Brian Said

Snap Out of It!

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 20:35:00 GMT

Today's Daily DifferenceMaker...
The Tinderbox Tapes club members receive a Daily DifferenceMaker (DDM) every morning. The DDMs are a little different than today's post here, but I hope it will nonetheless make a difference in your day.

As a reminder... When I talk to myself, it looks like this and when I talk BACK to myself, it looks like this.

"You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club."
Jack London (1876-1916)
American Author with whom you likely associate wolves and 9th grade

Dude, your street cred is totally shot right now. Cher? In a chick flick? Seriously...
Yeah, well... Some people think she's hot, so maybe that's where I was goin'. How ya like me now, big boy?
Drag Queens in Vegas think she's hot. Is that your message?
Bite me.

In all honesty, this is one of those movie moments that has stuck with me forever. I can honestly say I think about it almost every day. Whenever I need a wake up call, I simply allow Cher to smack me around in my head, and it honest to goodness works!

If you've just recently joined us, you may not know that the "Astound Yourself Today" & "Tend the Flame" thing is about creating a new world for yourself & your family. My whole purpose for the club and the book and the speaking and the site is to encourage you to create that new world by doing what you're capable of doing; nothing less, but thankfully, nothing more.

As I've traveled my own journey & talked to others on their journeys, I've noticed we all have a common fault: We all have moments when we sit and wait for inspiration to strike.

For some, it's at the beginning of the journey itself. They sit and wait. They pray and wait. They moan and wait. They complain and wait. They watch American Idol and wait...

The point is that they wait. They wait for inspiration. They wait for someone else to motivate them. They wait for Adam Lambert's new album...

And as a result, they never get off the proverbial couch. I'm gonna give you a minute to put on your big boy pants.

You got 'em on? They pulled up high & tight?

Okay.

Here's the deal, pickle:

Get up.

Just get up.
Don't worry about where you're going or how you'll get there.
Just get up.
You don't need 7 habits or 21 laws or any "secret."
Just get up.
Grab a club.
And get up.

Make one call. Write one page. Paint one wall. Buy one rose.

Seriously. Why are you still reading this? G.O. GO!!!

Alright, so that was pretty cool and I get what you're saying, but haven't you read those books?
Course I have, and they're great books. But the bottom line is that too many people are saying, 'I gotta read the book before I start.' That's BEYOND wrong. When you justify not creating your new world by saying you're reading a book so you can 'get it figured out better' first... Well, you'll still be reading books & trying to figure it all out next year & the next year & the next year, won't you?
Well as long as you cleared that up...

For some, getting started is easy; it's after the new wears off that they get into trouble. Certainly, "tending the flame" comes into play here, but today we're taking a slightly different look. See, it's the day-to-day disciplines that trip us up.

I think London's quote resonates with me because I've lived it in the last year. When you write a book, you have to commit to 1,000 words a day or 5 pages a day or a scene a day or whatever your goal is. Inspiration doesn't descend upon you each morning & say, "This is the word from the Lord God Almighty. Write this down." No one comes along to get you off the couch, especially when your book is a motivational book wrapped in a novel. I promise, it's ALL YOU. And maybe your wife a little...

I spent 20 years in the health insurance business & can tell you that waiting for inspiration to strike is a condition common to everyone in every profession. And it's not just professional. It's relational and spiritual and all the other "-als." You think you're cute, don't you?

We wait to be properly inspired before we make a call or buy flowers or help with chores or put in for the promotion or write a word. But what do you do when the inspiration doesn't come? What do you do when the outer distractions are louder than the voice in your head?
You never have that problem, do you?
You think you're cute, don't you?
Duh?! Have you seen me?
Shut it.

The answer is simple... You already know what you need to do. So SNAP OUT OF IT and grab a club! My experience has been that once you "get all up in there" even though you don't "feel" like it, it'll be a little tedious at first, but somewhere along the way, you'll hit upon some little thing that will inspire you to do more.

