Each year, Labor Day is a great reminder of the dignity of labor.

As we go about our jobs each day there is dignity in being productive and doing our best.

We aren’t just working to make money or even to get the results our job description says we should.

We are building character.

We are being productive.

We are giving more than we get.

We are making an impact.

As we go back to work after Labor day, let us remember the opportunity that presents itself. To do our best to serve others in a way that makes the world a better place.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/Gs069dndIYk

It’s officially September.

Hard to believe we are this close to the end of the year already.

Time to break out those 2015 goals and make sure you are set up to accomplish them.

Or maybe time to set some goals for the rest of the year.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born. – Anais Nin

My first thought when I read this was to be thankful.

Thankful for those in my life that have opened up and new and wonderful worlds. Worlds full of laughter, love and possibility.

My second thought was “what an opportunity”.

We can each open up a new world for those we are in relationship with.

Make it a great day.

Jake

JD – If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat! Just get on. – Sheryl Sandberg

JW – Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. – Psalm 55:22

MS – Be not wise in thine own eyes: Fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, And marrow to thy bones. Proverbs 3:7-8

EB – It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles, then the victory is yours. – Buddha

The quote from Sheryl Sandberg stuck out to me.

If you’re like me you have experienced this. Spending too much time thinking about which seat, what the flight is going to be like, do I have the right stuff, what will everyone else think, etc. Instead of just getting on and enjoying the ride.

I’d guess that even the least risk averse amongst us have missed a rocket ship ride because of over-analyzing.

A little secret that most of us miss is that most rocket ships don’t look like rocket ships.

The big difference makers in our lives tend to start with a small first step. Taking that first small step.

Starting a new diet.

Starting to invest.

Reading a book instead of watching TV.

Committing to a new exercise program.

You’ll run into the obvious rocket ships along the way too.

Either way the key is to get on. To take action. Don’t overthink it. Just get started.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Last night I finished watching 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 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

Love has no errors, for all errors are the want for love. – William Law

What if this were true?

All of our errors and misgivings stemmed from the want for love.

Seems kind of crazy at first but seems at least mostly true in my case.

We were all born with an inherent need to love and be loved. It is a central part of being human. And a foundational part of being the best humans we can be.

Somehow we let so many obstacles get in the way.

We let how we feel about ourselves affect how we love others.

We let how others might perceive us affect how we love others.

We let fear stop us from stepping out on a limb to love others.

We let ourselves be fooled into thinking there is a better way.

But the truth is there is no better way.

Make an effort today to be more loving to those around you and those you run into today. Push past your comfort zone a little. Be awkward about it if you have to.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/2AB9zPfXqQQ

“Sounds like somebody’s got a case of the Mondays.”

It’s funny to me that Monday is the day of the week that is supposed to be the worst day. Seems to me that it should be the best day of the week.

It’s the start of a new week. A clean slate.

Everything is in front of you. Anything is possible.

Think of this week as a trial run. Think of it as a week full of possibilities and new beginnings.

What is the one thing you would like to get done?

Get on it.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/gzoEK545j64

Wow. What a video.

I will let that one stand on its own.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one. – Malcolm Forbes

What a great way to look at learning and growing.

The goal is not to fill our minds with facts and figures but to open them up to all that is possible for us. To allow room for our thinking and dreaming to expand.

I’m sure we have all read a book and had that moment where we were exposed to a new way of thinking and thought that maybe we could do the same.

Maybe we could lose the weight.

Maybe we could save the money.

Maybe we could find the love of our life.

Maybe we could be content.

The best books open us up to what is possible for us.

Pick up a book that will open things up for you.

Make it a great day.

Jake

JD – When a man is wrapped up in himself, he makes a pretty small package. – John Ruskin

JW – Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. – Proverbs 16:24

MS – Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. – Ecclesiastes

EB – Major announcement….the TV series Ash vs the Evil Dead comes out in October!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111

It’s easy to be hasty with our anger.

Losing our temper with the other drivers on the road, the bad waiter at the restaurant, the husband who left the seat up, or any of a bunch of different daily scenarios.

It’s easy to do. It’s the natural reaction.

But anger is foolish. Kind of a harsh way of saying it, but it is true.

Life’s too short to get mad so quickly.

Look for areas to step back from anger in your life. Step back from anger and step towards calm and peace.

Make it a great day.

Jake