I never was a morning person until I started working. Hunting, fishing, all of the activities I enjoy… a lot of them require getting up before the sun comes up, in the pre-dawn hours. But not until I started my career did I have a new appreciation for getting myself up and going early every day.

A few years ago, through the ups and downs of career, life, and all of the issues you run into and out of on a daily basis, I gained a new mindset. Every day is like a blank page. It’s a way to get to start over. You can start your day as positive as you want to be, as enthusiastic as you want to be, no matter what happened to you the day before. Regardless of what issues you went to bed thinking about, as you get started with the sun coming up and you get your mind ready to tackle the day, you have to look at it like every day is a blank page. And at the end of that day, what you do is on that page.

I’ve adopted that mindset, and it’s been very beneficial for me. As I start out each and every new day, I just can’t help but love the chance of getting to write another day in history with something meaningful that I have had an impact on in this world.

When you grow up around cars and racing cars, you learn what it means to “redline” an engine. The tachometer when running wide open as far as you can push the engine will “redline.” And if you hold there too long or are not careful, you will blow the engine. Blowing an engine means you are instantly out of the race, and maybe more importantly, will either spend a lot of time or a lot of money getting the engine replaced. When you are either racing or pushing a car as much as you can, you always have to be mindful that if you push too hard, you are likely to blow up. And that means you have to start over.

Redlining is kind of the same approach that I have adopted in life and in work. To take advantage of every minute and every opportunity, you must push yourself and others as far as they can go. You must get everything out of yourself and those around you that you can without creating a catastrophic event (like redlining an engine) such as blowing an engine. You also have to realize that not everyone wants to run wide open all the time. Some people enjoy breaks and times of lower RPM performance. But still, you must find a way to energize them so that they embrace the constraints of always racing – whether in business or in life.

Just like any racecar driver, I have blown a lot of engines in my career. Only the engines that you blow in business cannot be replaced with 8 cylinders. They come with 2 eyes, 2 ears, 1 mouth, 10 fingers, etc. The engines I have blown have all been in the form of people. Either people that I pushed too far or expected too much out of that ended up not surviving for whatever reasons can all be traced back to “redlining.” There is no common trait among people that they love to run wide open all the time. True, some people do enjoy this way of life and usually fit in very well around me – but it isn’t for everyone. And I think, overall, that is a very good thing.

Sometimes, like now, I just like to sit here and think about a world that would exist with no redlines. How great it would be if everyone wanted to run as fast as me or even faster. What a sense of achievement I would have to watch an entire organization that never needed a word of motivation – they just wanted to go. Maybe that is what my form of Valhalla would be. Or maybe it is just a process of building everyone into my way of thinking.

Opportunities come in all kinds of different ways in life.

The ones that have the biggest meanings in our lives generally come in relationships. Husbands and wives, parents and children, friends and people we collect throughout our journeys through our time on earth are generally what occupy the most opportunities to fulfill our lives with enjoyment. Every person you meet, every relationship you decide to invest in is nothing more than an opportunity to live a richer and fuller life by spending time with people you choose to spend time with. These are also the opportunities that you take chances on in people. You may take time to get to know someone over the years, but then over time you drift apart and become nothing more than a “like” on a Facebook post or a text message on a birthday, and a “hey, how are you” when you see them at the grocery store. These personal opportunities also can bring a great amount of sadness and grief as you lose people in your life with things like death and illness, leaving you to reflect on the time you spent with them as your most prized asset.

People and relationships are the most meaningful opportunities that you will ever find in your life, and you might as well try all of them while you are still walking on earth.

Other opportunities come in the form of more tangible things like where you work, where you live, and the kind of activities you spend your time on. These are all opportunities to better yourself either for happiness or additional fulfillment in life. Some people crave money and success and will sacrifice time and relationships to achieve their goals. Others will sacrifice money and tangible things to spend more time doing what they enjoy. Regardless of which column you fall into, you are still taking advantage of unique opportunities and using your own motivations for how you live your life.

As I walk through every day of my life, it is filled with choices. How to create a balance of what is close and personal to me along with what motivates me. While some days are more fulling in either column than others at the spry young age of 41, I think my compass is pretty well dialed in on a direction I want to go and what sacrifices it requires to get there. It’s all a balance. Something I have written about for a long time, but knowing where you want to go and what it is going to take to get there when opportunities come at you requires a lot of discipline.