But notice the inspiration comes after the doing. In fact, the inspiration comes from the doing. It is rarely the other way around!

You can use all kinds of mental tricks & read all the books (Dude! You're killin' me! Sounds like you're trashing the books. Did you forget that YOU wrote one, too! Yeah, but mine's waaay different, right? Oh yeah, DEFinitely different...), but the bottom line is that you don't need to see the finished product today. You just need to see today. You just need to see what you're capable of doing & go do it.

You don't need to see how she'll react; you just need to buy the flower. You don't need to see the signed contract; you just need to make the call. You don't need to see the NY Times Bestseller List; you just need to write the scene. You don't need to see them winning a Nobel Peace Prize; you just need to teach them how to love their little brother. You don't need to see the sold-out arena; you just need to write the chorus.

In short, you just need to do what you're capable of doing today.
When you do, you'll Astound Yourself Today, and that will inspire you to do it again tomorrow!
And a month, a year, a decade from today you'll be living in your new world - the one you created by simply doing what you were capable of doing today.

AYT,
Brian

Haystacks & Starry Nights: A Life Lesson from Van Gogh

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 15:29:00 GMT

Today's Daily DifferenceMaker...
The Tinderbox Tapes club members receive a Daily DifferenceMaker (DDM) every morning. This one originally went out a couple of months ago. While on the road recently, I was in a pinch for a DDM to send one morning and decided to recycle one. As I searched my archive, I came across this one and it spoke to me in a new way. Yes, people, I astounded myself today! Hope this one speaks to you, too.

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together."
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890)
Dutch Painter & hell with a razor blade

You'll recall he didn't like his ear; You've probably heard Don McLean sing about him; You've certainly seen the "swirly" stars. You also may have noticed he died at 37.

Van Gogh was an interesting character.

He only painted for 10 years.

He grew up a preacher's kid, living in mining communities as his father preached to the poor, and never pursued any significant artistic endeavors as a child.

While he did work for an art dealer for a time, he eventually became a preacher like his father.

It was his brother, Theo, who encouraged him to paint. Both van Gogh AND his parents thought Theo was nuts, but he pushed Vincent anyway.

So in 1880, Vincent gave up preaching and began to paint.

And then...

It appeared Vincent & his parents were right!
No one was buying his paintings.

Regardless, Vincent kept at it.

Despite suffering mental illness, epilepsy, a myriad of other illnesses - and absolutely zero success in the marketplace - van Gogh became a prolific painter over 10 years.

Right up until he took his own life.

Wow, Brian. Thanks for the Buzzkill. On Monday.

Stay with me, please.

Van Gogh created a new world for himself.

He didn't begin to paint as a first career; He wasn't a prodigy; He didn't even have confidence in himself! If not for his brother, Vincent would likely have never picked up a brush.

Despite his late start, mental & physical illness, Vincent van Gogh ended up painting 3 of the top 10 most expensive paintings of all time.
That's more than any other individual artist, and the 3 paintings total over $200 million! JUST THOSE THREE! I'm sure someone knows the value of his entire collection, but I couldn't find it. Suffice it to say, it must be worth a LOT of dollars!

Yet he died a "failure."

Sometimes the new world you create won't pay economically until long after you're gone.
But it won't pay today, tomorrow or EVER if you don't do the small things that can be brought together to form something great.

Remember, you don't have to invent the light bulb to astound yourself; You simply have to do what you're capable of doing.

Van Gogh was capable of painting potato eaters, sunflowers, haystacks, starry nights, even himself;
So whether they sold or not, he continued to paint them.

It must have seemed small at the time, sitting in a field alone, staring at hay, filled with doubt, knowing no one was buying.
And yet, he did it - every day - because it was the one thing he was capable of doing.

Are you capable of doing a small thing?
How about a series of small things?
When you put those small things together, what kind of new world will you create?

