Home Team

Last night was a night with just daddy and the kids. My wife had a dinner meeting. You don't realize how important a team you are on until you are outnumbered with cranky kids. I did ok, no trips to the emergency room, but it is much easier when you have your home team with you to help. It makes you also appreciate all the other teams that you are on, and the impact each person has on that team.

Parents

Had a great weekend hosting my parents. It was great to have them at my house and able to take care of them for a little bit. Had a couple of odd jobs to have them help me with. We always have to have things to do or they get bored quickly (maybe that is where I get it from). I was struck by how their ages are catching up to them. Now they are not that old (both are 69) but what they use to do easily and without needing to stop for a break now takes twice as long. They are not able to just work all day like they use to. They have both worked very hard and I guess it is time for them to start slowing down a little and enjoying life. It reminds me of the book "The Four Hour Work Week". Why do we wait till the end of our lives to retire and enjoy ourselves, we need to do it all along the way.

The Weekend

I am not usually a person that can't wait for the weekend. I find that every day of the week has great aspects. Sometimes my Thursdays are as good as my Saturdays. But this week is different. I need some down time. These last two weeks have been very hectic. I know a few days ago I spoke of sales cycles and we are still in the "very busy" cycle. Now don't get me wrong, I love being busy, especially when it comes to sales, but sometimes you need a little down time. At these times not only do I get stressed out to make sure everything gets done, but I can't get much sleep either, which just makes things worst. I am looking forward to getting outside this weekend and doing some yard projects to get my mind to rest a little.

Late Night

Had a late night last night. Couldn't sleep so at 11:00 I went down and did work until about 2:00 am this morning. Even then I couldn't sleep. I know I am always saying that family needs to come first and you need to shut off at night, but every once in a while I need to do something like this. Do you find that also? My mind won't shut off at night and instead of just laying there in bed I might as well be productive. I find that I get so much done when I do this and it clears my mind as well. I am usually a morning person, but sometimes night works as well for me (not for writting or creative thinking, but just paperwork). I need to feel like I am caught up at least once in while to let me really relax.

Another Sales Cycle

Another sales cycle is hitting in full stride. This cycle is the "I am so busy I don't know which way to go". Now as a sales person I am not going to complain, I do love to be busy. I love to multitask and be helping clients with new projects. The thing I don't like is not being able to shut off at night. I had a very difficult time this weekend shutting off work. I even worked for a couple of hours last night. I do my best not to work at night or in the evenings - that is family time and I need to spend it with my wife and kids, but sometimes it has to happen.

Friends

How often do you have one of those days and you wish you could share with someone, but there is no one in your circle of friends that you can talk to. I use to be that way but with a lot of work I have developed a very large circle of friends that spans a massive amount of interests. I know if I need some one to talk to about sales, relationships, my family, football or anything I have someone to call and talk to. As important they know they can call me also. I have read a lot of great books but one I reread about every 6 months is "Never Eat Alone" by Keith Ferrazzi (http://community.keithferrazzi.com/ is the on-line community surronding the book and the thought pattern). The major items I took from the book (and I am not sure if it is spelled out in the book or this is just how I read it) are:
1. You can never have enough friends.
2. The person who has the largest roledex in the end wins.
3. Never keep score as to who called last. If it is a valuable relationship take the time to make sure it is healthy.
It is not easy, but it is well worth the work. I know that where ever I go I always have a friend near by and that is a great feeling.

Slow Down

Just got back from a short trip to see my parents. They live on the family farm (my greatgrandfather built the house) and live about 5 miles from the nearest town (and by town I mean gas station, little grocery store and post office). I spent 2 days there with my parents, my wife and youngest 2 children. It was wonderful. It seems like when I go out there life is so much simpler. Between the large corn fields and the 500 acres of timber it can feel like there is no one else around. I got to see 2 of my brothers and most of my nephews. On the drive back my wife and I had a long discussion. Why is it that it seems we make our lives so complicated. I believe it is because that is how I want it. As I blogged earlier (and my friend Stuart Crawford also blogged) that I like being connected most of the time. I like being booked through the day going out and seeing my clients. I like having multiple things going on in my life. But it is nice every once in a while to shut down also (for another blog on this see my friend Steve Riat's post on his vacation). While I didn't get to the point there was no connectivity, it was nice that I could just go outside and not worry about my phone. We would just sit outside during the day and play with my children and the cats that live on the farm (my daughters favorite). It is nice to just slow down and enjoy life so you can remember why you are working so hard.

Quick Start

Well a quick start this morning. I have an early meeting and no time to boot up my laptop. Therefore I am blogging from my phone (my good friend Stuart Crawford from ITMatters would love my mobilness). Sometimes I think that I need to disconnect more, but after a long discussion with my friend Stuart we came to the agreement that we LIKE to be connected. Not only is it good to be connected, it helps me to be shut down when I want to. At night I spend all my kids waking hours with them, no technology, and I never worry about email because I am up to date. It really helps me to focus and work on my time line.

A New Week

Are you ready to be back at the office today? I really enjoy weekends, especially long ones, but am ready to hit the ground this morning. Last week was hard, but you need to start every week, if not every day, with a renewed positive attitude. Don't let what happened in the past affect your future. I had a hard time with this one for a while. I had a rough patch a few years back. I was lucky to have great friends (and yes one became my wife), great family and a great mentor and boss that was there for me. Take time to listen to those around you. You may think it is just something to slow down your day, and sometimes it is a distraction, but sometimes it is a life saving act.