Winning Strategies

Guess it is Flu Season

I guess it is flu season, since, yes, it attacked me this week.  I don't know how it sneaked up on me, but it did.  I , like you, do not have time for illness.  I have pretty much booked up every moment of my schedule.  Teaches me!  I think illness is a way for our bodies to tell us to 'slow down'.  I think that it is a way for us to stop and realize that maybe, just maybe, we are cramming too much activity into our days and working a little too hard at doing a lot too much.

Illness knocks us down and makes us realize that, for the most part, we take our health for granted.  We walk through the days where we feel great forgetting that it is a blessing.  We run around and press ourselves, forgetting to be thankful for the painless ability to walk, stand, and go through our daily lives.

Well, after being deathly ill this week, I do not take today for granted.  I am thankful for the healing that my body has began to create.  I am thankful for my health, and the ability to heal.

See the Movie 'Courageous' and Commit to Being a Better Dad

I saw the movie Courageous today, and I thought it was amazing.  I've seen  the evidence of fatherless children, and I hold the truths of this movie to be absolutely right on.  It showcases the lives of four men and their sturggles with being 'good enough' dads.  They commit to  being better dads, with the character of Christ.

I coach single moms.    I hear their struggles and am aware of the difficulty of their journey.

Kids need dads, and an amazingly large number of them today are living without them.  I talk to many women that are raising their children alone.  My heart cries out in sadness, as I watch these children try to fill the voids in their lives.  they are trying to make themselves 'whole' again.

Awaken your senses.  Go see a movie that will make you think.  Challenge yourself to be a better father.  Let this movie move you into action in your own life.

What if You Are Wrong?

I know some of you don't believe in Jesus, or that when he walked the earth, he was the Savior.  Some of you don't believe that there is an afterlife, and that God will reward you in heaven for selfless acts towards others .  I do.  What if you are wrong? 

What if you live your life and  find out too late that you are wrong?  You are uniquely and wonderfully made.  Scientists and doctors have spent years trying to figure out information about our amazing bodies.  The creation of a baby, from sperm and an egg is an amazing miracle in itself.  If you struggle with disbelief, you owe it to yourself to peruse the book, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, by Josh McDowell;  http://www.amazon.com/Evidence-Demands-Questions-Challenging-Christians/dp/0785242198/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319425738&sr=8-1

or read Lee Strobel's A Case for Christ;  http://www.amazon.com/Case-Christ-Journalists-Personal-Investigation/dp/0310209307/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319425943&sr=1-1

or watch videos on I am Second that show you what a changed life looks like; http://www.iamsecond.com/

And which videos are my favorites?  Why, I can tell you that. 
Sports figure:   Josh Hamilton:  http://www.iamsecond.com/seconds/josh-hamilton/
Working too hard & too long:  Watch Alex Kendrick:  http://www.iamsecond.com/seconds/#work

Eternity is something that you wouldn't want to be wrong about. What if?

Have You Been Knocked Down? Keep Getting Up

Life throws you struggles, struggles that seem to knock you down, and leave you in a virtual 'pit'.   Don't stay in the pit!

There is a way out.  Keep getting up.  Success and happiness lies in your ability to keep getting up over and over again. 

Everyone gets knocked down.  They don't talk about it.  Believe me, you are not alone- be assured- you are not the only one that has been knocked down.    I have been knocked down so many times, that I have lost count.  The only thing I know for very sure, is that I have gotten up OVER and OVER and over again. 

It wasn't just the scoliosis brace that I had to wear as a young teenager, or the back surgery in the eleventh grade, being a single mom was no picnic, and when Heather's dad died,  that was one of my all time lows.  There were promotions that I didn't get, and I could go on.

In 2004, I had major surgery on my back.  An amazingly skilled surgeon inserted 3 artificial discs, fused my entire spine removing all remaining flexibility , and placed 4 steel cages to keep my spine in place.  They repositioned my center of gravity, causing me to have to learn to walk all over again.

I felt knocked down. I didn't feel like I could get up physically or mentally.  I had to get up.  I had to keep going.  I had to try again. 

You can pick yourself up.  Keep getting up. Keep trying.  Don't let one knock-down take you down for the count.  Life is about HOW MANY TIMES YOU GET UP- NOT how many times you get knocked down.  I believe in you. Get up and go at it again....

The Book is Done

At my doorstep recently was a small box from the publisher with three proofs for review (one for the editor, one for me, and one extra).
The final edits are done. It is an exhaustive process to complete a book. It involves an inordinate amount of time, effort, focus and energy. The process can be all -consuming.

I took 4 weeks off in June to focus on completion and attempted to draw the final curtain on it.

