Uncategorized – Page 29

Relationships are Complicated – Choose Your Food Wisely

October 11, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning, and happy Friday! I hope your day is off to a great start.

Weekends are a time to get caught up on all the things we let stack up during the week. Oh, we tell everybody we’re not doing anything – just sitting around the house and getting a little rest. But we know better. Rest is what we do in between errands. You know, when we’re not putting away groceries from the first errand or planning the next one. There’s never any shortage of things to do.

Grocery shopping usually tops the list. I’m sure some of you have figured a way around that. You go online, click the items you want, trust a minimum-wage employee you’ve never met to get them for you, and then just arrive at the appointed time so they can load your purchase in the car. Voila! If you trust the kid down the street to pick out produce you’ll actually eat, you’re a better man than I am.

I guess I just like the act of shopping. There’s something about sifting through the strawberries, picking the perfect steak, or checking dates on dairy products. I mean, is yogurt supposed to fart when you open it? I’m sure it’s just a sign of active cultures, but the same can be said for curdled milk. I like to know what I’m buying is at least supposed to be fresh.

Besides, if you shop online, you’ll miss all those extras that are strategically displayed throughout the store because the retailer knows you’d never think about them otherwise. And that’s where we blow both the grocery budget and our diet. It’s been estimated that Americans spend an average of $5,400 a year on impulse purchases, and 71% of those are food. Well, in a strictly literal sense.

I’m not sure a lot of that stuff actually qualifies as food. Just because you can eat it, that doesn’t mean it’s good for you. Every product we pick up has nutritional information on the label. That’s required by law. As if that would stop us. You could put a label on potato chips that says, “This product will clog your arteries and make you even fatter than you already are” and I’d still buy them.

Doctors have suggested we should have a healthy relationship with food. Well, if love is the basis of a healthy relationship, then food and I are on solid ground. I talk a lot about health, and I do believe we need to focus a lot more on nutrition. But when somebody invents broccoli that tastes like a bacon cheeseburger, we’ll talk. Until then, I’ve just agreed to know my limitations and work with them.

For me, that means trying to eat at least one healthy meal for every piece of junk I eat. Which is probably why my weight never comes down. I’m eating a lot of healthy stuff, but I’m eating a lot of junk to go along with it. A protein bar doesn’t do a lot of good if you wash it down with glazed donuts. I take supplements – good ones. I keep them in the cabinet next to a bag of M&Ms.

Okay, I’ve had a little fun with this today, and I hope you have, too. The bottom line is that, if we hope to live to a ripe old age without becoming overly ripe, we need to pay a little closer attention to the things we put in our body. That begins at the grocery store, when we’re deciding what choices we’ll get to make in the coming week. Go in with a healthy mindset, and those choices will be good.

That’s not to say you won’t yearn for a chocolate bar during the week. So, instead of finding one on the candy aisle, look for something a little healthier. Maybe something with mixed nuts and berries, bonded together with a little chocolate. You can find them in stores but read the labels. Many times, they’re no better for you than a candy bar.

I’ve found some healthy alternatives online. And the beauty of shopping there is I don’t have to walk past the potato chips and candy bars at the checkout line. You know, things that cost half as much and make you twice as fat. And when it comes to nutritional value, there’s no comparison. Sure, I love a good candy bar as much as anyone. But the older I get, the more I realize they don’t love me back.

A healthy relationship with food means it loves you as much as you love it. And long after the taste is gone, your body is left to deal with the choices you make. Keep that in mind as you walk through the store or make your selections online. Healthy eating doesn’t have to be a sacrifice. With the right choices, you can enjoy an incredibly tasty meal and hang around to tell your grandkids about it.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

Don’t Let Up Now – You’re Almost There!

October 10, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is off to a nice start.

Have you ever given somebody a gift, not quite sure if it’s what they really want? You did the best you could and hoped it would hit the mark, but you just weren’t sure. Know the feeling? And then, they open it up and it’s the best surprise ever. Their eyes light up, their face begins to glow, and you know all the searching for that perfect gift paid off. It’s a good feeling.

It’s the same when you’re on the job and you’re just not sure if what you’re doing is exactly what the boss wants. Then you hand over the report and wait for the verdict. Especially if it didn’t take that long to complete, you’re pretty sure it came up short somewhere. But then you get a thumbs-up that says it was exactly what was needed. Whew! Time for a fresh cup of coffee!

