Michael

Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind. – Henry James

I don’t know about you but when I read the newspaper or watch the news, you would think that kindness was something rare and unusual, rarely happening in our society. But, I know better. The news is skewed so far to one side that it rarely reports accurately the “good” things that are happening in the world.

We are bombarded with numerous problems, a terrible crisis somewhere in the world, someone attacking someone else, one human tragedy after another, disease, environmental disasters and on and on and on. It’s so bad that I rarely watch or read the news. I don’t want to be affected by all of the negativity. It’s the best change I’ve done.

But, I know something different. I see numerous acts of kindness every single day between total strangers. In fact, so many in a week that it would completely take up the entire news time to report them. Despite the terrible things that are reported in almost every news outlet, we live amongst some of the most amazing people ever. Miracles occur regularly. People are doing good deeds every day. Innovation and creativity are alive and well solving problems that “plague” our society.

Kindness is rampant. Are you part of the movement? Have you practiced any kindness today? You get an exponential return on your effort. Don’t wait.

Have a great day!

Michael

If you smile when no one else is around, you really mean it. – Andy Rooney

Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing. – Mother Teresa

A friendly look, a kindly smile, one good act, and life’s worthwhile. – Author Unknown

A smile costs nothing but gives much. It enriches those who receive without making poorer those who give. It takes but a moment, but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None is so rich or mighty that he cannot get along without it and none is so poor that he cannot be made rich by it. Yet a smile cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is of no value to anyone until it is given away. Some people are too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours, as none needs a smile so much as he who has no more to give. – Author Unknown

I did a lot of smiling today. Well, I typically do that everyday but for some reason I noticed it more today. Maybe it was because I was with Erica at one of her shows. There are hundreds of people that walked by or stopped to see her jewelry.

If they weren’t smiling, then I smiled at them and said hello. If they were smiling, I smiled back and tried to give them more.

I try to make whatever I’m doing fun. That can be a challenge sometimes but in the situation I found myself in today, it was very easy. People respond so quickly to smiles and friendly behavior. Sounds like a no brainer, but many of us don’t think about it. We are so absorbed in our own world that we forget where we are.

I’m one of those people who smile when I’m alone. I make sure that I do things every day that make me happy, that makes me smile. I find that it really gets me motivated. It changes my entire perspective on the day.

Have you smiled today?

Michael

Growth demands a temporary surrender of security. – Gail Sheehy

One of the big lessons for me this year is to let go of the need for complete security in my career or job. Leaving the company I had worked for 16 years was as much about stepping out of my comfort zone as it was about the right time to make a change in my life.

What has been very interesting to me is that when the time is right you know it. Everything seems to fall in place. People start to flow into your life that seem to have just the right knowledge you are looking for. They seem to have the contacts needed to advance the new start in your life. They give help because of their generosity.

Even though one very large door has closed in my life, it’s really okay. So many other doors are opening that I’m finding it challenging to choose which one or ones to go through (for example; five more consultant possibilities today). That’s not a complaint, but I do find it infinitely amusing and fun.

It really boils down to following your heart. In other words, making a change when it feels right but when your mind is still “freaking” out about it. Following those personal intuitions without external influence is a great way to live. For me, though, it initially felt like jumping off a cliff.

It’s about developing trust in yourself and the universe that everything is and will work out just fine. You can’t get it wrong. It’s an endless process and journey. It never ends or stops. Mistakes, problems and challenges are nothing more than directional markers leading you to where you want to go.

I’m still learning to just let life flow and making my life feel like floating down a swift river. Very little action required on my part, just a desire to move forward. Let life do the rest. It’s a lot more fun that way.

Michael

Newport Sunset 1

I don’t know what you could say about a day in which you have seen four beautiful sunsets. – John Glenn

Sunsets are so beautiful that they almost seem as if we were looking through the gates of Heaven. – John Lubbock

Today was about as perfect a day as any I’ve had. I’m working with a company that helps you to prepare and update resumes, market yourself, improve your interview skills and help you narrow your focus of companies to search for potential jobs.

