What does it mean?

Tomorrow is December 1st, which means we are one month away from a landmark year.

What have I done?   Have I made an impact?

It just so happens I saw something for a "2016 1000 mile Running Challenge" today. That's not for me.  What about a 500 mile walking challenge?

Maybe.

It's also time to share some thoughts - either here, where nobody reads it, but they could, or to start a journal.

Hmmm.

Stay tuned.

Winnie, Yoda, and Tribes

I will honor Day 7 by actually replying to the thought-starter question.

Day 7: What are you taking with you from this Challenge?

Honestly, I don’t know.

The challenge came at a good time, just after I had dusted off my blog and made a (sort of) self-commitment to post on a regular basis.  Will I post every day, like this week?  Nope. My plan is to post once or twice a week as I tackle 2015, and start thinking about my landmark birthday next year.

The message I will take with me, the message that Seth has pounded like a drumbeat the last few years is to ship. Shipping is scary; shipping is hard; but if you don’t ship things won’t happen.  I want/need things to happen.

On Day 1 of the challenge, I nearly didn’t ship. I tweeted my hesitation, wondering what would happen. As I recapped on my 1^st post of the challenge, others piped in from the ether of the internet encouraging me and cheering me on to ship. I did, and I felt better.

After I realized there was an avalanche of participants, I wondered aloud (via Twitter) how Winnie was handling everything.  Not long after, I was deputized by Winnie (along with a small group of others) to approve posts. That was pretty cool.  It turned out that some of those that had encouraged me on Day 1 to post, were now also fellow “post approvers.” Interesting.

A day or two later – not sure when, the week was a blur – Andy created a Facebook group, which led to a way for the small tribe of Tumblr Approval Admins to communicate.  OMG – what a group of incredible people. The time and dedication they showed to the project simply blew me away.

Another, overarching thing I will take from the Your Turn Challenge project was that there are like-minded people out there, you just have to find them. Thanks to the internet, they are easier to find than ever.  In the past Seth has encouraged meet-ups for certain things, and I could never find anyone in my area.  As much as I would love to connect with like-minded people in person, I may have to adopt my new mini-tribe as a support group.

To circle back to the beginning, maybe I do know what I’m taking from the challenge. I just need to keep reminding myself.

So, in summary, remember what Yoda said “Do or do not do, there is no try.”  In other words, ship.

Ripples

We all create ripples in life. If we smile at someone, they might smile at the next person they see. If we grumble at someone, they will probably grumble at the next person they encounter.

Sometimes those ripples grow in ways that you never imagine.

I’m not a super-volunteer, I don’t join every organization and show up for every project in town. But I like to think that I make ripples with impact.

For the last several years I’ve volunteered with an organization called FIRST. (I mentioned it in a post earlier this week.)  To start with my volunteer work was just on the local level, doing what I could to help the teams that my sons were on.  It was easy, and seemed to help the adults in charge.

Then two years ago I stepped up and volunteered at a regional event where our team was not competing. In a stroke of synchronicity, other local volunteers started doing the same thing.  What we didn’t realize at the time was that our student team members were watching us and learning to volunteer and help.

FIRST principles include Gracious Professionalism, and coopertition, which are all about helping others and being respectful.

By the time we got to competition last year, our team, Sir Lancer Bots, had taken the concept of coopertition to a higher level.  They set a goal to help as many other teams as possible. Additional tools were packed, more supplies were put in place and the attitude of “we’re here to help” was prevalent.

Yes, we were going to be competing against the teams we were determined to help if they needed it. 

At the center of this effort was my son. My son whose career aspirations had evolved from considering becoming a priest to entering the United States Marine Corps, because he wanted to serve and give back.

He, along with others on our team, helped more than half the other teams that weekend. And it made an impact. At a summer robotics workshop, as we sat down at a table with members of another team, one of their members spoke right up “You guys fixed us at Duluth last year. It was awesome.”

This week, an article was published on a major suppliers / sponsors website with the story of a team that experienced a significant setback and was able to continue at competition due to the efforts of Sir Lancer Bots.  The article ends with an observation from the other team. “Our goal isn’t to win this year. We want to be the team that can help others. We want to be like Sir Lancer Bots.”

And people don’t understand why I volunteer so much. It’s because of ripples that we make.