That happens all through our lives. Sometimes you get the results immediately, like when the wrapping comes off a gift or you tell a brand-new joke onstage. Let me tell you, that one can be brutal. If its good, the payoff is exhilarating. If not, it can throw the rest of your night into one big disaster. And there’s nowhere to run. You have to finish the job and take the blows as they come.

As a comedian, I quickly learned how it feels to stand in that spotlight and deliver my best material to an audience that’s looking at their watch. If you’re lucky, they keep their opinions to themselves. But you have to work through that to get to the nights when they’re howling at everything you say. In the beginning, you wonder if it’ll ever happen, and if it’s worth all the trouble it takes to get there.

Sometimes, the results aren’t so immediate. You can put in your best effort for years before you find out if you did the job right. Parents, can I get an amen? It’s one thing to watch your kid tie their shoe for the first time and pat yourself on the back for being such a great teacher. But wait till they hit their teenage years or move out on their own. That’s when the real report card comes in.

Thankfully, with most things, we’re able to measure our success along the way. I sit here each morning and hammer out 800 words to (hopefully) brighten your day. Some days are better than others, and it’s usually the ones I’m not really sure of that get the best response. And going back to read it again is about as effective as telling the same joke twice, hoping it’ll be better the second time around.

I see people at work who are unsure of their position, praying they’ll measure up and do the job well. More often than not, they’re a lot more capable than they realize. And maybe it’s that uncertainty making them try harder that makes them so good. It’s usually the slouch who thinks they know it all that gets blindsided when the boss calls them in for a conversation nobody wants to hear.

If we approached everything thinking we can’t get any better, we never would. And, in the process, we’d eventually slide backward into a place of comfort that doesn’t require the extra effort it took to get good in the first place. On takeoff, the plane’s engines are at full throttle. As it climbs, the pilot gradually eases back until the plane reaches the desired altitude. At that point, it just cruises.

Cruising can be a good thing, if you’re happy with your current pace and trying to conserve energy. But sooner or later, another plane will zoom past because its throttles are set just a little bit higher. Then, when you get to your final destination, you find that the best parking spot is already taken by the pilot who wasn’t content to ease back and just cruise.

I find myself in that position a lot. I’ll work hard to get something going, and when I finally get some traction, I pat myself on the back and take a well-deserved breather. And with the throttles set on cruise, guess what happens? I sit back in my place of comfort as the world zooms past. The only way to catch up is to step on the gas and get back in the race. I’m guessing I’m not alone here.

We’ve all read the story of the tortoise and the hare. The rabbit would race to get ahead, then sit back until the tortoise crawled past. Then the race was on again. Granted, there was more than one tortoise in that story, so there was a little deception going on. But the point of the story is don’t get so cocky at anything that you don’t think you have to try.

Whatever you do, give it your best every day. The reward will always be worth the effort.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

What’s Holding You Back?

October 9, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning, and happy Hump Day! I hope your day is starting off well.

Every day as I come home from work, there’s this young boy about a block down the street who’s always outside riding an electric motorcycle. He started on a tricycle, and then moved up to a bicycle, and now something that pedals itself. And if he can find a way to rig up a trailer behind it, he’s in heaven. I wish I could count the number of different tag-alongs I’ve seen that boy hook up to his bike.

Every time you drive past, he smiles and waves like you’re his best friend. He always has. A couple of times when he was headed the other direction, I started to tap the horn so he could see me wave. But all that would do is let the rest of the neighbors know there was a car on the street blowing its horn. He can’t hear a thing. He’s spent his entire life in complete silence.

He’s got some other physical limitations – I’m not really sure the extent of them, but he’s faced an uphill challenge since birth. Not that you’d ever know by watching him cruise up and down the street, smiling and waving at every car that passes. I’m not even sure he knows. How do you explain sound to a person who’s never heard one? To us it’s a handicap. To him, it’s just another day.

I first became aware of him years ago when our neighbors adopted his family for Christmas. He was about three at the time, and the family was facing some huge medical expenses relating to his condition. He had some kind of nasal tube along with some other apparent problems. I remember wondering if he’d ever see his fifth birthday, much less his tenth.

I would guess he’s 11 or 12 now. At my age, the years go by pretty fast, so I’m not completely sure. But watching him grow over the years, you’d have never known he had any kind of limitation at all because nothing seems to hold him back. His parents allowed him to live like any other boy his age, and he’s made the most of it. I look at him now and wonder what he’ll accomplish next.