It is also very clear sometimes to see the confusion some people have over which opportunities drive their motivation. The ones most obvious are ones that are derived from anger. Whether it’s news, politics, opinions – even personal likes and dislikes, it is really starting to amaze me to see the lengths people will go to jump at an opportunity that really will never amount to anything for them. People are so quick to see an opportunity in our current world with no real benefit for them in the end and risk so much to accomplish so little.

There is no moral for this story, only an observation that if you are taking opportunities that don’t equate to personal relationships that you can keep the rest of your life or opportunities that allow you to enjoy your time on earth. You might want to rethink your motivations. Over the years, I have found myself doing this quite a bit, and it has helped to guide me on the path I am headed down.

Don’t ever be scared to try new things.

Last night, while packing my bag for a quick business trip, I had about a 10-second brain lapse where I forgot where I was going the next day. It is an important thing for me to remember because, depending on who I am going to see, I always try to dress the part.

For brand new clients or prospects, I tend to dress very conservatively with not a lot of flash. Simple colors, simple patterns, absolutely nothing that is over the top. But, for people I know and may have worked with for a very long time, sometimes my appearance may take a walk on the wild side.

This isn’t a fashion blog, but to make a point of reference I was packing somewhat conservatively because part of my upcoming trip was to meet someone that I have never met before with a proposition to win all of their business, not just the part we had been doing. After my brain refocused, I started going through my head with what I was going to say in the meeting, things to remember as key points about their business, and the whole nine yards of what you do to prepare for a new business meeting. After playing these scenarios through, while packing a change of shirts and socks, it was time to zip my bag up with the last thing to go in – it’s always my bathroom kit. While placing the kit in my bag, I thought back to what it used to be like to be “scared” or timid before meetings like this one. Years ago, there were a lot fewer of them and each one seemed to bring on a little more anxiety.

That gave me a great reminder – something my dad use to always say before a big meeting. “Don’t be scared. It isn’t like they are going to eat you if you mess up.” Not being scared to meet new people and try new things is what fuels business growth. No, even I don’t get but about half of the new opportunities I get in front of, so you will have to accept a decent amount of failure in these endeavors. But never, ever be scared of them. It is what makes life fun and keeps things interesting.

To look at a calendar from a year ago to today is like being on a different planet. This day last year was ruled by uncertainty, fear, and feeling like there was nothing you could do about anything. Which is a complete 180 from where we sit today with everything rocking and rolling at a record pace. There is no doubt the difference between what was happening a year ago and what is happening today definitely makes you thankful for everything in your life.

It is also amazing all that you can handle if you really make yourself focus. From buying and selling things, working on new and big deals, and building a level of talented people so interested in success that they become unstoppable is what my focus has been and has me thriving. Even when I take a moment (or a week) to chill out on spring break with my family, I still find my mind working at warp speed. And it’s not working at warp speed on problems, but working on how things can be better and what some of the next moves are going to be.

You always need to take time to take a break. Something I really didn’t believe in and had a hard time doing throughout most of my career but have come to believe in the importance of taking time to not only take a break for myself, but to give others a break from me. That may sound a little like a farce but not just giving myself space but giving other people space has really made a difference in the speed and ability that people want to achieve.

Taking a minute to chill also gives me time to just be thankful. Again, something that I used to have a hard time doing because I was always looking for more. Now, even as more still becomes more… it is fun to take a moment and take it all in.

This is a quote that I heard this week while traveling to see clients. It made me stop and put some things into perspective, as I had never heard this or its meaning before and thought it was a noble enough piece worth sharing.  

A lot of times people will ask ,“are you doing well?” And usually, the answer – even when it isn’t necessarily the truth – is that you are well. But people always have struggles that others never know about, and probably to be truthful, do not care about. There are things causing fear, creating faults, and causing people to not live by a guiding set of principles that often are never visible to the outside world. But the simple question of “are you doing well” is simply a way to say hello to someone and at least give off the inclination that you care about them.

