I’ve been listening to a podcast of an interview of gentleman who was a Marine that fought in the Pacific during WWII. It reminded me of this email I sent a while back after watching a show on the same subject.

A while ago I watched the series “The Pacific”. The series was about the experience of a group of Marines during WWII.

At the end of the show they gave a brief “update” on each of the soldiers and their experiences after the war.

Next to one of the names it said “Sold cars for 46 years”.

That really struck me as an interestingly different experience than participating in WWII.

Think about it. You go from participating in one of the greatest battles and moments in human history (saving the world) to selling cars.

Not that selling cars is bad, I just have a hard time imagining waking up in the morning to that as compared to the significance that must have been felt at moments during war.

But as I thought about it, I wondered if there isn’t an interesting lesson in there somewhere.

Maybe the lesson is that the same kinds of things that led to success in WWII would allow someone to be successful and enjoy a life of selling cars.

Courage, integrity, responsibility, grit, humility, positivity.

Just some examples, but you can easily imagine how they would lead to success in whatever endeavor the possessor pursued.

Most of us are lucky enough to not have to test our character in the crucible of war.

Instead, we must test it in daily interactions with coworkers, our families and ourselves.

As I reflect on this whole picture, I am eternally grateful for those that have faced sterner tests on my behalf.

And I am inspired to do the best I can with the opportunity they have created for me to test myself against the smaller yardsticks I face each day.

Make it a great day.

Jake