Month: May 2011

In Praise of the Health Plan

I know you've been pounded about your financial plan…Wall Street is very  good about doing that.  The equally important question is; do you have a Physical Health Plan?  You know what I mean, that plan of keeping your weight in-line, aerobic exercise, strength training, and sensible eating. 

Let ne guess, your financial planner hasn't said a word about it.  And of course, Wall Street hasn't been running ads about the importance of physical health planning.

One of my doctors (I have 3) told me his passion around this and I'm with him.  You can view his site here.

I hope I will do him proud with the following list of reasons to have a Physical Health Plan:

  1. Since you're planning out for retirement, shouldn't you plan to be as healthy as possible?  Poor health will cost you in money and time.
  2. Your body was designed to be healthy and functioning at a high level.
  3. You'll feel better when you exercise and eat right.
  4. There are people (trainers, authors, magazines) who can help you on your journey.  You are not alone.
  5. Food and drinks that are bad for you are that way for a reason.
  6. Any career that requires you to sacrifice your health is an assassin and an enemy.
  7. If you make excuses, you've just validated the importance of having good health plan.
  8. You don't need to be like an air-brushed model to be in great shape.
  9. Your body was designed to move, so get going.
  10. The first 4-6 weeks will feel like hell, but once you get through that period, things will go your way.

Did You Mean My Life?-Update 2011

Wanted to revisit this post for personal clarity and encouragement for you.  Enjoy!

As I've watched my life twist and turn since I began Epic Living, I haven't always embraced the idea of where it was leading.  Maybe because of the surprises (good and bad) that have come my way. 

Ryan Bettencourt of Learn From My Life relayed a story to me, on the radio show, about Daniel Pink.  Daniel made it clear that life was not linear.  Instinctively, we would agree with him.  Who has had a life that lived straight?  Not me.

This past weekend the difference between my work and my life was illustrated vividly. 

I met people at a picnic that seemed to know me even though we'd never met.  Call it destiny or serendipity, but it was clear I was meant to connect.  God is a wonderful writer. So many of my experiences being honed to manifest something beautiful.  As mentioned before, I couldn't have predicted or scripted such encounters. 

OK, I know I'm being vague/cryptic.  The people I met were a part of an organization that I've agreed to help on a long term basis.  Obviously, I will reveal more at a later date.  But this post is not about me.  It's about you and your life.

If you spend your time (who knows how much you've been given) working on work, more than likely your life will evaporate.  Many are doing this now and fooling themselves into believing that a promotion or the number of direct reports validates.  It doesn't.  A simple deception that occurs with every tick of the clock.  By the way many employers are complicit here.

In the movie A Good Year, Russell Crowe's character Max is asked by the CEO what would he choose.  He said; "What'll it be Max, the money or your life?"  You could intertwine money and work on that statement.  Check out the movie and you'll know what I mean.

The following are some things to swallow regarding life and work:

  •     Valuing life first will lead to success beyond your wildest dreams
  •     Valuing life leads to redefining success.
  •     Seeing work as a tool to find a great life is a wise approach.
  •     Your employer will eventually struggle to remember you.
  •     Those who love you are screaming (most of the time silently) for your attention.

Why Going Back Doesn’t Work

Road Back 

I recently posted on our Facebook Fan Page the following question:

Why didn't Neo go back into the Matrix?

If you've seen the Matrix, you probably have the answer.  But what's fascinating is how readily we can be to going back to something that doesn't exist anymore.  I guess you could say Neo was super-human and therefore had the stamina to keep going forward.  I think it's more that his eyes were opened and he was caught by the fire of his purpose.

One of the first steps of any journey is to define the purpose (the reason you're here).  Without purpose you're nothing more than a wonderer.  I didn't fully define my purpose until I crossed my personal Rubicon.  I was well under way by that time.  Regardless, it was key in helping me understand the dangers of trying to go back.

We are in a battle, you and I.  The present and the future are unfolding.  There are problems to solve and the resistance is great.

