Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. – George Bernard Shaw

What are you creating?

Make it a great day.

Jake

Yesterday, as part of the flu recovery process, we watched “The Sandlot” with the kids.

After the main character’s first successful day on the field making friends, he was heading back into his house with a huge smile on his face and a spring in his step and Maggie says “Wow!”

I was immediately reminded of why “The Sandlot” is such a great and universally understood story.

We can all understand and appreciate that moment when we were heading home from a friend’s house or from school or wherever with that same spring in our step. With that same big goofy smile on our face.

I believe we all have a need to be in community with a group of friends, working toward something meaningful.

This is part of why I believe we have something special going on at Mavidea. We are a community work towards meaningful goals.

And for that I count myself lucky.

Make it a great day.

Jake

To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

When asked for interviewing or resume advice, I always start with “Smile.”

After that, my next advice is to know yourself and be yourself.

The last time I gave this advice I realized it needed a bit more explanation.

We should work to be ourselves and know ourselves not so that the rest of the world can bend to our will and deliver our happiness.

We must know ourselves and be ourselves in order to find the places and ways we can be of greatest service to others.

Only by knowing and being our true, authentic self can we know where we can offer the best service.

No job, career, family set up or volunteer opportunity will be the “perfect one” where we will find bliss and everyone will be happy.

But we can move towards better.

A better fit for our unique form of service.

We get to choose where and how to offer our service. Choose wisely.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Thinking will not overcome fear, but action will. – W Clement Stone

I don’t know about you, but I have a tendency to over think things.

Especially when it comes to something that has a little bit of fear behind it.

This quote was a great reminder to push through the fear and take action.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/Qq2Tp3asLU8

This song goes well with the theme this week of change and moving forward.

“Day one of the rest of my life.”

We can choose to make today the beginning of something special and new.

To begin (or continue) the process of becoming the best version of ourselves possible.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t. – Steve Maraboli

An important part of the change process is focusing on what you can do instead of what you can’t do.

We can focus on a small element (that we control) of the process to get started.

Forget about all of the other stuff that gets in your way.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Change begets change.

A new office means a lot of change.

At the very least, each of us has changed the way we drive a different path to work each day.

Each of the changes represents an opportunity.

An opportunity to do it better than we have in the past and an opportunity to make other changes too.

Look at this as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

Get started on that exercise program.

Start that investment account.

Spend the extra few minutes at home with the kids in the morning.

Get started on something new while you are in the change mode.

Make it a great day.

Jake

JD – You’re only as good as your last haircut. – Fran Lebowitz

JW – It is better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a sheep. – Italian proverb

BAD – If I get any paler, I will be an actual light source. – Michael Cluney

EB – Feliz Navidad.

MS – Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader success is all about growing others. – Jack Welch

The Jack Welch quote reminds me of why leaders and leadership are so important.

Great leadership has its basis in service and service has its basis in thinking of others instead of yourself and thinking of others instead of yourself is based on love.

In order to reach our fullest potential, we must go through the process of loving others more than ourselves. Learning to focus on others first instead of ourselves.

Great leadership always begins with self-leadership in these areas.

Whether you are in a position of leadership or not, others are looking to you to lead them.

Begin with yourself. Discipline your thoughts and actions to be those of a selfless, loving person.

If you do this, others will follow. And you will be amazed at the future you can create together.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Something that has helped me lately is to try to think about my role in a particular conversation or group.

Leader or follower?

Coach or student?

Antagonist or cheerleader?

The goal is to try to think of what role would serve the greatest good and try to fill it.

As I thought about this a little deeper, two things became clear about what my role will always be.

First, to serve. No matter the situation, I should work to be of service.

Second, to love. No matter the situation, I should work to love others as I love myself.

As we think about what to say or do in any given relationship, we can ask ourselves how we can be of service and how we can love the other person.

Hopefully this little process will help you have better conversations with those around you.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Bonus point – for those that are Christians, I believe there is a third role we must fill – to glorify God.

I think I did pretty well, considering I started out with nothing but a bunch of blank paper. – Steve Martin

Today is the start of a new chapter. Mavidea is officially relocated into the new building.

We are being handed another bunch of blank paper.

We get to choose the story that will be written.

Make it a great day.

Jake