I don’t know what goes on inside his house, or the things his parents have taught him. But I have to imagine words like “limitation” and “handicap” are never part of the conversation. I’m pretty sure nobody has told him what a rotten hand he was dealt in life. For all he knows, he’s just like everybody else. And because of that, he is.

We’re all born with some level of imperfection. And, as we grow older, we pick up a few more along the way. But they’re only handicaps to the extent that we allow them to get in the way. I’ve seen people with artificial legs run an obstacle course that would bring most star athletes to their knees. And I’ve known blind people who can see so much more than most of us ever will.

It’s all a matter of belief. If you believe you’re incapable of anything, you can cross it off the list of things you’ll ever accomplish. You can tell by the way a baseball player swings his bat whether he believes he can hit the ball. If you believe you can hit a home run, you swing for the fence. If you expect to strike out, you swing without energy or interest. Why bother? You’ll just fail anyway.

It’s that mindset that keeps us from doing the things we could be doing in life. It’s the feeling that we can’t do something, or maybe that we can never do it as well as anybody else. You know, “normal” people. Or maybe we look at the things we’d like to accomplish and think we need superpowers to even come close. There’s a reason “ordinary” people like us never succeed. Or so we think.

It’s been said that behind every successful man is a completely astonished wife. That may be true, but there’s another side to the story … the man who set out to prove to his wife and the rest of the world that he could succeed against all odds.

If you’ve ever accomplished anything in life, it began with the belief that you could do it. That’s not to say you didn’t have some concerns or maybe even a little trepidation. We only need enough confidence to get us started. The rest we can build as we go.

A limitation is only a handicap if we allow it to become one. We can allow it to become an excuse, or simply another mountain to climb. That young man down the street doesn’t know he’s got a handicap, probably because nobody told him. So, what’s holding you back? Believe you can succeed, and you will. And just think of all the people you’ll amaze along the way!

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

It’s Okay to Dream – It’s Even Better to Achieve

October 8, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is off to a nice start.

Have you ever sat with a group of friends and just talked? Not about the job, and not about anybody else. Those are the default conversations that don’t really count for much of anything other than filling time. You talk about those things when you can’t come up with anything better. And you know what? Nobody is really listening anyway. They’re too busy waiting for their turn to speak.

But have you ever just sat there and really gotten to know one another? As the walls come down and trust begins to build, you can learn a lot about somebody that you would otherwise have never known. Very often you find that you have a lot more in common than you thought. Not just where you live or work, but who you are … the things that excite you and make you get out of bed each day.

Sooner or later, the topic will turn to dreams. Depending on the setting, that could come out right away or it could take a lot of foreplay to build up to sharing that part of ourselves. If you see a complete stranger wearing a tee shirt from your favorite vacation destination, you’d have no problem letting them know that’s on your bucket list. But with friends, we tend to hold back a little. Why?

I think it all comes down to our inner concern for the opinions of others. With strangers on the street, it’s no problem. You may never see them again, so who cares if they think you’re overly optimistic? But when it’s somebody we see every day, we’re not so quick to share our inner desires.

Part of the problem is that, when you’re talking with a complete stranger, they have no idea of your current station in life. You can tell them you’re getting ready to take a trip around the world, and they have no basis for acceptance or doubt. It’s just talk. But the better somebody knows you, the more difficult it is for them to just accept your aspirations on blind faith. They know your limitations.

And then there’s the issue of greed. Let’s just get it out there now. We’re all raised to believe that it’s okay to work for the things you want, but it’s greedy to want something you don’t have. Well, if that’s the case, why bother going to work? Just stay home and enjoy what you’ve got. Or work just enough to pay the bills and stop thinking of anything else. Is that the lesson we were supposed to learn?

Greed isn’t the mindset that wants something more. Greed is when there’s not enough to go around and you knock somebody else out of the way to make sure you get yours first. It’s the very concept of a game most of us played in kindergarten – musical chairs. There are just enough chairs for everybody – except one. And the moment the music stops, everybody races to claim a chair for themselves.

But I can’t think of many things in life where there isn’t room for everybody who really wants to sit at the table. If you buy the fanciest car on the lot, the dealer will just order another one. Buying a bigger house doesn’t mean somebody else can’t have one just like it. And is there a resort destination on your bucket list where you’d have to kick somebody else off the plane to get there?