Do something small, something you're capable of doing, as you start this week - a call, an email, a household chore, a single flower - and you'll Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

The Motivational Wisdom of Rob Thomas

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 02:51:00 GMT

Today's Daily DifferenceMaker...

"And maybe someday
We'll figure all this out;
We'll put an end to all our doubt;
Try to find a way to make things better now,
and
Maybe someday we'll live our lives out loud;
We'll be better off somehow,
Someday..."

Rob Thomas (b. 1972)
American Rock Singer/Songwriter

I'm a Rob Thomas fan. Have been since Matchbox Twenty. I'm not the rabid, screaming, ringtone, screensaver, wallpaper, t-shirt, bedroom poster, Facebook stalker kind of fan. (I mean, I USED to be until I turned 40, right?) I don't even follow him on twitter, but when I hear one of his songs on the radio - usually a year after its release, because that's when it comes on the adult easy listening station (Can I get a middle-aged shout out?) - I always find myself singing along.

"Someday" is my current favorite.
If you haven't seen it, you should
watch the video.

The message, co-authored by Thomas & Blake "Shy" Carter, is basically that you should hang in there because there's hope: Someday we'll figure all this out. Someday we'll create our new world. You see in the video that the new world is depicted personally and globally. It's true, you can't create a new world for yourself & your family without creating a new world period. Like Rob sings,"You could shine a little light on everything around you. Man, it's good to be someone."

You can get in trouble trying to speak for a songwriter, but art speaks to everyone in their own way, so I'll take a chance. Here's my take...

So many lines of this song start with the phrase,"You can..." You have a choice about what your new world will look like; You have a choice about whether to go; whether to start all over again; whether to hide; whether to carry on when all you want to do is cry. You can... or not. It's your new world, so it's your call. But here's where I have a little secret that Mr. Thomas & Mr. Carter don't explicitly share:

"Someday" is TODAY!

TODAY you'll choose to create that new world for yourself & your family.
TODAY you'll find a way to carry on when all you want to do is cry.
TODAY you'll put an end to all your doubt.
TODAY you'll notice just how good it can get.
TODAY you'll be better off somehow because you'll do ONE THING to move toward that new world.

You'll do all that today,
not because it's easy; not because it's safe; not because it's what someone else expects.

You'll do it today because you're capable of doing it today.
Just today. Just this one day.

I know you doubt yourself and your future and your VISA limit and your falling 401(k) balance and all the rest of it. But I also know that I know when you do what you're capable of doing TODAY, you'll "figure all this out" and "be better off somehow" tomorrow.

See, "Someday" is closer than you think.

You'll live out loud, shine your light on everything around you, and be better off somehow when you choose to Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

Trust God & Trust Yourself

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 06:02:00 GMT

Today's Daily DifferenceMaker
(This went out to club members today & I couldn't help myself. I was so fired up after reading it that I had to put it out to everybody else. Is is cheesy that I got myself all excited by reading my OWN Daily DifferenceMaker? YEP! But I think you'll get fired up, too, so here you go...)

"I think we may safely trust a good deal more than we do."

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
American Author & Poet

When my dad was the Senior Pastor of the largest Southern Baptist Church in Columbus, Georgia (which is akin to being Valedictorian of Alternative School), I recall a time when we were embarking on a capital campaign for a building program.

The consultant hired by the church asked my dad to help think of a campaign slogan; something catchy & motivating that would inspire the people and encourage them to give.

Dad's response was vintage Brad Hicks. "We're going to trust God & trust the people," he said.

The consultant was elated. "Trust God, Trust the People. What a GREAT slogan!"

My dad was perplexed. "It's not a slogan," he said, "It's what we do here. It's what we've always done."

Trusting God & trusting ourselves was how we relocated a church with 113 committed givers and grew to 4,000 members. In short, it was how we created a new world for Wynnbrook Baptist Church and the Columbus area.