Want to read more: http://creo.ptc.com/2015/01/23/when-robots-fail-a-minnesota-school-learns-engineerings-most-important-lesson/

This post is Day 6 in the Winnie Kao / Seth Godin #YourTurnChallenge

Stumbling into Servant Leadership (h/t to Andy Stitt)

Leadership. It’s a word that we hear often, but is confused by many.

Yesterday, Andy Stitt blogged about leadership http://andystitt.com/category/blog/  In his post, he opined that he isn’t a leader, however, near the end of his post he stumbled onto something with the line “When you find an opportunity to lead….do it.” 

Leading does not always mean you have to be the person in the front with a “rah rah, let’s go get em” attitude.  Andy showed a perfect example of servant leadership.  By serving others, with no ulterior motive in mind, he led.

Many time you will hear people confuse management with leadership. Peter Drucker said this “Management is doing things right, leadership is doing the right things.”

Servant leadership goes even deeper.  Robert Greenleaf, who first coined the term servant leadership said: “The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first.”   Servant leaders don’t set out to be leaders, but by serving others around them, it leads to leadership.

If you haven’t explored the concepts of servant leadership, I highly recommend it, even if you aren’t in an official “leadership” position.  Servant leaders are everywhere, from board rooms to family rooms.

This post is part of the Winnie Kao / Seth Godin #YourTurnChallenge to blog seven days in a row.

Bueller.......Bueller.......Bueller

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

                                              - Ferris Bueller

Ferris said that in 1986, what would he say today?  The 24 hour news (and sports) cycle, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr , and so many faces permanently staring at screens, has life moving faster than ever. 

We NEED to take a break. Sometimes in my car I actually turn off the radio / CD / podcast or whatever I’m listening to and enjoy the silence.  Shocking.

The other night I came home and left the TV off. That never happens. Granted I was on the computer, but still its progress.

A few years ago I did some digital detox Saturdays, where I stayed off line for at least 12 hours, sometimes even longer. It was fantastic. Now I didn’t purge all electronics, but there was no checking Facebook or Twitter, no worrying about emails. It was fantastic.

Try it.  Maybe this Saturday. But try it. We all should.

That’s all I got. Thanks Ferris.

……….You’re still here? It’s over!

Get in the Game

One of my favorite TV shows was Sports Night. It was a “kind-of” comedy that was on ABC in the late nineties. For many people it was their introduction to Aaron Sorkin and his style of show – “walking scenes,” rapid fire dialogue, and usually a multi-layered message, that would become famous on his next show “West Wing.”

It was the first series I ever purchased on DVD, although I don’t pull them out to watch very often.  Recently it has been airing on the FXX network in the mornings, and I once again find myself drawn to watch while eating breakfast and getting ready for work.

Yesterday morning the episode “The Quality of Mercy at 29k” was on. The dual story lines are about an expedition to ascent Mt. Everest, and Dan Rydell’s struggle to decide on charitable contributions.  This is my favorite exchange in the entire series:

Natalie Hurley: Two guys have ascended five miles into the sky. They walked up a wall of ice, and are preparing to knock on the door of Heaven itself. There's really no end to what we can do. You know what the trick is?

Dan Rydell: What?

Natalie Hurley: Get in the game.

I had that exchange posted on my office wall for a long time, and it still hits me “right there.” We all have to be reminded from time to time to “get in the game”  If you are in sales, it’s time to make more calls; as a volunteer, to engage deeper; as an athlete or artist, fully commit to our craft; or as a parent, parent the best we can.

That’s what the Your Turn Challenge is, a chance to get in the game. I doubt most of the participants will keep blogging on a daily basis like Seth does; but I bet that most of the people involved will go on to tackle that project or prospect that has been sitting on the back burner.

What are you going to do to “get in the game”?

This post is part of the Winnie Kao / Seth Godin “Your Turn Challenge” to blog seven days in a row.

I cooked. I shipped.

I cooked tonight. Well, sort of.

As I approached college graduation in December I found myself saying a couple times “after I’m done with school, I should learn how to cook better.” 

My cooking repertoire has been limited to spaghetti, some grilling, and cooking a mean frozen pizza.  I don’t plan on ever being on Chopped, Iron Chef or one of those shows, I just want to be able to assemble a nice meal that doesn’t come out of a box or wrapper.

When I thought about cooking better, it was coming up with new types of burgers, or something different to throw in the crock pot.