It’s okay to dream. It’s okay to want something more, and to share those dreams with the people who mean the most to us. You may be surprised to find they have dreams just as big as yours. In fact, they may share a dream that slips into the inner recesses of your mind and works on your subconscious until it becomes your new dream. Who would ever dream of a Rolls Royce if they’d never seen one?

No, I don’t dream of a Rolls Royce. I don’t dream of many extravagant things, but I do dream of having the ability to see a little more of this world and time to enjoy the things I’ve worked so hard to build. I dream of a motorhome simply because it’s the most practical way of traveling across the country and staying in each place long enough to enjoy it. Extravagant? Maybe. But it’s not what I’d call greedy.

When you share your dreams with those closest to you, it validates not only the dream but your right to have it. When you work for a dream, you earn the right to achieve it. And few things feel better than enjoying something you’ve earned. So, dream. Share your dreams. Work for them. It’s okay to want something more. It’s even better when those dreams turn to reality.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

The Job Isn’t Done Until Something More Interesting Comes Along

October 7, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is off to a great start.

There’s nothing quite like the excitement of starting something new. Okay, finishing what you already started is pretty exciting, too. So I’m told. That’s never been my strong suit. I usually take things to a point of usability, and then take a breather. That breather has been known to last several years. Just ask my wife.

We were in a home store this weekend, looking at laminate flooring. It’ not an imminent project, but something we’ll probably do within the next year or two. The old floor has been in for about fourteen years. That’s how long some of these walls have been without baseboards. I did a pretty good job of putting in the floor. But trim work is just for visual appeal. I’m sure I read that somewhere.

In the not-so-distant past, I was pretty handy around the house. I have woodworking tools, and I always enjoyed using them. I’ve done some electrical work, a little plumbing, and a ton of painting. My wife’s theory with paint is if you don’t like the color, you can always paint over it. What she means is if she doesn’t like the color, I can always paint over it. Guys, can I get an amen?

My projects now are a little less labor-intensive. Aging muscles and a deteriorated spine have put a damper on my ability to tackle the big stuff. That’s what contractors are for. I tell myself I’m fighting unemployment by giving someone else a job. The bank tells me I’m fighting personal wealth by paying someone else to do something I could do myself if I weren’t such a wimp. That’s how it feels.

My big home project this weekend was fixing the broken caster on my office chair so I can spend several hours a day … well … sitting in it. When I moved my office downstairs, I lost my grip on the chair and it went tumbling down the stairs. By the time it reached the bottom, one of the casters was gone. Have you ever tried sitting in a chair with a missing foot? It requires a certain sense of balance.

With cooler weather moving in, I’ll be spending a lot of time in front of my computer. I’ve got a long-term freelance assignment that’ll keep me busy a good part of the time, and several of you have encouraged me to write a book, so that’s something I want to do as well. And along with that, I’m still working to build my business. Yes, it’s a lot. But it gives me an excuse not to shovel snow.

It’s easy to take on too much all at once, but some of us need a little variety to maintain focus. I used to build model cars and airplanes. I rarely built one at a time. While the glue was drying on one, I was painting another. If I had to put two pieces together and set it aside to dry, it would go back in the box and be forgotten for six months. Meanwhile, I’d have started building four new models.

People keep telling me to focus on one thing until it’s done, but that just doesn’t work for me. I get bored easily, and once I get bored, I rarely go back to finish whatever it was I started. That’s why cutting the grass was always so easy. It’s done in an hour. Painting, on the other hand, can take a few days. By the third time cleaning brushes and rollers, I’m ready to start on a new floor.

I’ve lost count of the number of books I’ve started and never finished. Both reading, and writing. I probably have five or six books at this very moment with a business card stuck in the pages as a bookmark. Those business cards were supposed to be in somebody else’s pocket, not in my unfinished books. But that’s another project I’ve had a hard time finishing. At least I’m consistent.

So, I’m trying to turn over a new leaf. On the job, I work several projects at once and I’m expected to finish each one. And I do, which proves it can be done. It’s all a matter of discipline. When you’re on the job, do the job. It’s the same whether it’s the day job, my business, freelance work, or writing a book. Even if it’s just an hour a day, schedule the time and do what needs to be done.

I’ll get my book written. In fact, I’ll probably write two or three at once. Meanwhile, I’ll do the other things I’ve committed to do. You can, too. If your personality is better suited to one task at a time, focus on that project until it’s finished. If you’re like me, make a schedule. There’s no limit to what you can accomplish. Just find what works best for you and don’t stop until you’re done.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

You’re Never Too Old to Dream

October 4, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning, and happy Friday! I hope your day is off to a nice start.

