Motivation Monday

Monday’s have always been known as the worst day of the week and one that “just can’t go by fast enough.”  I decided that I’m going to try change that and I am going to write a motivational post or post about a motivating person or story each Monday.  This week I am going to use a video of  a new educational video series that is taking the world by storm.  It started out as a small idea to help family members and it continues to innovate into new ways to help people young and small. Take a look at this video about how the Khan Academy story and if it doesn’t leave motivated for this work week, check your pulse and come back next Monday for my next post.

A Community That Cannot Be Torn Apart

Team sports make you rely on others to succeed while individual sports like tennis and golf rely more on your individual talents to determine your success. Now imagine if you could combine the two and get the both of best worlds.  I believe that is what the sport of running is.  This was on display a few days ago again at the Boston Marathon while the runners ran and after tragedy struck.

I first noticed this amongst runners and fans during my cross-country seasons at Jamestown High School.  Although there was the team aspect, my teammates and coaches pushed me to do my best and wanted nothing more.  Sure they wanted the team to do well, but individually they wanted to see us all set PR’s.  Also, once the fastest teammates were done, they wouldn’t just lay around, they’d cheer on runners that were still coming in to the finish.  If these actions seem odd between competitors the fans took it to the next step.  Cross-country, which is not a fan-friendly sport, had nothing but the best fans.  Not only does cheering involve running to several different spots along the race course to cheer on the competitors but just because your son or daughter was in one race, it didn’t stop you as a fan from cheering on the competitors in each and every race.

Now this past week has been one that has not only torn apart a city but also shaken the running community as well.  While everyone was wanting answers of who did it, the actions that took place during the tragedy is what is extraordinary.  The fans that had spent all day cheering on thousands of runners at different spots along the course I’m sure, jumped right in to lend a hand when the chaos begun.  Runners who had just ran as hard as they could for 26.2 miles continued running to the hospital to give blood for victims that needed it.  Once again the members of the running community were not worried about themselves; they were worried about everyone else.

Now I’m sure I might get comments that it is not just the running community where this mentality of others first occurs, however runners are where I have seen this continually and never any other way.  I’d like to thank my parents, coaches, teammates, and fans for strengthening these values within me.  I look forward to running the Fargo Half-Marathon in a few weeks and you bet I will be cheering on fellow competitors once I am finished with my race.  Although our running community will never be the “same,” I believe as we work through the uncertainty of why, we will end up stronger than ever.

Kickin’ Bad Habits To The Curb!

This time of the year usually has a common routine among many households: spring cleaning.  Although spring has not arrived in North Dakota quite yet, that doesn’t give me an excuse to skip out.  Before we know it our weekends will be filled with our favorite summer time activities and we will not want to do much else as we know our nice weather is limited.  I have decided that since we are in a transition between houses and moving back to the Midwest, my spring cleaning this year would be personal.  Many times before I have tried to rid myself of drinking pop only to decide “one every once in awhile” would be okay which usually turned into one or more a day eventually.

Since I started my new job at a great company (Swanson Health Products), you could say their mission is contagious. Do the right things now by giving your body what it needs and it will reward you later.  I have made many changes this spring already with many more in the plan as we get settled in our own home.  Although I found it very easy to consume twenty or more ounces of pop a day, it was never for a good reason.  It contains a bunch of sugar, no nutritional value, and although it seems to be cheap (only $1 for any size at McDonalds) it’s a money pit.  When I put into perspective that I was spending about $20/week on pop, it made me realize I could do a lot of other fun things with that money.  A new pair of running shoes over the course of a month, dinner and movie dates with my wife, and the list goes on and on.

It has not been quite two weeks since I kicked pop to the curb, but I already am over the cravings for it.  I keep a water bottle with me at all times and have switched from drinking a few ounces of water a day to 2-3 liters easily now in a day.  This is just the start of the changes and I will continue to document them here in this blog along with any struggles that I encounter.  Have you done any spring cleaning? Feel free to comment below with changes you might be making.

Boston Strong!