In this context, and the way it was explained to me, “doing well” has an entirely different approach from the normal salutation. You are doing well because you have spent your time and effort trying to do good. Doing good can be difficult sometimes especially when you are doing good for other people and some of the people perceive that nothing you do is good and can find a lot of fault with you. To do good, you have to have your heart and your mind in the right place. You have to understand and accept what you are doing and why, and be at peace with it. Without these two in tandem, the level of good that you are doing will be insurmountable.

To truly be “doing well,” in my mind, is a place where you have conquered your fears, accepted your faults, believe in yourself and those around you, and have lived by principles that caused you to do good. And not just do good for yourself, but to do good for other people. Once you have done good for others, done a good job at truly knowing and accepting who you are, then you can truly be “doing well.”

My job is all about finding and nurturing talent.  

Sometimes, you find talent in the weirdest places or at a time when you really don’t think that you need it, but BAM! It just hits you right square in the eyes. Talent comes in all forms of people, and sometimes from where you least except to see it. I have seen talent develop over the years from a receptionist in the beginning to now one of the top leaders in the company, forming over decades. Talent has grown from another individual who was tormented in one role but when moved to another job where their skillset could really be unleashed, they have run circles around everyone around them. In myself, not that I think of myself as talented. I still see the 22 year old showing up to work an hour and a half on the first day, without a clue what was supposed to be done but only interested in proving that he could outwork everyone. Then going on to grow a business really without much of a plan, only the mindset that there was always more to do.  

Other times, you see talent go the opposite direction. You meet someone with such promise and desire. This person is eager and always on go and ready to help. But over time, you only start to see problems compounded by problems that end up totally changing this person’s trajectory. There are people who  show they have what it takes and have the fire down below to grow, and they go over time to accomplish great things. You think this person is literally unstoppable, but they let a person or a comment or a situation totally derail them. One simple moment will forever change the success this person could have had. They shrink into a pit of “everybody” is out to get me and “I am greater than everyone around me,” and it implodes their ability, and they end up either quitting or leaving. Then, there are those who you know have talent but from day-one it is kind of “them against the world,” and because they have the desire and ability you let them run. You want to see what they can do even when those around you question this person or flat out cannot work or want to communicate with this person. This maybe is the hardest of talented people to accept because for you they do all that you want them to do, BUT they cannot get along with others and will not accept the fact that it takes great teamwork to do great things.  

When I think about all the types of talent that doesn’t succeed, it all comes back to some reason that these individuals simply cannot get out of their own way. They all have (or had) what it takes, but they let some factor cause them to be stifled or felt there was something in their path that they could not move. I wont say that it doesn’t bother me anymore to see this, because years ago these experiences use to throw me into mental anguish. Distraught over the time I spent with these people only to see them fail at the mission planned for them. Now, I have come to realize that I cannot help those who can’t seem to find a way out of their own way.  

My saving grace in why I didn’t end up like this was because of a great mentor. A mentor who would motivate me, encourage me, build me up all along to be able to do what I aspired to do. This mentor was so great that he would also tear me down piece by piece and never allow me to blame anyone for something that I had control over. I was never allowed to get in my own way, and that is what makes the difference.

In my list of 7 goals for the year, goal #3 was “Eliminate any distractions in life not vital to success.” I thought about this one before putting it down on paper because it did mean that some things in my life would have to go this year. Also, the quote isn’t totally mine alone; I heard a speech a few years ago where Nick Saban said something similar about taking anything out of your life that wasn’t allowing you to be your best.

To me, distractions come in several forms.

First, there are people. I have always been taught and thoroughly believed that I was in the people business. People buy the product that I am selling and people create the product that I sell, so I live in a world revolving around people. But sometimes, you have a set of people in your life that simply distracts you from the task at hand. They do or say things, either to you or about you, and when it makes it back to you – the time spent mentally thinking about them is simply no good. So sometimes, you have to take people out of your lives who are distracting your mental power to perform at the level you want to perform at. There have been several times this year with friends and some family that I have chosen to eliminate from my thoughts simply because they are not and probably never will be willing to help me succeed. That may sound a little heartless but I find myself in a place where I want all the time to myself that I can get, and if you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem. And problems have to go. Plus, these are the type of friends/family that never offered to pay for dinner, buy the beer, or come pick you up to go somewhere, so see ya later.