It’s been a busy week for me. Sometimes it works that way. Usually when the boss is out of town, but hey … that’s the way it goes. The bottom line is I get to come home at the end of the day knowing I did something productive. At my age, that’s a lot more important than brownie points.

I’m not sure when it happened, but somewhere along the line I hit that point where my goals shifted from advancement and recognition to just doing a good job and leaving the place better than I found it. I think we all reach that point sometime in our work and personal life. For some of us, it just happens a lot sooner than others.

I talk to a lot of people who, when you suggest building something that can provide a little better security in retirement, and maybe even let them reach that point a few years earlier than they would have, they shake their head and say, “At my age …” What follows is some variation of “I’m too old to start something new” or “I’m happy with things just the way they are.”

What that means, in so many words, is, “People my age don’t have dreams.” Well, yeah, they do. We all do. We just may not spend much time thinking about them. But the most active retiree still has things they want to do, or places they want to see. And I don’t care how much money they’ve got, they probably wish they had a little more.

We naturally gravitate toward things that bring pleasure. Advertisers know that all too well. That’s why in vacation commercials, you only see families snorkeling over the Great Barrier Reef or enjoying a candle-lit dinner in a mountain lodge. You never see them waiting in line for tickets, enduring a body search at the airport, or crammed into a coach seat for six hours.

Part of the problem is that, when we’re younger, we want all the nice things and we want them right now. Sure, saving a portion of our paycheck would get us there eventually, but the credit card company says we don’t have to wait. We just have to take an even bigger portion of our check to pay the bill long after the fun is over or the new car smells like old cheeseburgers.

I did the same thing, so I won’t lecture anybody on financial responsibility. But, having done it both ways, I have to admit there’s a lot more excitement in saving for something you want than paying for it once you’ve got it. It’s like the difference between building something and then having to repaint it – every month until there’s nothing left to repaint.

As we get older, we realize that all those days of spending on whatever we wanted may have created some fun times along the way, but it may not have been overly responsible. And that’s when it hits – responsibility. The dreaded “R” word. It makes Mom and Dad proud, but to the rest of the world it simply means you’ve grown old.

That’s when we start saying things like, “Why do I need a new car? The old one still runs.” “A bigger house would be nice, but it’s just that much more to clean.” “I’d love to go to Tahiti, but who wants to sit on a plane that long?” Sure, the excuses make sense. But at the end of the day, they’re just validation of the fact that we stopped acting on our dreams.

I think a lot of that is the wisdom of age, realizing that money really doesn’t grow on trees and whatever we spend today won’t be there tomorrow. Part of it is the reality that, at some point in the not-too-distant future, we’ll retire and have to live on whatever we’ve been able to save. And part is just the fact that, as we age, a quiet evening on the porch holds a lot more value than it used to.

But part of it is that, as we get older, we give up our ability to dream. We’re no longer looking at a lifetime to enjoy whatever we begin building today. The appeal of a vacation every month yields to the lure of relaxing by the fireplace. And the excitement of new things turns to the cold, hard calculation of how much it costs and all the other things that money could be used for.

It’s one thing to become responsible, but that doesn’t mean you have to give up on your dreams. So, what if you’ll only have a few years to enjoy what you’ve built? Doesn’t that beat not enjoying it at all? Dreams represent hope. And the longer you have hope, the longer you truly live. That alone should be worth the time you spend standing in line.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

Being Right Doesn’t Mean Everyone Else is Wrong

October 3, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is off to a great start.

It occurred to me a few days ago that, while my posts have gotten more personal over the past couple of weeks, they’ve also gotten a little more somber. I enjoy sharing that personal side, and I think most of you enjoy the connection as well. But the whole purpose of these posts is to illustrate that, no matter what’s going on in life, there’s always something to give us hope of a brighter future.

That said, there are times when our best efforts to remain positive seem to be under constant assault from people we may not even know. All you have to do is turn on the news, and it’s an endless barrage of negativity. Whether it’s crime in the streets or political transgressions, the worst in human behavior is right there on full display.

Of course, when it comes to politics, we all have our own opinions and those opinions sometimes drive us to show a side of ourselves that we would normally keep in check. It’s hard to listen to opinions against a strongly held belief without responding in kind. Turn on social media and you’ll see everything from civil discussion to outright hostility. All from people who claim to love their country.