There should never a question of our nation’s resiliency! Yes there are people that do bad things that leaves us wondering why, but the way our nation comes together is impeccable. This video shows how Boston has and will continue to come together.

Quest For Boston…

Running has always been something I enjoyed. Starting with Wednesday night track meets to track in elementary and middle school to cross country in high school.  Again in college I combined running with swimming and biking to become active in triathlons along with a few road races.  You could say I get the “runners high” and I feel the thrill at both the starting line and finish line.  Having this love for running has come and gone at times depending on different life events, but deep down I have always wanted to be able to qualify for the Boston Marathon.  I always thought that if I ever did qualify, I would make the trip and run the historic race.  After the events that took place on Monday, you better bet the house I will make the trip.

I will be running in the upcoming Fargo Half-Marathon and have set my goals.  My career best half marathon is 1:38:17 and my goal for Fargo will be sub 1:30.  No it will not qualify me for Boston (my age group puts my marathon time at 3:05), but it will be a step in that direction.  I hope to enter a few marathons this summer/fall and other road races to help me along my journey.  Getting to the starting line and crossing the finish line are great moments, but the journey that it takes to get to live those moments is where the satisfaction truly begins.

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” -Thomas A. Edison

My Vacation Thoughts…Exactly!

My plans for vacation are described throughout this song..Enjoy!

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel…It’s Here!

There are times in our life where the combination of stress, life events, & lack of time make it seem like we are peering down a tunnel without a light at the end of it.  Maybe the light is there but rather than it getting closer to you it becomes more distant.  As a very optimistic minded person usually, I have found myself stressing more and more, even causing health issues.  That’s where I had to draw the line.  I am all about getting the job done, even if I have to do others work to ensure it gets done correctly, however when my health is affected, I’m the first to draw the line.  I have decided that we must schedule vacations or time away from what stresses you in your life to remain sane, luckily for me I had a vacation planned back to the Midwest for my brother-in-law’s wedding.

I have known about this vacation/time away for quite a few months, however I didn’t realize the necessity of this time away until last week when the doctor told me the stress I was under is causing the start of ulcers in my stomach.  Why the stress you ask? Things at work have not been going as smoothly as I would like and since I begun work for my current company, I have been an one-man marketing department.  Not only have I taken great pride in the work that I do in creating marketing messages and monitoring that sector of our business, but also in ensuring the overall effectiveness that our business runs with.  This increased stress level has shown me though that I am unable to bite off as much as I possibly could.

I have realized that this doesn’t mean that I’m a failure in anyway, however I have realized that a business can not run like it should unless like a motor it has all cylinders firing properly.  It is critical in any team environment for everyone to do their best to increase the team’s chances of success and this translates right into the business workplace.  So as I take off on a vacation back to the Midwest to see many family and friends, I look forward to the mental relief from the workspace.  Rejuvenation is needed at times, and many times will make you a better employee when you come back.  Ready or not ND & MN, here I come!

Google Doesn’t Have All The Answers

Ever since my wife and I moved to Northglenn from Loveland, we have struggled to find a church.  There are many Lutheran churches in our area, however the ones we were finding (via Google) were not of the same denomination that we both had grown up with.  We stepped outside of our comfort area to explore what results Google showed us.  Service after service, we were excited to be in the Lord’s house, but it didn’t feel like it was where we belonged.  We had exhausted our Google search results, so the only thing we felt that was left was to put it in God’s hands and wait for him to show us where he wanted us to worship him.

While out driving on a weekend, we drove by St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church.  The church was not more than 7 or 8 miles from our house, however wasn’t included in our Google results.  After returning home, we searched the web trying to find the denomination of the congregation and was surprised to find it was ELCA, exactly what we were looking for.  We had no choice but to attend a service the next day and see if maybe this church was where we feel comfortable praising God every week.  After arriving 10-15 minutes at other churches and being the first ones there, we decided to show up about 5 minutes early.  As we entered the parking lot, there was a pleasant amount of cars, which assured that there was a service soon to start.

