When I think of Memorial Day, I am reminded of the famous letter that Abraham Lincoln wrote to Mrs. Bixby (below).

I can’t see how it could be said better in so few words.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Dear Madam,–

I have been shown in the files of the War Department a statement of the Adjutant General of Massachusetts that you are the mother of five sons who have died gloriously on the field of battle.

I feel how weak and fruitless must be any word of mine which should attempt to beguile you from the grief of a loss so overwhelming. But I cannot refrain from tendering you the consolation that may be found in the thanks of the Republic they died to save.

I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.

Yours, very sincerely and respectfully,

A. Lincoln

https://youtu.be/wa2nLEhUcZ0

I know I’ve sent this one before, but I also imagine it always makes Mrs. Davis smile.

Think of a song that would make a loved one smile today.

Find the YouTuber for it and send it them with a note.

Make it a great day.

Jake

My motto is: Contented with little, yet wishing for more. – Charles Lamb

This a great way to illustrate one of life’s great balancing acts.

Contentment vs ambition.

Take a moment today to do a quick check in with yourself.

How are you doing on this one?

Make it a great day.

Jake

Rough diamonds may sometimes be mistaken for worthless pebbles. – Thomas Browne

I sure felt a little better after reading this one.

It’s easy to get caught up in all of our imperfections and get a little discouraged.

But every single person is a rough diamond.

We all have some areas for improvement, but underneath it all is greatness.

Our own, unique greatness.

Don’t mistake yourself for a worthless pebble.

Don’t buy into the ideas that if you could only lose some weight or buy that thing or take that trip that you would then become worthy or “as much as” someone else or some idealized version of yourself.

Don’t fall into the social media trap of viewing everyone’s highlight reel thinking you are “less than”.

It’s not true! You are a diamond.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Another great life lesson from “The Sandlot” is that you have to go outside to make friends.

At the beginning of the movie the main character’s mom tells him that she wants him to get outside and get into trouble (but not too much).

We all need to get outside in order to accomplish our goals and dreams.

Both metaphorically and literally.

Outside of our comfort zone in order to grow as a person.

Outside of the comfort of home in order to grow our view of the world.

This thought may be even more important in our time than it was for the character in the movie. We have even more opportunity to spend our time inside our comfort zone and comfortable space than others have in the past.

Getting past this layer of insulation from the outside world is essential to becoming all that we were meant to be. We were meant for so much more.

What is one way that you can “go outside” today?

What can you do to change your perspective and grow past where you currently are?

Make it a great day.

Jake

Watched “The Sandlot” with the kids and it reminded me of this email I sent a couple of years back.

Next up in the list of lessons learned from “The Sandlot” – face your fears.

Eventually, Benny decides to face his fear and go in and get the ball back.

Maybe your fears aren’t as seemingly dramatic and life threatening as “The Beast”, but they are probably holding you back just the same.

Maybe you are afraid of what people will think of you.

Maybe you are afraid you will fail.

Maybe you are afraid of having to ask for help.

If your goals and dreams are big enough, they are worth facing your fears.

Concentrate on why it is worth it and then go for it.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://youtu.be/BWSn0JFRiPI

A classic summer time anthem.

This one reminds me of the fact that we are the same but different.

We all love summertime. But we all don’t love country music.

I am not a country music fan, but my wife is. She loves this song. Me, not so much.

And yet, despite (or maybe because of) these differences we are perfect for each other.

In life we will constantly be meeting people that are different than us. We can choose to embrace it and find the best in each other or we can judge and condemn.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Each season that comes and goes reminds me of Jim Rohn’s analogy of the seasons of life.

As he talks about summer, he discusses how summertime in life is a unique period of nourishing and defending our gardens.

He talks about not allowing the weeds of life to invade our gardens.

Some things in life can’t be tolerated, they must be decimated.

Some things we need to have a zero tolerance policy towards.

As you think about your life and any weeds that might creep in, what zero tolerance policy should you develop?

Do you need to give up sweets?

Do you need to end a relationship that isn’t good for you?

Do you need to put an end to an addiction that’s holding you back?

Make it a great day.

Jake

Real happiness is cheap enough, yet how dearly we pay for its counterfeit. – Hosea Ballou

Hope this one spurs some thinking today.

What are you paying for that isn’t worth it? Not just in money, but in time as well.

What are you chasing that really won’t make you happy?

Drop it.

Move on.

Focus on the important stuff.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Good is the enemy of great. – Jim Collins

One of the most difficult challenges of life (especially for those of us that are lucky enough to live in America) is that “good” is everywhere. It is easy to fall into the trap of settling for good instead of going for great.

Good is the enemy of great because good is so comfortable. Good lulls us into complacency. Good makes it easy not to go for our best.

And that is where the problem lies. Good means we miss out on great. They can’t coexist. it is one or the other.

Is there an area of your life where you are settling for good instead of great?

Are you avoiding facing the reality that you can be great?

In “Good to Great” Jim ends with a great conclusion.

Over time it is no more difficult (in fact he believes it is easier) to be great than it is to just achieve good results.

Up front it might seem a lot more difficult, but that is a false sense of security.

At Mavidea we are in the process of moving our organization from good to great and I am excited.

I can’t wait to see what the future holds as we become a great company.

I can’t wait to see what the future holds for each of you as you become the great version of yourself.

Make it a great day.

Jake