it would be when they began the project 10 years ago.