I'm convinced that you and I are no different than that church body. We have a dream - a vision - for a world we believe we were put here to create.

Some of us believe that God gave us our vision of that new world, and thus we must trust Him to help us see it to fruition.

But whether or not you believe your new world was God-breathed, we all have this in common: There will come a point when you will have to trust yourself.

Well, Heck.

That was a nice story until I had to bring up trusting yourself, huh?

I'll never forget a fellow minister inquiring of my dad about his philosophy.
He said, "I can trust God alright, but I ain't so sure about trustin' these folks here..."

And that's our problem, isn't it?

We don't trust ourselves because we know ourselves... intimately.
We know our history;
We know our weaknesses;
We know our fears & our foibles;
And perhaps most debilitating of all,
we know our self-doubt.

When you know all that, it's hard to trust, isn't it?

I mean, who would get out of the security of the boat - and risk drowning - on the off chance that this idiot will actually walk on water?

It's just too risky.

Or is it?

See, here's what else you know about you: You know what you're capable of doing.

You know that you're capable of making one decision each day that will make your new world an astounding reality.

You know you're capable of making one more call, asking one more time, playing one more game, helping with one more chore, answering one more question, listening to one more story.

You know that what you're capable of doing is endless!

And that you're capable of doing it again tomorrow, and the next day and the next day, because you also know
it's not the decision & day, it's the cumulative effect of all those decisions & all those days.

And when you know those things about yourself, you can trust yourself like you never knew you could!

So as you endeavor to create your new world this Thursday, Trust God & Trust Yourself.
And trust me...
you'll Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

One Day at a Time...

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 16:18:00 GMT

One of our club members asked that we post yesterday's Daily DifferenceMaker (DDM) here today so she could share it with others. Thanks for that!

"The best thing about the future is that
it only comes one day at a time."

Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

Mr. Lincoln continues our theme today with some more insight into how the future unfolds.

Many people probably look at this and think, "Thank goodness it only comes screaming at me one day at a time! I can barely hang on as it is."

But not you.

You see things a little differently. You see that the reason it comes one day at a time is because you're creating it each day.

You create it by how you choose. You create it by what you do. You create it by what you don't do.

Remember, the idea here is to create a new world for yourself and your family by doing what you're capable
of doing each day, one day at a time.

The decision and the day are important because when you put them together after 1, 5, 10, 20 years, the cumulative effect is either a new world or the same old one you're not satisfied with.

On August 10, 2011, your world will be no different than it is today, unless you do something different today.

Thanks to Mr. Lincoln for reminding us it's one decision and one day at a time.

Today's decision: Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

Do You See What I See?

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 15:47:00 GMT

"In teaching you cannot see the fruit of a day's work.
It is invisible and remains so, maybe for twenty years."

Jacques Barzun (b. 1907)
French-born American Scholar, Cultural Historian,
Teacher

While our kids in Tennessee still have a few days of freedom left, many others are kicking off their school year today. So in their honor, an education quote.

Barzun sums up why teaching is such a thankless endeavor; whether you're a paid professional or simply molding the little minds with whom you live.

But, in my view, Barzun makes a bigger point:

EVERYthing of significance is "invisible... for maybe twenty years."

How many times have we said creating a new world - relationally, personally, professionally, spiritually - is tough because you can't see the results right away.

Remember, you make a decision today - you do what you're capable of doing - and...drum roll please...

Nothing happens.

It's the ultimate buzzkill isn't it?

Here's the thing:
We live in a world that is all about instant gratification. We get ill when Google takes more than 3 seconds to load,
forgetting that 20 years ago we'd have had to drive to the library and trudge through volumes of encyclopedias to find that answer.

Our kids don't wait for the Sears catalog to arrive in the mail, pick out the ONE thing they want for Christmas
and wait patiently for months, looking at that picture every day until the big day finally arrives.

Nope.

They buy it at Target and trade it at GameStop two weeks later.
Or they rent it at Blockbuster and are done with it in a week.