I found out today that this company also does counseling in the areas of being a consultant and/or starting a company from scratch. Both of those options are what I’m really interested in.

During one of the resume classes today, I met a lady that has all many of the skill sets and contacts that I need to allow me to do research on a particular start up company I have in mind. In fact, she will be able to help me answer three of my most important questions. Cost to me: ZERO. She is happy to help.

Newport Sunset 2

I also gained confirmation that another friend/acquaintance of mine, who has high level marketing experience in the industry I’m looking at, is willing to help me in any way she can in my new endeavor. Cost: ZERO. Unbelievable!

When I walked out of the training session today, a large red-tailed hawk was circling about 50+ feet above my head. Red-tailed hawks are my favorite bird on the planet. I was able to watch him for about 10 minutes.

The day continued with one wonderful surprise after another; some big, some little. It didn’t matter at that point.

Then, at the end of the day, I was able to see one of the most spectacular sunsets I’ve seen in months. Quality of color: Exceptional. Quality of cloud formations: Exceptional. I only had my point and shoot camera, but I did the best I could to capture it. (Note: both photos are of the same sunset today.)

The rest of the time I spent enjoying what I was seeing.

It really was a day to remember for me.

Michael

Why do people accept the opinions of others about themselves as truth? Who is going to live the rest of your life anyway? Now THAT is TRUTH! – Doug Firebaugh

Many people get wrapped up into what others say about themselves. I did for most of my life and still to this day catch myself either wondering what others are thinking about myself or pondering whether they are judging me.

It’s a challenging habit to break. I know that I have to stay on top of it. If I don’t, I find that it can quickly escalate into a negative state of mind. I see it happening to others. I’m sure you have also.

I always try to help people see what is happening if I can. I know from personal experience how quickly your life can feel terrible by accepting some choice words of another person. I used to ask the opinions of others a lot in the past. That usually was a bad idea. Nowadays I typically don’t ask anyone their opinion when it concerns something I’m doing unless they are extremely close friends. Even then, it’s important to take what is said with a grain of salt.

The best thing you can learn is to live your life your own way. We are all unique and something that works for others may not necessarily work exactly the same way for ourselves. That seems obvious but many of us try to do the same things thinking that what is best for one is also best for another. It’s important to find our own way.

Live your own life. Don’t listen to others or only listen to a few trusted few.

Michael

A little bit of silliness for a Monday.

Last week, I went to visit my daughter. When I got back, everyone was asking me if I enjoyed my vacation? Of course, I said it was a fantastic trip. It was good to see my daughter. We saw some incredible scenery.

After that I started thinking. Was I on vacation? I’ve been off work for a month. What was I taking a vacation from? My time off. My busy daily schedule. My rest and relaxation at home.

From Dictionary.com – vacation: a period of suspension of work, study, or other activity, usually used for rest, recreation, or travel; recess or holiday.

Maybe it really was a vacation. I did suspend most of my activities for the week I was gone, replacing them with other fun, somewhat restful activities. I did travel and take a recess.

I did so much during the week that I was actually quite tired when I got back home. Did that disqualify my time away as a vacation? Hmmmmmm.

Well enough philosophizing about vacations. I should get back to my busy schedule.

Have a great day!

Michael

One of my good friends shared a very interesting story with me last week. She and a friend were at the beach eating a watermelon. A seagull seemed very interested in their fare. So, my friend starts feeding the seagull some watermelon.

After a few minutes of ravenous eating by the seagull, my friend asks, in jest, to the seagull, “Look, I’m feeding you watermelon. What are you going to do for me? How about bringing me an oyster or littleneck (a small clam)?”

The seagull leaves and my friend goes back to enjoying the beach. Five minutes pass and she hears a loud thump behind her. She turns around and is immediately astounded. The seagull had returned and dropped an oyster next to her. In fact, the seagull had also opened the oyster.

My friend said something quite intriguing. “Michael, when I made that statement to the gull, it’s not that I necessarily believed that the seagull would bring me an oyster, but more importantly, I had no disbelief.”

Now, that is an important concept to apply to everything we do. I think having no disbelief about something you want or want to do is as important if not more than believing you will get it.

