Don't Forget The Simple Things

The other day I went to the gym to workout. Working out is just a normal part of my day even when my brain tells me all the 'reasons' why I should let it go that day. I know the director of the gym I attend and we often visit about what's going on in each other's worlds. As I prepared to start my work out routine, she walked up to me and in a tired voice asked:

"Tell me something good."

Pretty simple request right? So the first thing that came to mind was to tell her, "Well you have two great kids!" She looked up and with a slight smile responded, "Thanks I needed that." Maybe it brought her some perspective about not so much being a director but being a Mom.

I'm not too sure what's going on with many people today but boy they seem to be exhausted and overwhelmed. It was a long, cold, dark winter. The economy tanked. Anyone, no matter what side of the aisle you sit on, is probably fed up with all the health care bantering, finger pointing and accusations. As I talk to friends and individuals, most are fed up with their jobs.

I've talked with people who tell me they don't get to work any sooner than absolutely necessary.

One person who is trying to lose weight told me he stops on the way to work at a convenience store and eats an apple fritter and washes it down with a strong cup of coffee. Just what he needs...a good dose of sugar and caffeine to deal with his boss!

"Tell us something good."

Here's what I have to offer to each of you. First of all the good news is its FREE! And the odds are you really don't need directions or need to be taught. My guess is you have experience.

So here we go. The late Jim Valvano, coach of the 1983 National Champion North Carolina State basketball team gave what is widely recognized as one of the greatest speeches ever given...all without a prepared script, straight from his heart. Battling a cancer that just days later would claim his life, Jimmy V challenged everyone to do the following to get the most out of their lives. Here is a portion of that speech that if applied to each of our lives will do something good for us.

"To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh everyday. Number two is think. You should spend time in thought. Number three is you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day! You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special."

---Jim Valvano

I went to see the rock group Five for Fighting and lead singer John Ondrasik recently. It was a great concert. Ondrasik is a terrific song writer with meaningful lyrics. But he did something at the end of the concert I've never seen someone in a nationally known group do before. All of his band mates exited and Ondrasik stepped to the middle of the stage. He looked out at the audience and told them he understood people were tired, challenged, that money was tight and relationships stretched. "If I could offer you one last thing tonight," he said, "it would be hope." And with that he sang his last song of the evening, all about hope.

So go out and laugh, think about life, and cry when your moved. My guess is it will build the hope that lies in each of us!

WELCOME TO THE LIFEWORKS BLOG

The is the inaugural blog for my website and business LifeWorks! So fasten your seat belts, put your trays and seats in the upright position and prepare for takeoff.

For many of you blogging is second nature. For a minority of us, well like me, this is a new adventure. Growing up as a kid in north central Iowa in the 60's, waiting for the black and white TV to warm up so you could select from one of three channels was as good as life got. (Oh and you had to ask to turn the TV on). On a good weather night, you might pick up a fourth channel which was the Public TV channel out of Des Moines a good 70 miles away.

Then one Christmas, I moved up in the world of technology when my parents got me a Transistor radio. All you needed was a 9 volt battery and you could get all the AM stations you wanted. That's right AM...FM hadn't been born yet...and when it was they had all this funky music with weird DJs.

Well now I have a flatscreen, HD, stereo, cable, 48" TV. I have NO idea everything it can do. I think one night I "linked up" to the Space Shuttle. I have a computer which is a big deal when you consider when I was a kid in elementary school a piece of chalk and a blackboard was all we had. Prehistoric right? Oh that and a #2 pencil. America's schools taught millions of kids with the chalk, blackboard and pencils. A notebook was well a notebook.

Let me tell you what I don't have though. I DON'T own a cellphone. When I tell people that they don't believe me. How could that be possible? In today's world...really? No cellphone? My Dad who is 80 has a cellphone! He talks to his 82 year old brother on his cellphone.

I find cellphones for the most part annoying. If I'm to believe everyone, they have them in case of an emergency. They purchase cellphones for their children and their elderly parents for emergencies. We must live in a country in great disarray, confusion and crisis.

People think I'm a dinosaur...out of it...I need to "catch up". Truth is I'm not interested in catching up. I'd rather actually "talk" to people. If I have to walk 20 ft. in an office building to ask someone something rather than send an email, I'll walk the 20 feet.

The other day I was in restaurant. Sitting at a table next to me was a family of five and grandpa and granma. Sunday dinner I imagine after church. The father was on his Blackberry, two of the kids were playing games on their cellphones, and the other child had an Ipod on. Granpa was at the end of the table with no one to talk to as Granma and probably her daughter just sat. There was NO conversation going on. You should have seen the waitress trying to get their orders!

So I'm a firm believer in developing communication skills with the brain, ears, mouth, eyes and heart. And in future blogs that's one area we'll be going. We already have a generation of incredible technology and people who have no idea how to communicate with their family, spouse, children, co-workers, neighbors. Effective communication goes well beyond your finger and thumb tips. As you will learn in blogs to come, LifeWorks is all about helping people get the most out of their lives and relationships. As Seals & Crofts sang back in the 70's, "we may never pass this way again." So why not build meaningful relationships?

As a footnote...this very first blog is dedicated to my Mom. About 5 years ago she died a terrible and painstaking death due to pancreatic cancer. It was on Easter Sunday. She was my Mom, prsion guard, counselor, friend, enforcer, teacher, coach, and hugger. She was tough, she was loving. She was Mom...(and yes she had a cellphone!)