Here are 7 reasons why going back won't work:

  1. When you think about going back, it's usually accompnained by a false-sense that what's behind you was secure.  Revisionism gives us the luxury of telling ourselves lies.  We live in a world that is insecure.  This presents great opportunity too.
  2. Our lifetime is made up of multiple lifetimes.  This means there will be beginnings and endings.  Even the best situations were never made to go on and on.  Freedom is found in letting this happen.
  3. Sometimes God will blow-up that place we romanticize about in-order to get us to the better future we really want.  This is tough to accept.
  4. People and organizations move on.  It's not that you couldn't make it work.  But often you're growth means it wouldn't be a fit.  You should just let someone else have a turn.
  5. Our tendency to avoid loss keeps us lamenting about the "one that got away."  The feeling of liberation that failure can be should be tried.  By the way, Derek Rose misses about 58% of his shots.  So what are you afraid of?
  6. Our best work is ahead of us.  Some call it evolution, some call it progression, either way you should be embracing the work that is here and ahead.
  7. We get comfortable and that is the first step to missing our destiny.  The past provides great perceived comfort.  Mostly because we play the part of writer, producer and director.  Be uncomfortable before someone/something makes you that way.

How Do You Know When The World Has Changed?

Do you know the signs of a changed world?  Apply this to your personal sphere and the larger world too.  Are there certain events or thoughts that trigger this for you?  Maybe it was conversation with a friend or a book from a visionary.  Each of us should remember the where, when and how.  But what if you've got the notice, but decided to ignore it?

Now we're talking about being weighed in the scales of life.

Our lives will be measured by what we are willing to see and what we're willing to act on.  My experience tells me this is not a favorite place for many to be.  Ironic, since it's where the better life, the better future and the better work is found.

 

Matching Your Values to Your Words

Microphone 
 
Do your words match your values?  Not to perfection, but do you live out what you tell the world?  Is your story verifiable?  This is important because if they don't match-up, your wasting time.  And time is a gift.

I had a conversation with my wife last night about a couple we know that is heading for trouble.  The irony is they know it.  But being unsure of what to do, they just keep going.  The husband is very successful in the career and money sphere.  And his pursuits are steering the ship.  I consider him deluded.  If you asked him he'd say he values his family.  Huh?

Now the deal is this.  Everybody has been given the management role in regards to their life.  So I'm not in charge-except in my own life.  That said, I don't think the couple I mentioned desires the negative outcomes of their actions.  I see them like so many others when it comes to their circumstances.  Many people feel like they have no options.  But We do have options, and a lot of them.  But are we willing to do the work that will leave us vulnerable, in pain or afraid? 

This is the Rubicon.

I know it's a harder road to be focused on your words matching up to your values, but think about the following:

  1. Who or what deceived us into believing that relationships, missions, careers, etc., are supposed to be a breeze to deal with?
  2. The life you want will never be handed to you in a box wrapped in red ribbon.
  3. Maybe others are watching you for the inspiration to go forward.
  4. As hard as it may be to hear, often we spend way too much time trying capture the butterfly of happiness.  Maybe we should be still for a second or two and let the butterfly come to us.
  5. Our values are who we are.  This is true even if you try to deny it.
  6. Voices from the past are a part of history, leave them there.  Stop trying to resurrect what is, and should be, dead.
  7. You are responsible-fully.

Positioning

We all know people who are good at positioning for insincere purposes.  This is probably why the word has a fairly negative connotation.  But what about positioning for sincere and "right" reasons?

It could be a game-changer for you.

Whether you're looking for your next job opportunity or pitching a VC on a great business idea, positioning is vital.  Consider it the backdrop for your story.  If your intentions are sincere, then you should want to position the story (compelling and not like the everyone else) for your audience.  Seems to me it would take the edge off of the blues we can tend to experience while pursuing our dreams. 

It's worth it if you want your life to count.  Understand this; if you were looking for any employer, any VC, any business partner, then positioning would be a complete waste of time.  But my guess is you want it to be right.  The question is whether you're willing to go through the fire to find what you're looking for.

After the fire, you'll find the place you were looking for.