Do you see the danger?

We're conditioning ourselves to settle for the quick & easy in life.
When something takes longer than 15 minutes, we lose interest or give up in frustration.

One more time, people...

It ain't work dat way!

When you're creating a new world for yourself & your family you won't see the results today, or even tomorrow.
In fact, you may not see the results for 20 years!

But take heart, because in 20 years you WILL see a result.
Because of your action - or inaction - today, you will see a result in 20 years.
It will be good or it will be bad, but it WILL come.

And if you want to celebrate in 20 years, the formula is simple;
just Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

Is Your "Project New World" Behind Schedule?

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:51:00 GMT

Today's Daily DifferenceMaker...

"How does a project get to be a year behind schedule?
One day at a time."

Fred Brooks (b. 1931)
IBM Software Engineer
Developed OS/360,
from which most
systems today evolved.

Daily decisions.

It's why we don't do resolutions here.
And it's why we call this
the DAILY DifferenceMaker.

Each day, you make a choice.
Work or don't work.
Play or don't play.
Carbs or no carbs.

And it's not the day in & of itself;
it's the cumulative effect of
each day's decision.

Where are you today?
Good, bad or otherwise,
it's the result of the decisions
you made each day last year.

Now you can predict the future!

If you want to live in an
astounding world this time next year,
simply
Astound Yourself Today!

Brian

Is it in you?

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 17:07:00 GMT

"It is not in me to withdraw." 
William 
Heath Ledger's character
in A Knight's Tale

I KNOW!!!!

Can't help myself.

I love this movie.

William is a man with a dream
and the determination to make it happen. 
He is creating a new world,
rising from peasant boy to knight.  

I have always loved this line 
because it sums up what it takes
to create a new world for ourselves.  

See, it's not that we stay the course
because it's right or noble or any other
reason we give for staying the course.
(Though each of those reasons is good)

We stay the course because
it's just not in us to withdraw.

Quitting isn't an option because
it's just not who we are.  

See the difference?  

We should all record ourselves saying this
and then play it on a loop through
headphones while we sleep. 

Just get it deeply ingrained 
in our subconscious so it 
becomes who we are at our core.

My boys are gonna hate me at bedtime
tonight...

OK. 

You won't do it,
so repeat it 5 times now:
"It is not in me to withdraw." 
"It is not in me to withdraw."
"It is not in me to withdraw."
"It is not in me to withdraw."
"It is not in me to withdraw."  

Now go live that out;
don't withdraw, no matter what,
and you'll
 Astound Yourself Today!

Stuff That Scares Me

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 05:26:00 GMT

Well... There's my wife greeting me at the back door with that "it's pink" look on her face.

There's the 2010 kickoff without Tim Tebow & the HUGE loss of talent on both sides of the ball.

And snakes. Always snakes. But that's not what this is about.

I've been away from the blog for quite awhile. In fact, you could say it never got started good. But its time has come. And that brings me to my point. But before I launch into the list you should know that I talk to myself OUT LOUD and it looks like this. And when I talk BACK to myself, it looks like this.

Okay... so I'm afraid:

