Someone who thinks the world is always cheating him is right. He is missing that wonderful feeling of trust in someone or something. – Eric Hoffer

Having a default setting of distrust in others can set us up for disappointment.

I may be naïve on this one but I wonder if the disappointments associated with never having trusted someone are greater than having trusted someone and having that trust broken.

Focus on the positive and the possibilities and not being burned or disappointed.

Make it a great day.

Jake

In honor of the trust theme at Mavidea I have been reading “The Speed of Trust”.

I am sure I will share more later, but the biggest thing so far is the overall theme of the book.

More trust = faster results.

When we can trust others to do their jobs, uphold their word, be where they say they are going to be we can move so much faster in doing all of the things on our own plate.

I imagine this is why the Armed Forces pay so close attention to all the little details. In order to trust that your teammate will hold up their end of the bargain it helps to know that everything is done correctly. All the way down to tying your boots.

And it applies to our personal lives as well.

We can move and grow much faster when we have others to depend on. We can take a few more risks if we can trust those closest to us in case we fall.

Who is depending on you that you need to build more trust so they can move faster without you?

Where do you need to add someone you trust in case you fall?

Make it a great day.

Jake

In honor of Mavidea’s 3rd quarter theme, I thought I would write the next few daily attitude emails about trust.

Any time I think of trust in a team environment I think of Andy Stanley’s explanation of trust vs. suspicion.

He explains that in between any two people and any particular instance there is a gap.

A gap between what one person expects and what the other person expects.

The gap is always filled with something.

We get to choose whether to fill it with trust or suspicion.

John’s running a little late….we can either trust that something important came up or be suspicious that he is a selfish person who made poor choices that led to his being late.

We all fill the gap in our interactions with others every day and in both big and little ways.

And we do so based on our previous experiences with trust. Has our trust been broken in the past or has our trust been upheld?

In Andy’s explanation of trust he talks of a team of people and how suspicion will lead to a dysfunctional team.

As you think of your team, do you see trust or suspicion?

As you look at personal relationships, do you see trust or suspicion?

No matter the relationship, if you are trying to get from point A to point B together, it will require trust be inserted in the gap.

Make it a great day.

Jake

JM – Bob loses saving throw vs. Shiny with a penalty of -5. Bob takes 2D8 damage to credit card. – Charles Strauss – “The Fuller Memorandum”
JD – If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours. – Henry David Thoreau
EB – Tell me and I forget; teach me and I may remember; involve me and I learn. – Benjamin Franklin JW – Black holes are where God divided by zero. – Steven Wright

I have been re-listening to “Direct Line” from Earl Nightingale and he has mentioned the Thoreau quote above several time.

Every time he says it, it give me pause.

This time I realized something I hadn’t noticed before.

We only need to MOVE in the direction of our dreams in order to meet with uncommon success.

We don’t have to be perfect, hit every goal, never miss a step.

We can (and in my case will) make mistakes along the way.

But we have to start. We can’t stay on the sidelines talking about all the weight we are going to lose or the money we are going to have or the grandkids we are going to love on. We must MOVE in those directions in order to meet with success.

Take an inventory of your dreams. Make a MOVE today towards one of them.

Make it a great weekend.

Jake

http://youtu.be/9jK-NcRmVcw

Each day represents its own final countdown of sorts.

We are all the same amount of busy, 24 hours in a day go by at the same rate for all of us.

Each day is its own opportunity to do and be your best.

Make it a great day.

Jake

In Earl Nightingale’s “Direct Line” he explains how to increase our income.

He explains that other people are in possession of all the income we want, we must simply find a way to earn it.

After listening to this for the 10th+ time, a light bulb went off for me (I’m a little slow). The same rule applies to a lot of the other areas of life where we are looking for something that others have.

Whether it be love, friendship, knowledge, companionship, respect….we must earn it.

And like money, when we don’t first earn it, it doesn’t stay around long.

We have all heard the stories of the lottery winner or professional athlete that has lost their millions and now is filing bankruptcy.

The same is true elsewhere. If we want something of value, we must earn it. Otherwise it probably won’t be around for long.

Is there something in your life you have been looking for that you haven’t earned yet?

What step can you take today to start earning that which you desire?

Make it a great day.

Jake

Just stop! Take a moment to think before you act so that you are in control of yourself, your emotions and your responses. It is easy to justify unpleasant or rude behavior with excuses of being tired, overworked, or stressed. Sometimes we take out the irritations of the moment or the day on our family, children, co-workers, or even the family pet. What is the emotional tone of your family or your life? Is it harsh, cold, unforgiving, withdrawn, or warm, loving, open and embracing?

Take time each day to build and generate new verbal and non-verbal responses that will allow you to build your capacity to be a gentler, kinder, more compassionate, peaceful and loving person. This is a skill set that takes intentional rehearsal and practice ~ just like playing sports or working out. If you find yourself acting often out of irritation, anger, or even rage, reflect on what excuse you use to make someone else the brunt of your bad attitude or worse ~ your bad behavior. Decide that no excuse is worth the cost of emotional venting in public or in private ~ especially on those you love. Do the hard work and the heart work to hold yourself to a higher standard. Raise the bar on yourself, your attitude and your behavior!! You have something special! You have GREATNESS within you!

Les Brown

Such an important concept. Retraining ourselves and our words when we have gotten into negative patterns.

We are the sum of our habits, both good and bad.

Make it a great day.

Jake

All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence. – Martin Luther King, Jr.

Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.

Khalil Gibran

In honor of Labor Day I went searching for quotes on work. Found a whole bunch of good ones but wanted to share the two above.

It reminded me of my two favorite things about work.

First, that any work that serves a fellow human being is work worth doing. There is dignity and honor in service. And most jobs are fundamentally about serving others, otherwise they wouldn’t exist.

The difference between a good job and a bad job? The person doing the job’s attitude.

Second, “work is love made visible”.

Whether we are showing love for our family, our God, our co-workers or our customers, we can show love for others by doing our best at work.

Again, this is a matter of choice.

We can choose to work as if working for those we love or we can choose to drag ourselves into “that place” again.

For a place we spend so much time at, our decision on how to view work is an important part of happiness.

Make it a great (work)day.

Jake

EB – Crap, I gotta go. I have a 10 o’clock across town.

JM – You want weapons? We’re in a library! Books! The best weapons in the world! – The Doctor

JW – Goonies never say die.

JD – Don’t major in minor things. – Jim Rohn

School starting again has reminded of the Jim Rohn quote above.

So many go through life majoring in minoring things.

They get an A in TV but an F in Spirituality.

They get an A in Technology but an F in Health.

They get an A in Checking Your Phone Every 5 Minutes but an F in Relationships.

They get an A in Random Trivia but an F in Economics.

As you look at your life, is there an area where you are spending major time but shouldn’t be?

What is your major? What are you doing the best at?

Jim goes on to say that if you want to end up with anything of value, you can’t spend all your time on Minor things.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://youtu.be/XE2fnYpwrng

It’s been a little warm lately so I went in search of a song in honor of the heat.

Make it a great day.

Jake