But, you can’t tell yourself that you will not have any disbelief. All that does is create disbelief. Our minds are funny that way. I have found focusing on what I want and imagining what it would be like is a better approach. Sometimes, distracting ourselves slightly works also. In other words, having a vision or idea of what we want while doing something that brings us joy is a better approach.

Have a great day!

Michael

Do not confuse peace of mind with spaced-out insensitivity. A truly peaceful mind is very sensitive, very aware. – Tenzin Gyatso, The 14th Dalai Lama

When you’ve seen beyond yourself, then you may find, peace of mind is waiting there. – George Harrison

For peace of mind, resign as general manager of the universe – Larry Eisenberg

It’s been almost four weeks now since I left my job. I’ve been on vacation (holiday in European terms) since then with two to four more weeks to go. For the first time in many years, I have become very relaxed and even more content than I usually am.

Is it just because I’m on vacation? I suspect not. Of course that helps but I think what is going on is that I’m only doing what I want to do at every moment. This is a different way of life for me because typically I’m  was also doing things that I had to do or was “forced” to do like work and etc.

I’m learning to let life flow freely and let it carry me where I want to go. I’m beginning to understand this is the way it should always be. My next goal after getting used to this way of living is to integrate this philosophy into work/career.

Until then, I’m experiencing more and more moments where I’m at peace. As I enjoy these times immensely, I’m striving to experience peace of my mind as a continual moment.

Have a great day!

Michael

Lupine

Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul. – Luther Burbank

Flowers are one of nature’s ways to help adjust our attitudes. Most people are instantly distracted from their negative thoughts and attitudes when viewing flowers. We use them to show our feelings to others, help people recover from illnesses and to celebrate special events. But many of us just want to have their beauty as part of our household for no reason other than pure enjoyment.

The hybrid lupine at the left is a very special flower for me and a very close friend of mine. Six years ago, my friend was very sick. In fact she had only a few days of life remaining. I went to visit her in the hospital but stopped at her house first. When I went into the backyard, I saw this lupine blooming. It had never bloomed before. So, I took the photo and printed out a copy for her. She placed it over her bed to help her connect with her home and better times. The flower photo also helped to make her smile more.

Several days later she finally received the treatment she had needed for several months. It saved her life.

This flower has never bloomed again.

Michael

My Daughter at the Top

My daughter, her boyfriend and I hiked to the top of Lembert Dome yesterday. Lembert Dome sits on the eastern side of Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite.

Our 2.8 mile (4.5 km) hike started at 8500 foot elevation (2550 meters) and rapidly climbed to 9400 feet (2825 meters). If it hadn’t been for my daughter giving continual words of encouragement, I might still be walking to the top.

It was quite difficult for me due to two things: 1) I wasn’t used to the altitude and 2) I’m not in that great of shape at the moment. So, I made it by focusing on 75 yards at a time. It was a tough one but well worth it when we got to the top. The wind was blowing quite hard which made it difficult to hold on to hats and things.

Me at the Top

If you look at the photo on the top left, you will see a sliver of road on the bottom right. The small green trees surrounding the road are full grown pine trees; i.e. 70 – 100 feet high. It was like being on the top of the world. We could literally see for miles.

We stayed for a little while, but the wind was getting harder and it seemed to be turning colder, so we decided it was time to walk back down.

I had a challenge coming down. As I was trying to find the best route down along the sloping face, I ended up going too far down and missed the turn for the trail. I then had to climb back up to the correct path. I found that incredibly difficult due to the altitude. My daughter and her boyfriend were getting concerned because they hadn’t seen me in a while. He came back down and found me sitting on the side of the mountain trying to catch my breath. How embarrassing! With his help I got back to the path to get off the dome.

After that the hike down was much easier. My daughter and I saw a mule deer and two osprey on the way up which added something special to the hike.

The lesson for the day was that if we are reaching for a big goal (hiking to the top of Lembert Dome for example), sometimes the best way to get there is just one step at a time. Don’t look to far ahead. Keep your focus on the goal but keep your attention on the next step.

Have a great day!

Michael