Well, let’s just get this out in the open. A country isn’t one political party or one side of an issue. It’s not one race or one religion. It’s not one occupation, one state, one county, or one neighborhood. And it’s not one set of values trampling everything else in its way. It’s millions of people, each with their own heritage and values, living and working together toward a common good. Period.

One of our most sacred rights in this nation is the right of free speech. But what we’re allowed to say in a strictly legal sense isn’t always what we should say in a more human sense. We learned that as children, the first time we shared a particularly objectionable opinion with our parents. That’s when we learned the meaning of respect. It’s not always what we say, but how we say it.

An opinion that doesn’t make any sense to us personally may make perfect sense to somebody else. If it’s a point of well-known fact, like the sun rises in the east and sets in the west (or that the world is indeed round), there’s little to dispute. Opinions, on the other hand, may be based on facts, but they are nothing more than our assessment of how those facts fit within our own set of values.

That’s why two people can read the same transcript or watch the same news report and come away with a completely different perspective on what was said. It’s not that we saw or heard anything inherently different – it’s what we went into that situation hoping to hear. We all have our beliefs, and nobody likes to be wrong. So, we focus on any shred of evidence that supports those beliefs.

Years ago, a first-grade teacher took a class full of energetic, loving children, and turned them into two warring factions in a single day by suggesting one “fact” – that blue-eyed people are better and smarter than brown-eyed people. Within minutes, best friends were at odds with one another simply because of the color of their eyes. Smiles turned to tears, and before long the shoving began.

Thankfully, she monitored the situation and corrected her erroneous “fact” in time to prevent bloody noses. But it taught those kids a lesson I hope they never forgot. It made me wish we’d all had somebody like that teacher. Because maybe we’d have grown up realizing that differences make us stronger, and just because somebody doesn’t think like us, that doesn’t make them inherently stupid.

I avoid political discussions in my writing for obvious reasons. I have my values, and you have yours. Some of us will agree wholeheartedly, and some will just as strongly disagree. And that’s okay. There are nations where the people are only exposed to one side of a religious or political doctrine. And we describe those nations with words like “iron curtain”, “dictatorship”, and “brain-washed.”

We strengthen our mind, not by closing it to contrary opinions, but by opening it to other points of view. When we consider facts and opinions that challenge our beliefs instead of blindly supporting them, we begin to evolve. We may still come out on the other end fully believing whatever we did at the start, but at least we’ll be able to better explain why we feel the way we do.

And that explanation of our beliefs is much more valuable in the form of silent reflection rather than open debate. You may draw somebody else to your point of view, but odds are you’ll only drive the wedge in deeper. Cooperation turns to animosity, and the battle begins. All because somebody else dared to have eyes of a different color.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

Confidence or Trust? It All Depends Who’s Driving

October 2, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning, and happy Hump Day! I hope your day is starting off nicely.

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to ride on a yo-yo? I guess it’s a lot like a rollercoaster, but without some of the thrills. One moment you’re up, the next you’re headed back down again, the whole time hoping that string doesn’t finally break. And every time you look, it’s getting a little more frayed. I guess that’s the reason I never took up bungee jumping.

That seems to be the way life goes sometimes. One moment you’re on top of the world, and then you’re headed right back down again. Some days it’s like a leisurely drive through the country, one gentle hill after the next. Other times, it’s more like being pushed out of an airplane. At times like that, one thought races through your mind – who packed my parachute?

There are reasons most avid skydivers learn early how to pack their own parachute. For one thing, it’s a lot cheaper if you do it yourself. But I think the even greater motivation is knowing that when you’re free-falling toward the earth at 15,000 feet, you don’t want to leave anything to chance. You want to know it was done right.

Imagine going into surgery and seeing a “how-to” video on an overhead TV. You look at the surgeon and he excitedly says, “I’m so excited – this is my first time doing this by myself!” That’s when you find out how quickly you can run with an IV pole attached to your arm. Yet, for every surgeon out there, one of those patients was their first, a fact I’m sure those patients never knew.

Now, packing your own parachute is one thing. Somebody shows you how, you practice a few times under supervision, and then you do it by yourself. And you’re all in – the moment you step out the door of that plane, your life can change in an instant. That’s what I call commitment. The thrill of victory or the agony of defeat. And it’s all on you. No one else to blame.