Tonight, my wife is working out of town and my son is staying late at robotics to build something. As I pulled away from work, I was thinking – “what drive thru can I hit easily and get home” but then I remembered “pork chops.”

There were some pork chops pulled out of the freezer, “Smoky Apple Pork Chops” to be precise. I can make those. I think.  And we have some red potatoes too.  Instead of walking in the door and plopping in front of the TV, I went to work in the kitchen.  Found the potatoes, cut them up, drizzled some olive oil on them and found some seasonings that I thought might work. 

I was so clueless on how to cook everything that I texted a friend. She didn’t reply.

Here we go – the chops and potatoes went in the oven – and about 50 minutes later they came out cooked and tasty.

I cooked. I shipped. 

This post is part of the Winnie Kao / Seth Godin "Your Turn Challenge" to blog seven days in a row.

The Journey Is More Important Than The Destination

I’m sure this is a famous quote by someone important, but I have no idea who.  We’ve all heard “Success is a journey not a destination”; this is just another twist on that statement.

Back in December a friend of mine who runs a middle-school robotics program posted on Facebook that one of the parents called for a “do over” in a competition.  As a parent who has been involved with middle-school and high school robotics for over seven years, the line “the journey is more important than the destination” came to me and led me to craft a response based on that principle. It was well received by those who understand the program.  Still stunned a parent would do that.

The robotics program, FIRST, is about so much more than the robot. It’s about shipping, and learning, and frustration. Each season I’ve been involved as a parent, coach, or mentor, I’ve been excited to watch young people grow right in front of me.

Last week, when Seth and Winnie posted about the Your Turn Challenge I was excited. I’ve blogged in the past, more as a personal journal than anything else, and had just posted in my blog for the first time in nearly a year (Over three years since regularly posting.)  But as Monday crept up, I started thinking, I have some meetings this week, I’ll be too busy, and so on.  However, Seth’s message of shipping kept echoing in my head.

As the day went on, I started reading posts that others had done, and was stunned. My lizard brain kicked in, “I can’t do that.”  “What do I have to say that others will want to read?” I had the title for the post in my head, but the lizard was strong. So strong I tweeted saying I wasn't sure I could do it.

 

Thankfully, within 7 minutes, someone I don’t know encouraged me to do it anyways. Minutes later other chimed in. Collectively within 30 minutes they helped me kick the lizard brain to the curb.

Personally, I’m not sure where my journey will take me. I just finished my Bachelor’s degree, a mere thirty years after I started. Where the destination is, I have no clue.  I just keep hearing President Jeb Bartlett from West Wing saying “What’s next?”

What Have I Done

I stepped on the scale yesterday morning - 278 pounds. OMG.

I knew it was bad, I new my "fat" shirts were now tight. Last night I saw some photos (side shots) that were taken at an event on Wednesday.  I look horrible.

Everything the last year(s) has taken a toll on me. Geoffrey leaving, finishing school, the stress of MIL next door. Just not caring.

I have to change.

I've been trying to convince myself that I can lose one pound a week - take it off slowly - and that I will eventually get back to where I want to be.  Can I wait that long?

What if I upped it to 1.5 pounds a week? Is that doable?

I know what to do:

- Eat better
- Drop soda, drink water
- No fast food
- Have a plan
- Exercise

I have to pull the trigger. Can I?

What am I afraid of?


It time to move from survival to significance - in my body, in my career, in my relationship with God.  The first steps are the hardest.

Time to go sign up for 5k.


Look out - fat man running.

It's time.....

I think it's time to capture my thoughts here again.

Here we go again

272.5 - That's what the scale said last week. I knew it was bad. Pants too tight, shirts too tight, I feel like crap.

240 - That's what my drivers license says. It needs to be renewed at my next birthday - 22 weeks from now.

32.5 pounds, 22 weeks = 1.5 pounds a week.  I should be able to do that.



Biometric screening on Feb 6th. - can I get to 259 by then?


Plan for December is nothing dramatic.  I'm calling it WWP.

W - Walk.  Shoot for the 10,000 steps a day.
W - Water. At least 40 ounces a day. 60 would be better.
P - Produce. Five servings a day.

24 hours....so much can happen

I haven't been doing too hot on my 100 Day Challenge but there have been some good things going on.

- Landed three new customers, including one that had been eluding our organization for years.