That you won't like it. Dude. Seriously? Yep. I said it. Deep down I'm a 14-year-old girl on her first day at a new high school, not hoping to fit in but just praying no one even notices her. If they notice, there's a chance they'll make fun. And if they make fun, there's a chance it'll stick for four long years. Wow. You're creepin' me out. I know, but I once heard about this kid that got tagged "Cryin' Brian" in school and that stuff tends to stick. Just sayin...
That you won't read it. I suppose the only thing worse than not liking it is not reading it in the first place. And why do I care? Because I genuinely desire to help tend your flame as you create that new world you desire and astound yourself along the way, AND I believe my experience qualifies me to do it in an entertaining & engaging way. Okay. 3 things, Einstein: One, if they're not reading this, well THEY'RE NOT READING THIS! B, They don't know what you mean about new worlds and astounding yourself, and CUATRO, "Tend your flame?" You sound like a perv. That will all make sense as we progress. Trust me. And why should I do that? So far we've determined you're an insecure teenage girl with no friends & apparently a bit of a weeper. And "your experience qualifies you"? Man, you suck at this. And NEWS FLASH: There's a fine line between "entertaining & engaging" and public therapy. Shut up. You could stop me if you wanted to...
That you won't like the look (because I don't like the look) and that will detract from the message. See, I'm breaking my big rule here. Pretty is good. Pretty is important. Pretty makes the reader more comfortable. It's the wrapping paper at Christmas, you know? This isn't a WordPress blog with a Woo Theme. It's the blog format of the website I spent a lot of money on & frankly I ain't changin' it yet. Hey, I thought you got a WordPress account. It's free, right? Yes. And yes. But then I'd have to link people back & forth between the blog & the site and that's a hassle. Since I paid money for this website before I really had a handle on my purpose here, I'm sorta stuck with it for now. Yeah. I think you're just cheap.
That you won't "get"me. That is, my humor; my perspective. My wife says I creep people out because I strike up random conversations with people: There's the kid with the UF t-shirt on line at Sbarro in the food court to whom I smile & say, "Go Gators!" who runs to find his mom because "that creepy old man was grinning at me." Not your fault he forgot he was wearing that shirt. IT'S EVEN A COMMERCIAL, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!! There's the checkout girl at Wal-Mart to whom I say, "Come on SEVEN!" as I swipe my debit card and then, "HOTCHA!" when it says "approved." That's kinda funny, man. What does she say? Nothing. Just stares at me. I bet she doesn't speak English. You know what, I never thought of that! I bet you're right. Wait'll I tell the wife... And then there's the teenage girls sitting behind us at the pool. I can't remember what I said, but my wife informed me that you NEVER, EVER speak to teenage girls at a pool. Who knew? I KNOW! I thought it was that creepy old man thing again, but she said that while I am indeed old & creepy, it was more about THEM than ME. It wasn't about YOU? I bet you were devastated... See. I'm well aware that things get "misconscrewed" when we're standing face-to-face and you can see my nonverbals & hear the nuance in my voice. When it's in writing, I get worried that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you read is not what I meant. Huh? That's Robert McCloskey's fault.
That you'll think I'm self-aggrandizing when I share parts of my personal journey. I'm truly more interested in your journey than in my own, but sometimes we get encouragement from those who are traveling a similar path. I'll never claim that anything I do is the only way to do things, nor will I claim that you'll fail if you ignore me. I just believe what my hero, Andy Andrews, says, "Encouragement is good. Proof is better." When you want to create a new world - relationally, spiritually, professionally and any other "ly" - it's nice to hear of others who are doing the same. It provides proof that it can be done. Yeah, but you're not done. Heck NOBODY'S ever done, are they? True enough, but you get the point. If not, see #4 above...
That after I post this, I'll think of lots MORE stuff - better stuff - that scares me. But that's always going to be the case. You ponder. You pontificate. You put it out there. It is what it is. The one phrase that changed my is "Progress, not perfection."If you wait for it to be perfect, you'll be waiting a very long time. Just start somewhere & get better as you learn & grow. Can't ask for any more than that. Yeah, but you CAN ask for a better phrase, Dopey! ONE phrase changed your life and THAT was it? How about "Give me liberty or give me death!" or "Just Do It" or "It's not clean unless it's OxiClean!" You're right about one thing: This ain't perfect.
That my wife will read this and greet me at the back door with a different kind of look on her face. Won't be the first time... Shut UP! You really CAN'T stop me, can you?

Are You Ready?

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:03:00 GMT

Not sure why - maybe it's summer; maybe it's listening to Kenny Chesney in the Jeep lately - but it seems all my analogies & stories with audiences these days are about boats & water, and today's entry is no exception...