Thankfully, we never get the chance to try the same thing with open-heart surgery. I’m pretty sure there are laws against that. Even in something as straightforward as defending yourself in court, there’s an old saying that attorneys love to throw around – anyone who acts as his own attorney in court has a fool for a client. Sometimes, you’ve just got too much skin in the game.

The secret is knowing the difference – what can you do for yourself, and what should you trust to somebody with a lot more experience? Now, personally, I would put packing a parachute that I plan to strap on my own back into that second category. But then, my wife trusts me to replace the brakes on her car. She just doesn’t like the pile of “spare” parts left over at the end.

The difference between confidence and trust is who’s doing the work and who’s got the most to lose. You can have confidence in your ability to solve a problem, but when you hand that problem to somebody else, it’s a matter of trust. And maybe just a little bit of hope. Trust takes confidence. Hope is pretty much a leap of faith. Kind of like jumping with the first parachute you ever packed.

There are things in life we should leave to others. Open-heart surgery would be at the top of the list. Other things we can do for ourselves. But somewhere in the middle lie those things you either trust to somebody else or have the confidence to tackle on your own. And sometimes, it’s a mix of the two. You hand it off to somebody else, but watch like a hawk in case you have to step in and take over.

When it comes to your career, a business venture, managing your financial portfolio, or any of a dozen other things, you may have to put a certain amount of trust in other people. But at the end of the day, you’re the one with the most to lose and you have to take personal responsibility for the end result. Blaming somebody else may feel good, but it doesn’t change the bottom line a bit.

We all place a certain amount of trust in other people, whether it’s on the job, around the house, or in traffic with a bunch of people you’ve never met. You trust that person beside you to stay in their own lane. But unless a trip to the hospital sounds like an exciting way to end the day, you still have to take responsibility for avoiding disaster. And that means more than just staying in your own lane.

Life is nice when you’re cruising along on top of the world, but never forget somebody or something is holding you up. Put your trust in those people and things, but be ready to take over if the situation changes. Plan ahead, and you’ll have the confidence to tackle anything that comes along.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

Be Sure You’re Chasing the Right Dreams

October 1, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is off to a great start.

Today marks the beginning of a new month. One in which many of us, especially in the northern climates, will see some change. Leaves will begin to turn brilliant colors and fall to the ground, temperatures will go from warm to brisk (and some days downright cold), and stores will begin to change their inventory from summer and back-to-school to holiday gifts, decorations, and treats.

Those treats get me every time. I’ve been trying to add one feature to our outdoor display each year, but there are three problems with that …. putting it up, taking it down, and storing it until next year. Ladders and I don’t get along so well these days. But treats? Yeah. I pick them up, I put them down, and storage is never a problem. Walking it off next year is another matter entirely.

Along with a new month comes a new chance to set and achieve new goals. If you’ve been following my daily ramblings, you know I’m in the midst of some changing priorities. The goals I had at the beginning of last month have changed, in some ways pretty dramatically. Life has a way of doing that. So, you adapt. You redirect, refocus, and get back in the game. Life goes on.

And that doesn’t mean we have to give up our dreams. They may change a little, and we may find simpler and more effective ways to accomplish the same objective. But the ultimate goal is still there. The journey isn’t over because one road closes. You break out the old map (remember those?) and find an alternate route. And then you listen to the GPS for the next twenty minutes – “Recalculating!”

I’ve often wondered why a GPS doesn’t have an option to initiate a detour. Or even to let you get off the highway to fill the tank and grab a bite to eat without those incessant reminders that you’re not following directions. There’s no “give me a break” button, or even a mute. It’s either on or off, and the whole time it’s focused on one thing – getting you to your destination the fastest way possible.

All too often, we go through life the same way. We’re so focused on that optimal path that we fail to appreciate the scenery along the way. And about the time we hit a roadblock, we just sit there waiting for it to go away. Because this is our path – this is the way we’ve always seen it transpiring, and anything else means taking a step back and admitting some level of defeat.

I imagine the early pioneers knew that feeling all too well. I’ve mentioned before flying across the country and thinking of all those people who crossed those mountains in covered wagons. On a good day with flat terrain, you might put ten miles behind you. But once you hit those mountains, it could take several months to find a way across. I’d hate to guess how many times they had to turn back.

But the goal was there, ever present in their minds. They dreamed of a new life in a new location, and that dream made all the hardships worth it. And I’m sure some of those cities between Oklahoma and California were settled because somebody said, “I’m sick of this wagon! Welcome to your new home!” It happens.