Next, there are habits. I used to enjoy habits like sleeping in a little on the weekends or looking at Facebook at night before going to sleep. Now, I have started waking up early on the weekends to read my work emails, send follow-up notes, and when I do go to Facebook, I  usually go there because I am looking for someone or specifically at something. Also, things like alcohol use to be a bigger distraction. Everybody loves to have a couple of drinks or unwind after work (which I still do), but not to the extent that I used to. By limiting the days or the amount of alcohol, I have found that I am much more functional and on top of my game even more than before. The truth is that I really like it. Being more focused and paying more attention to everything gives me a great feeling. Better than that of a habit that had no great rewards.

Lastly, there is the mental trap. I used to get angry at situations or issues that would occupy my thoughts. Sometimes, I would think about them for days, and there was no outcome that was going to be productive for me in any way. So, by not allowing these things into my mind and simply accepting situations or issues for what they are, I find there is a whole lot more of my time and energy to expend in other areas. Focusing on things you can do something about or how to make situations better for people in the future rather than harping on what went wrong in the past has taken a big set of distractions out of my mind and freed me up from being in a mental trap.

So, to sum everything up: Dump your friends/family that create drama, put down your Facebook account and the beer can, and don’t harp on situations that linger in your mind. Get things in and out that do not help your ability to be successful.

Eliminate your distractions and you will be surprised at what all you can accomplish.

You go through life every day, and you sometimes feel like nothing can ever surprise you. There’s not going to be anything in any given day that’s going to shock you or change your outcome of how you go about your day.

But then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, somebody gives you something out of a simple conversation you had with the most unsuspecting person to create such a gift that you’re just blown away and truly at a loss for words.

I was getting my hair cut the other week, and the person who cuts my hair has really become a good friend of mine. We talk about life, our kids, current events, the country, everything going on in our daily lives. One thing that goes on a lot in my life is hunting. I’ve always loved to hunt. I grew up hunting, I’m now starting to take my kids hunting. Hunting is part of the fabric of my existence and my life. While getting my hair cut and talking about hunting, I made the comment that I was out of ammo for my rifle. I only had three shells left. Luckily, deer season was ending, and I wouldn’t need any more until next year. My hairdresser said, “My husband probably knows where to find some ammo. Tell me what kind you want, and I’ll see if he can get it.”

I kind of shrugged it off in disbelief because, in the year 2021 with everything that’s gone on in the world like Covid, riots, and raids on the Capitol, finding ammunition is one of the hardest things to do. So, I shrugged it off and kept talking, and she said again, “No, seriously, tell me what kind of ammo. My husband is really into guns and can probably find it.”

I get a call last night. Her husband has not only found the ammo but has bought me four boxes of it. When I try to repay the favor, she simply won’t take the money. It’s the kind of surprise that completely blew me away and is a great reminder that sometimes it’s great to show up in people’s lives with something that is such a big surprise to them that you absolutely leave them speechless.

I absolutely loved the first part of the year. It’s such a refreshing time to reset, get refocused, and make new plans for the remainder of the year. I always do it with a very positive mindset because I know that attitude is everything, and good things happen to good people.

As I go through every day, I have to deal with a balance. There’s a balance of how much you do in all aspects of your life and what it takes to get the most out of every day, every situation, and every person that you come in contact with. Keeping it all balanced can be very difficult. It can be difficult because sometimes you want to move faster than other people are willing to move.

Sometimes, you have objects that are in your way that you need to figure out how to move. And other times, you can’t seem to get yourself to slow down enough to actually enjoy what all it is you’re doing.

It’s hard to keep a balance when you want everything to happen yesterday. It’s hard to keep a balance when you’re trying to get more out of people than they probably know they can give. It’s hard to keep a balance when every day you feel like you’re ready to play in the Super Bowl, and some people don’t even know there’s a game going on. But I think the art of keeping it balanced is when you can accomplish everything that you want to, get everything that you can out of those around you, and go home at the end of every day and feel accomplished in what you’ve done. It creates a very positive mindset, a very good life, and it just makes everything more fun.