- Attended an introduction to the new 5 Choices by Franklin Covey. Fantastic program, planning on taking the two day course in February.

- Finished Strategic Management class and landed another A, who knows may end up on Dean's List again this semester.

- Only running a couple days a week. Need to make a decision on what my exercise plan will be and if I'll do one or both of the local Turkey Trots.

This weekend will be some yardword (soooo many leaves) and a re-set on blogging, exercise, etc.

Stay tuned.

I'm stuck

But I know it. Hopefully getting unstuck in next few days.

Inertia

I was going to run on Saturday morning, but I didn't.

Maybe Saturday afternoon - didn't happen.

How about Sunday morning? Nope.

Sunday afternoon, beautiful day - perfect for a run. Nah.

Monday morning - alarm rings at 5:00. I don't want to. The best is warm and snuggly. Another half hour of sleep would be great.

I was soooo close to not going, but I went. For the first time in a long time I had no preplanned route, just a general idea of the length I wanted. It was mid 40's so I went for long pants and the cheap gardening gloves I bought for running. (Hey, at 96 cents you can't go wrong.) Started with a hill - I hate hills - and kept on plugging. I didn't even worry that much about what songs came up on the iPod, just let it play.

Plugged along, got a good sweat going, but those darn shins are still tender. By the time I finished I had done 2 1/2 miles.

I beat inertia this time, and I'm glad I did.

Back to the streets

Still not sure what I want to do for a fitness plan, so yesterday morning it was back to the streets for a run.

4:55 alarm, out the door shortly afterwards. This will sound strange, but it was a "shorter" run - about 2 1/4 miles. The shin splints that started to appear during my last week of hard training are still lurking so I need to be careful with what I do over the next week or so.

Several projects sitting right in front of me to wrap up in the next couple days. A paper for my strategic management class, hauling away a bunch of "yard debris" (sticks, pulled weeds, etc), completeing the action plan for my new sales territory, setting up the robotics team fundraising campaign, and finishing my taxes. Yes, I took an extension and still need to wrap them up. (Planning ahead for next year, I'm going to take a couple days off in March and complete the taxes and FAFSA on time!)

I also need to spend some more time with my goal book and really roll out a plan. The Ziglar/Godin plan covers 12 weeks, so if I start on Sunday documenting everything in the book (and some here) that will bring me right up to Christmas and only a week away from the end of the 100 Days Challenge.

The objective is to pick just four goals and do something everyday to make progress on those four. I'm pretty sure I know what I'll be choosing, but I don't want to jump ahead in the process.

Wow - I do have a lot going on, but I know that as I knock each item out I feel a sense of accomplishment; and thats always good.

The end, or the beginning ?

Saturday (Day 2) was the 5 mile run. I finished in a time that I was happy with. But I was disappointed in how much walking I did.

Still I need to focus on the postitive. That is always a challenge for me.

Now....whats next?

- Do more organized runs? Probably lean towrd the 5k's over the 5 milers.
I have thought about a crazy goal like 50 5k's before I turn 50. Is that just crazy talk?

- Switch to other types of exercise? Bob Harper videos or a Zumba class again....

- Go back to biking? I did a ton of that from 16-19. (That was a long time ago)

Right now I'm going to take a few days off. Have a mild case of shin splints. I felt them coming on during my big push two weeks ago. A little rest will do them good.

No matter what I have to do something. I'm still too heavy and don't feel good about myself.
Plus there is this pesky 100 day clock ticking.........

And we're back......

Since our last episode...

The interview - it turned into a job - and it's great. A whole new field for me, but I can draw on much of my past sales/business development experience. Been here a little over a year and it's going quite well.

But.......the new job has me on the road. Eating discipline went out the window, weight slowly crept back on. I gained almost 30 pounds, gettting me (almost) back to my highest weight ever. And my fat man pants! As a result of that, cholesterol went back up and now I am on medication.

Once I got sick and tired of looking and feeling this way, I started taking action and so far have dropped almost 10 pounds. One of the things I've done is gotten back to running. I'll never consider myself a runner, but tommorrow morning I'm signed up to participate in a 5 mile run. (I did one in training last week, but until tommorrow I won't consider it to be "real")


But why am I blogging again ?

I would say it is a combination of things.

- The 5 miler is really presenting itself as a breakthrough moment for me. I haven't said that out loud to many people, but in my head it is huge.