But for those who kept going, the ground went from dusty and rocky to lush and green, full of promise. And, here’s the important part. What separates the barren land of the desert from the greenery of the west coast is one final mountain range. Cross those mountains and everything changes. Stop one day short, and you’ll never even know it’s there.

With each new month comes a new opportunity to re-assess and re-establish our goals. It’s a time to look back at our progress so far and make sure the path we’re on is leading us where we want to go. It’s also a time to ask ourselves why that destination was so important in the first place, and if it’s really the destination we’re after, or simply the journey. Sometimes, getting there is the most fun.

We often find that what we really want isn’t necessarily waiting at the end of the road, but somewhere along the way. Buying an airplane would give me the freedom to go pretty much anyplace I want. But if travel is the ultimate goal, that same money will pay for a lot of plane tickets. Sometimes, what we think we want is simply a means to accomplish an even greater goal.

We all need time to re-assess our goals and make sure we’re chasing the right dream. The beginning of a new month is the perfect time. Make sure what you’re after is what you really want, and that the path you’re on is leading in the right direction. The only thing worse than being 100 miles from your exit is realizing you’ve driven 100 miles past it.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day!

You Never Get Anywhere by Playing it Safe

September 30, 2019 by Dave Glardon, posted in Uncategorized

Good morning! I hope your day is starting off well.

We often find ourselves in a place where things aren’t going quite the way we’d planned. That may be due to no real fault of our own, but as I’ve mentioned before, when we sit still the world moves past us. Before long, we find ourselves sitting in the same place with no momentum and that much further behind. We can catch up, but it’ll take a lot more effort than if we’d just kept moving in the first place.

It happens on the job, where demands change and what we were hired to do no longer meets the “needs of the company.” It happens in relationships where people grow, and we don’t always grow along with them. And it happens in life, where time never stands still and every year, we find ourselves with one year less to accomplish our goals.

That last one has been on my mind a lot. In two months, I’ll reach the age of “early retirement.” That’s where the government says you can start drawing Social Security, but only if you don’t make any real money on the side. In another four and a half years, I’ll reach the age of full retirement. I won’t go into what that entails, except to say I’m not where I wanted to be by this point.

I think we all face that sooner or later. You wake up one morning and realize you’re not where you wanted to be on the corporate ladder. You drive past an area of nicer homes and remember when that was your dream. Or winter comes along and you repeat your annual pledge that by this time next year, you’ll be living someplace warm. You know, the same one you repeated last year.

And through all of it, you have to admit the reality that you’re where you are because this is where you’ve worked to be. It may not be exactly where you wanted to end up, but I think we can all admit we’ve left a little on the table in that regard and taken a breather when we could have done just a little more. All those undone things keep stacking up until one day, we have to pay the piper.

I know there are things in my past that I could have done differently. And when I look back, what stands out the most aren’t the risks I took where the outcome wasn’t quite what I’d hoped, but the opportunities I passed up or simply didn’t work to their full advantage. There’s some level of risk in everything, but risk alone doesn’t stop us from moving forward – it’s fear that stands in our way.

We’ve all heard the expression, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” A baseball field has three places where a player can stand safely and wait for an opportunity to advance. Oh, they may taunt the pitcher by stepping out a little, but let the pitcher turn their way and they take a dive in the dirt, back to the safety of their base. They’re stuck in that position unless somebody else gets lucky.

And you know, after you’ve hit the ball and raced as fast as you can to beat the odds, it’s nice to be standing safely on base. But you can’t stand there forever. Sooner or later, you either have to move forward or wait for everyone else to fail so you can put on your glove and take up a position where your only mission in life is to keep somebody else from advancing.

Sure, people may remember that magnificent diving catch that prevented somebody else from getting on base, but in baseball there are no real statistics to reflect how many times you caught a fly ball. All anybody cares about is your batting average – how many times did you swing and hit the ball far enough to get on base?

We all face opportunities to hit that ball. Every time you step up to the plate, there’s one thing you can count on – there will be a pitch coming, and it’ll be coming fast. We can either watch as that opportunity sails past or do something about it. The choice we make in that instant will determine whether we bring the crowd to its feet or take that lonely walk back to the dugout.

Sure, you may swing and miss. But you’ll never hit anything with the bat resting comfortably on your shoulder.

That’s all for now. Have an awesome day.