Whew- I now draw a huge breath of relief that we are moving past that step. The illustrations added a level of complexity to the process. There was much talk about dpi, image size, 'flatening' the image, ect ect.

Excitement rises as I prepare for a couple speaking events and book signings. I will have a book launch party in Dallas soon.

God is so good.

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The Only Woman At the Table

Today it occurred to me how comfortable I have become in work instances where I am the only woman at the table. I have sat on volunteer groups, visited board presentations, strategized with CEO groups, and all an all had access to the best and the brightest in healthcare. (Which- come on- you know some of the bright ones are women too, right?).

I recognize the advancements that women have made in organizations, the boardrooms, and even the office of CEO- but sometimes I can't help but wonder what the future holds 20 years, even 50 or 100 years out.
How many advancements will happen and how will perspectives change? Will the landscape repaint itself or stay the same?

Will the future be radically different or not? I've seen radical changes since I entered the workforce 27 years ago (when I was 2- grin) . I can't help but wonder- what will the future hold? Your thoughts?

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OK MOMs- Accept that YOU Cannot Do it ALL!

You CANNOT do it all. You cannot even brush the surface. Accept it and move forward, understanding that you are juggling a big load and sometimes, some of the balls will fall. Sometimes, your work will be unhappy with you, sometimes your kids will be disapointed in you and sometimes you will not be able to get it all done well.

Accept defeat in small areas and become a Queen of prioritization. It really isn't important that you get EVERYTHING done, it is important that you get the MOST IMPORTANT things done. So, how do you prioritize that LONG list of TO DOs?

Start simply.

1. Cross Off Items on the LIST: I love that in the book 'Good to Great' the author tells you to take things off of your TO DO list. To be GREAT, we must move towards concentrating on LESS THINGS. We have to DO LESS THINGS BETTER. So to start, cross off items on your list that you can give to others (get those darn teenagers helping you out), hire out, or simply can put off for another day/week/month.

2. Prioritize by Your Value Statement. You value certain things, and you should have a ranking in your mind of what comes first, second and third. I try to re-think that list of TO DOs by my value statement (does it fit my God first, family second, work third) . You should do the same, running that list by your value statement and prioritizing the list.

3. Reward your Success. Reward yourself for things you've accomplished. It is the best part. I have gotten very good at this over the years and I can motivate myself to do even the most arduous tasks.  I have a weakness for chocolate, shopping, and quiet time without the kids.  When I've accomplished difficult tasks or finished my TO DO list, I allow myself a 'gift'.  I keep myself from these luxeries when I haven't done my tasks.  It motivates me to accomplish the necessary things in life.

I hope this helps....let me hear how it is going.  I love the letters and emails that I get from you.

Our Life on Earth Ends in Death

We fuss and mumble, work and complain.  We don't take time for family and we hurry through life, missing out on most of it, acting insane.

Our life on earth ends here, in a hearse , no matter how we spend it.  No matter what decisions we make, if we are living life in black and white, or enjoying it in full color.  If we are being an amazing spouse and parent, or if we are failing miserably- - - it all ends in the back of black car driving us to a burial slot.

One scripture in the Bible that I like says, 'For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and lose his own soul."  Are you focused on your soul?  Are you living the life you should be living?

Are you ok with the way that you are 'spending' your life?  Is it acceptable to you?  Are you on a path and a journey that you are proud of or disapointed in?  Are you truly focused on the things that are important?  Do you feel like you are being 'all that you can be', enjoying life, giving back to your community and taking care of the poor and the lowly,  and thoroughly enjoying the moments that are your life? or are you missing the chance to live the life God's has for you?

We take it for granted.  We walk through our days one step after the other, oblivious to the whisper of time as it passes.  We move along, somewhat unaware that the path is changing, that time is gracefully flying by, and we are living it like we have unlimited tomorrows.  We are stepping through the journey, unaware that the road is shorter now, and the time we have remaining has 1 less day after today than it had yesterday. 

Blip, blip, blip, tick tock, tick tock.  The minutes, hours, days, months, and years pass in a blur.  We are sometimes completely unaware of time passing before us.

What would it take to get you to live today like there was no tomorrows?  What would it take for you to love your spouse, love on your children, make the MOST of every relationship, giving of yourself to others,  and savor EACH moment of LIFE as if those moments were the precious, amazing, gift that they are?  What would it take?  What would MOVE YOU to that point of understanding?

I'm amazed at the number of us that are walking half dead.  We are living in a fog, unaware of the color and brightness of the world around us.  Your loved ones want to savor their time with you.  They want to 'be' with you.  Life is but a moment, a whisper, a quick splash that passes by so quickly. 

Enjoy these moments of your life.  Fill them with color and savor every second.