When it comes to swimming, there are two kinds of people in the world: Pool People and River People.

"River People" actually refers to those who will swim in any natural body of water where:
A. You may not be able to see the bottom; and/or
B. There's at least a statistical possibility something could eat you.

I am not a River People.

Perhaps that's because I saw Jaws waaaay too early in life, though I didn't see it at the theater. I was only 6 years old when it premiered. Instead, I saw it a few years later when I spent one Friday night at my friend Jason's house. Jason had failed 3 grades en route to junior high, his parents were divorced, he smoked Marlboros & had HBO... IN HIS ROOM!

Where else would the straight-A student, son of a preacher with no cable in his house watch Jaws at 2am? Of course, some sins live with you for the rest of your life, and from that day on, I've been a Pool Person.

So it was with great trepidation that I found myself standing on a sandbar off the coast of Grand Cayman Island, chin deep in the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean. How did this happen? This isn't a pool. It's an ocean, for crying out loud... and I'M STANDING IN IT! Holding a sting ray... IN MY ACTUAL HANDS!!! And feeding them squid, which they swim right up & take directly from my hands!! This is CRI-ZAZY COOL!!!

It took about 30 minutes to arrive at Sting Ray City, as this spot is known, and although the boat ride was everything you'd expect from a catamaran cruise in the Caribbean, the captain's question at the outset of the trip - "Who's going to snorkel?" - was weighing heavily on my mind.

My ever-supportive wife said she'd stay on the boat with me if I chose that route. After all, if you're lucky enough to spend the day on a yacht in the Caribbean, you're lucky enough, right?

And yet, how could I pass up the chance to feed sting rays - to hold sting rays - not at some aquarium, but actually standing in the middle of the ocean?!? Did I believe what I talk about from the stage? Did I truly believe my favorite quote, "Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away"?

So as we approached the sandbar - with dozens of sting rays swimming among even more tourists - and our guide began handing out masks & fins to the members of our group, I was having that whole "Man up" discussion with myself. I'm even singing Tim McGraw songs about living like you were dying. At this point, I cannot BELIEVE this has become an existential debate! I finally decided to take the plunge - literally - and as everyone began to enter the water, my wife looked at me and asked, "Are you ready?"

It's a simple question, really.
Are you ready?
Requires a simple answer: Yes or no.

Simple questions and simple answers. That's what life comes down to, isn't it?

Will you marry me? Should I take the job? Do you love me? Can we get a dog? Will you move to California with me? Are you ready to be a daddy?

You remember playing hide and seek as a kid? Whoever was "it" would count to 50 or 100 or something. Then they'd yell that phrase every kid seems to intuitively know to shout as they begin their search, "Ready or not, here I come!"

Have you noticed that life works the same way? Opportunities and changes are coming, whether we're ready or not.

It’s the young woman standing at the back of the church on her father’s arm when he asks, “Are you ready?” It’s the child standing backstage as the curtain goes up, his teacher inquiring, “Are you ready?” And it's you and me as we take that first step in the direction of our dreams.

Are you ready? Probably not. Not REALLY ready, anyway. And why do we put so much stock in that?

I think we often fail to take that step toward our hopes & dreams because:
A. We may not be able to see the bottom; and/or
B. There's at least a statistical possibility something could eat us.

And I hate to break it to you, but it's ALWAYS going to be that way! We can't change it. All we can do is decide what we're going to do about it. Will we sit safely on the boat or jump in with both feet? We can never truly know what will happen when we jump in the water. We can guess. We can determine a desired outcome & try to make that a reality, but in the end, we can never know for a fact what will happen when we hit the water.

But just as we can never know what will happen when we jump in, we most certainly know what will happen if we don't.

We only get one shot at this earthly existence. Why would we settle for safe when the most amazing experiences are shouting, “Ready or not, here I come!”

Are you ready?

Jump in anyway. You just might astound yourself today…

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