- I've been reading a variety of other blogs on struggles and accomplishments plus some on other fun topics.

- There are 100 days left in this year. I like the idea of 100 day challenges - like you'll see in previous posts.

- Seth Godin has updated a Zig Ziglar goal setting system. I love both of them and have started using the system. For some reason I can't post a link here, but go to Amazon and enter "Pick Four Godin" it will come up.

- Sometimes it just helps to put things in writing (typing) kind of a "brain download"


Not sure if anyone will read this. Not sure how often I will post. But I'm back and trying again.

I'm a bad blogger...

Wow...been awhile.

End of May into early June was crazy. Kids wrapping up school year. Then the mad rush of massive house cleaning before heading on vacation.

Over a month without a post. To my less than five readers (or maybe less than one) - sorry.

The next week has the potential to be awesome. In two days I run my first 5k. I should really say "organized" 5k because I've done several runs that have covered the distance already.

Still, running in a huge pack, with a number pinned to my shirt will be a brand new experience. When I cross that finish line.........I'll probably be in tears.

Next week. I have an interview. It's been well over a year since my last one and I'm really pumped. I've told myself this before, but I think it would be a fantastic fit for me. I will have some homework and prep to do over the weekend but that's okay. I really want to nail this one.

Lots of progress on the spirtuality front. My prayers aren't the best, but they are helping. I've have some ideas and plans to dive in deeper.

Many more things floating around in my head. I promise to post more. (Yes, I've said that before too.)

I (think) I feel like a winner

Tuesday was my Doctor appointment to find out test results. I was nervous. I kept thinking that maybe I haven't worked hard enough, or been eating enough of the right things....maybe I'll still have to go on medication.



Thankfully - I was wrong !!!



The bad cholesterol has dropped (just barely) into the desirable range. He was happy with the weight loss so far. The good cholesterol is rising. He said that it can take six months of exercise to really move the number.

Part of me thought that the 5k on July 3rd was going to be the end of the running - now I'm looking onto bigger and better things. I can't beleive I'm thinking it - but there is a 5 miler in September that might be in my future.

I need to get back into a steady routine for lifting. Plus I need to get started on another class - Zumba, yoga, pilates, something that I can schedule each week.

In three weeks we go on vacation, a very tempting time to fall off the wagon. I can't let it happen. I want to lose another 20 pounds, so I'm working on altering some of the traditional vacation menus. The kids will eat turkey burgers. As long as I promise them Smore's later that night.

Plus vacation is the time when I read some good fiction. Got some Grisham, Baldacci, and hope to pick up one or two more beforehand.

More to share soon. Want to get this one posted.

Remember, we don't celebrate Memorial Day - we observe it. Thank you Veterans.

Finals and Tests....

Been a couple weeks since I've posted - sorry. Spring semester is finished and I'm happy to report a 4.0 GPA for the semester. That might be a first for me.

Even though classes are done, today I took a test that has huge implications. I had blood drawn to check my cholesterol. Not sure which was harder, the 12 hours fasting before the bloodwork, or waiting until next Tuesday to see the Doc and get my results. I REALLY hope the numbers have improved. I'm eating much better - should still add in some more fish - and I've been exercising plenty.

I made my appointment for next Tuesday (day 65) for a somewhat corny reason. That night is the season finale of Biggest Loser. I've been watching the show for awhile (I must confess, sometimes while eating ice cream) and since I actually did something about it myself, I thought that Tuesday made some sort of logical date for a check-up. Next Tuesday is one of those little "finish lines" to me.

The "100 (plus 4) Day Challenge" is continuing. I'm really focused on the Couch to 5k, and trying hard to get back to lifting at least two times a week. Last Friday I ran for 20 minutes - all in a row, without stopping. That was huge. I don't think I've ever done that before in my life. This Friday I go for 25 minutes. My pace is still slow, but I know that I'll have a couple weeks from completing the C25k program to my "actual" 5k on July 3rd (Day 104) to go for distance over time.

The spirituality quest is continuing. Reading the "Purpose Driven Life" is still going, although now I found out it is contrary to some Catholic teaching. "The Me I Want To Be" audio book by John Ortberg is nice mix of humor and religion. I've even started some praying again. But I still haven't been to confession. There is more out there - I'm just not sure what "it" is.

Next post will be on Tuesday (or early Wednesday) hope I have some good stuff to report.