As we found our way to a pew, it didn’t take more than a few seconds to notice that we were the youngest people in the congregation.  The next youngest couple attending the service appeared to be in their early 50’s.  I will be the first to admit that I got worried very quickly that this church was not going to be for us.  As the worship continued, it reminded both of us of the traditional services we attended growing up in the Midwest.  As we walked to our car after the service, we glanced at each with a smile.  We feel like God has answered our prayer and shown us where we are to worship him.

Update: After attending three services, we are still very happy with the congregation and the members.  Everybody has been very welcoming and we look forward to the single service next week, which will combine their traditional service and their contemporary service.

Motivation Starts From Within

“Great moments are born from great opportunity.
And that’s what you have here tonight, boys.
That’s what you’ve earned here, tonight.
One game.
If we played ‘em ten times, they might win nine.
But not this game. Not tonight. Tonight, we skate with ‘em.
Tonight, we stay with ‘em, and we shut them down because we can!

Tonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world.
You were born to be hockey players — every one of ya.
And you were meant to be here tonight.
This is your time.
Their time — is done. It’s over.
I’m sick and tired of hearin’ about what a great hockey team the Soviets have.
Screw ‘em!
This is your time!!

Now go out there and take it!”

~Herb Brooks, 1980’s US Olympic Hockey Coach

As I write my first blog post, I remind myself of my favorite inspirational quote.  I will admit that the movie, Miracle, educated me about this great feat in American sports history, however this movie is a great example by how I feel we should live our lives.  In this world, people expect us to fail and I believe people find a sense of relief to see others fail.  Growing up I had an incredible support group of family and friends that wanted to see me succeed and I’m very thankful for that.  Of course my parents were my biggest supporters, but also were the first people to inform me of when I screwed up.  I grew up trying as hard as I could to succeed at whatever task was in front of me: doing my best at sports practice, getting good grades, or living my life as a human here on earth.

I remember hearing many times growing up that “the real world is tough and not easy.”  Growing up with the support staff I had, I had a hard time thinking what the comment meant.  Was the only people who were going to like me end up being the support  staff that I already knew? I often pondered over why the world could not be as encouraging as my support staff was, whether they were a close friend or complete stranger.  Why are new’s stories more often about people screwing up?  Our society is more focused on seeing everyone else fail, rather than reaching a hand out and helping someone in need.

I am moved by the minority of people who I meet, know, or hear of that are embracing the complete opposite.  Less worried about themselves, they wake up everyday to better the world.  I challenge you, as I challenge myself every morning, to reach out and help someone in need or make a difference.  This doesn’t mean giving away your life savings or any money at all.  A courteous hi or hello to someone who might not be expecting it is a simple gesture that can better this world.  I can’t force motivation on you though, you must discover from within what is important to you.

Are You Sick Of The “What If” Game?

This evening I had a conversation with a good friend about some changes that he is making in his life and it reminded me of a phrase that I find myself asking less, but it still happens…”What If?”  What if I would have done something differently? What if I would have done something instead of nothing at all?  Growing up I found myself asking this question quite often as I grew up very conservative, not wanting to screw up or more commonly, disappointing my parents.  As I have grown older I still find myself striving to be good enough for my parents, my friends, & my bosses.  The reason for my bosses is an easy one to answer as I hope to stay employed to make ends meet financially. But why my friends and family?

Family and true friends should love/like me for who I am, not deciding by what accomplishments I’ve achieved or looking at the times where I might have not done the right thing.  You could argue that these are the things that make us who we are, but these individual events don’t summarize our lives entirely.   Achievements, good-doings and also unsuccessful attempts or failures are learning opportunities for personal growth.  If we don’t take chances or do things we normally wouldn’t, we remain in a stalemate.  But by asking a girl out, volunteering your time, or doing a task you normally would shy away from, we grow.  The result might not be what you anticipated or wanted, but that event helps mold us.  Rather than being worried about our expectations not being met or what others will think of us, I challenge you to jump or leap or dive! I believe that there is a reason you were brought to this point in your life…take a chance and learn from it…or keep asking yourself, What If?