General – Page 14

The enemy of great

December 1, 2011 by Alan R Leave a Comment

I am good at many things. No, I am not bragging, but I am good at a number of things. I am good at woodturning, fixing computers, computer programming, creating designs for laser engraving, cooking, making bread, catching llamas (long story…) and a number of other tasks. What about you? If you think about it, you are good at many things. Your list is most likely different (any other llama wranglers out there?) but you should be able to name a good number of them. But how many of those are you great at?

I want to be great at something. I want it to be something I really enjoy, but I want to be great at something. I want that thing to support me and my family financially more than my current job or any other job I can find. Not only that, I want my work, my creations, my life to be remarkable. No one can be remarkable by being good…. but great, now that is getting closer to remarkable.

What about being good? Being good gets in the way of being great. I don’t want to be good at many things, I want to be great at only one or a very small few. You will have to stop being good at some things so you can be great at others. You must make the choice. It is a choice you should only make after you have identified your life purpose, passion, and priorities. There will be sacrifices.

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So, now I have this fork…

November 28, 2011 by Alan R Leave a Comment

Choices. Everywhere there are choices. Some are good choices, some are bad, and some are over-the-top, life changing, mammoth choices that alter the path of your life and those around you in a big way (good and bad). But what do you do when presented with a choice? Do you choose “A” or “B”? Do you choose to wait?

Yogi Berra has a great quote I like to use:

“If you come to a fork in the road, take it”

Which way do I go? If I come to a fork in the road, do I go left or right? What if I just stand at the fork and do nothing? See, there are three choices in that scenario; go to the left, go to the right, or do nothing. Of course, you could always turn around and go back, but not in life. Time marches on. So do you take the more traveled road, the less traveled road, or stand there looking at the sign?

With all choices, there are consequences. Many of these consequences are seen and expected, but there are some that sneak up on you. Often, we don’t consider the opportunity costs as consequences. If I take the fork to the left, what am I missing out on? Same with the right. But, consider what you are missing out on if you just stand there?

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Hiking and armadillo classification

November 25, 2011 by Alan R 5 Comments

I enjoy the outdoors. My family and I were fortunate enough to go hiking in the Muddy Creek Wetlands Management Area. I have lived in Mobile, AL almost my entire life (most of it within 6 miles of Muddy Creek) but had never heard of it until my wife and kids went on a field trip there. It is a great place to get some exercise and be out in nature.

In nature, there are animals. Some animals are cute and cuddly and some would rather eat, bite, or otherwise harm you than look at you. Some animals are all around us but we never see them. Along the trails at the Muddy Creek Wetlands Management Area there are a variety of animal tracks to identify and learn about. If you are lucky, you might even see a live critter that is stranger than the common birds or squirrels. You might see….. an armadillo.

I like armadillos. Not sure why. I have been interested in them enough to be fascinated with any product made in their image. I have a pewter armadillo, one made of glass, a Beanie Baby armadillo, etc. I am not obsessed with them, but I am fascinated. That leads me to the common practice of their identification. I am no scientist, but I have come up with my own armadillo classification system.

My system for classifying armadillos is fairly simple. There are no in-depth examinations needed, no books to reference. There are only a few questions needed:

Is the armadillo walking around?
Is the armadillo in one piece?

There are three types of armadillos: Type I, Type II, and (you guessed it) Type III. The definitions of the types are as follows:

Type I – Armadillo is up walking around. This type is the most rare and sought after by the amateur armadillo watchers
Type II – Armadillo is stationary, in one piece, and often found on the side of the road. This type is more common than the Type I and has been seen posed with a bottle
Type III – Armadillo is flat, often in more than one piece, and sometimes mistaken for raccoons, opossums, and other flat critters

So, how do you tell what type of armadillo you have spotted? Ask yourself the questions. Is the armadillo walking around? if Yes – Type I, if No, go to question two: Is the armadillo in one piece? if Yes – Type II, if No, Type III. Simple, to the point, efficient. When I tell my wife I just saw a Type I armadillo, she understands. She may not believe me (remember, they are rare) but she understands. Still not sure, check out this video that explains it all.

We all have our funny little quirks. They are what makes life memorable. So the next time you see an armadillo:

Is it walking around?

Is it in one piece?

What type of armadillo did you just see?

Happy hiking…

UPDATE: See the exciting video explanation for armadillo classification

Turkey day and thanks giving

November 24, 2011 by Alan R Leave a Comment

Today is Thanksgiving. Some are out shopping, some are working, some are spending time with loved ones. It is a holiday for everyone to reflect on the good (and the bad) in our lives and be thankful. After reading today’s blog post by Seth Godin, A great way to give thanks, I have a new perspective.

I believe everyone on Earth is hear for a reason. It is important you figure out what that is. Life is much more fulfilling when you are operating within your purpose. I know my purpose in life, at least, I think I do. I’m not sure if I will ever be 100% confident, but I feel I am headed in the right direction. But for my life to have meaning, I have to apply my life purpose. I have to use that purpose to do important things. I need to take advantage of the privilages I have been given.

So today is Thanksgiving and we should all be “thanks giving” for what we have. There is no better way to show your appreciation than to work within your purpose, to really take advantage of all those privileges, and to do important things. If you are not doing that, what are you waiting for? What is the world missing out on by you not fulfilling your purpose? What could you accomplish if you were…

Why I stopped reading books (and I think you should too)

November 21, 2011 by Alan R Leave a Comment

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I enjoy reading. In past years, I have read hundreds and hundreds of books and listened to over four hundred audiobooks. I really, really enjoy reading. I have, however, decided to stop reading and listening to audiobooks….. at least, temporarily. Why would I do such a thing?

Reading is learning. I mostly read and listen to books that can help me personally and professionally. I want to be a better person and I believe books are the best way to help me on my journey. But no matter how many books I read, no matter how many audiobooks I listen to, it doesn’t matter if I don’t apply the knowledge I learn from those books. So, how should you apply the knowledge you are learning?

Things I read tend to get jumbled together. I may recognize the name of a book that I have read over a year ago or I may not. Chances are good that if I recognize the name, I may not be able to tell you much about that book. To make matters worse, most of the books I read are borrowed from the library so I have them for a very short time. What can you do? How can you retain the information? The secret lies in having a system.

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