Talent is like electricity. We don’t understand electricity. We use it. – Maya Angelou

Jim Rohn talks about how some people spend their time studying the roots when they could be picking the fruit.

Some of life is like this – it’s hard to understand why or exactly how it works, it just does.

Sowing and reaping.

Seeking and finding.

Giving and receiving.

Joy and suffering.

Love and selflessness.

The basic relationships seem straightforward by why it works one way one time and another the next remains a mystery.

You get to choose to have faith in the basic equations.

Make it a great day.

Jake

It is easier to prevent bad habits than to break them. – Benjamin Franklin

Another Ben Franklin quote goes something like – an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Jim Rohn talks about us taking the time to look a little ways down the road to see where our current habits are taking us.

What bad habit could you avoid starting this week?

What bad habit (or even indifferent habit) might lead to disaster in ten years?

Make the choice to look ahead a little and see what a good choice looks like.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/WTJSt4wP2ME

This song and video remind of videos I’ve seen in the past of churches in Africa.

It’s such a wake up call to see people celebrating God in such a meaningful way while living in huts with little to no “modern amenities”.

The “stuff” that we (or maybe just me) worry and stress about losing or being judged for not having or not having enough us is not what we actually need to find joy.

Find some joy today – joy in the important and real parts of your life – your family, friends, God, your health, etc.

Make it a great day.

Jake

I believe that every human mind feels pleasure in doing good to another. – Thomas Jefferson

Doing good for others is good for us.

One of the little tricks of life is that doing the right thing usually (in the long run) adds value to our lives.

We are enriched by doing our best to serve others with love.

We are at our best when we think of others first.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Last night was the spring band concert at the junior high – starring our favorite 8th grader – Annie Davis.

Each time they play now as a band I’m reminded of their first band concerts in 5th grade. They really weren’t very good.

The difference between now and then is nothing short of remarkable.

Each time this group of junior high kids leaves me inspired to take on something new (or maybe anew) and work at it until I get better.

We all have the opportunity to get better at something.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Faith is allowing ourselves to be seized by the things we do not see. – Martin Luther

In “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill he talked a lot about faith. He told the stories of Edison, Ford and others like them to illustrate that these success stories were born through extreme faith. They all latched on to a vision of the future and never lost faith that it would come to be reality.

The quote above reminded me of this because of his use of the word seized.

Many of the great success stories could be written using that description.

Henry Ford was seized by the idea of creating an affordable car.

Thomas Edison was seized by the idea of creating a light bulb.

The question for each of us is: What has seized me?

Are we seized by worry, jealousy, and fear?

Or are we seized by prosperity, contentment and joy?

We do not have to invent the next light bulb to be able to have faith in a big idea that will seize us and lead us to success and happiness.

Make it a great day.

Jake

For some reason the story of the widow’s offering has been on my mind a lot lately. Reminded me of this daily attitude email.

The Widow’s Offering – Mark 12:41-44

41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Listening to Jim Rohn again reminded me again of this story and this old daily attitude email about it.

An important component in life is the giving of ourselves in service to others.

It’s easy to get caught up in just the monetary aspect of the story. Maybe even feel bad because you haven’t given away all of the dollars you have earned.

And while I think that is an important element of the story, I believe that maybe a more important idea in today’s world is giving all of ourselves in service to others.

In service to our families.

In service to our church or favorite local charity.

In service to our clients.

In service to our teammates.

Make it a great day of service.

Jake

https://youtu.be/QJO3ROT-A4E

This was Maggie’s suggestion for a toe tapper.

I’m hopeful that it was a mature teenager moment of reflection on how we can all look differently at our insecurities.

Probably more likely that those One Direction guys are so “dreamy” (like all the cool kids say these days).

It’s easy to define our worth and beauty by the wrong standards.

To buy into marketing, trends and keeping up with the cool kids.

Instead of working on what’s inside and focusing on what our Heavenly Father sees in us.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Yesterday’s email talked about being of service in the moment of need for our clients and those around us.

One of the hard parts of service is interacting with others in their moment of need.

Most of us aren’t quite the put together, got it all under control, emotionally mature person we pretend to be in front of others (maybe I’m the only one).

We get on the phone or in front of a service provider and sometimes we are not quite as nice as we should be (it happened to a guy once, I read it on the internet).

For me, being in need brings up feelings of insecurity and can lead to a hole in that self esteem balloon (it needs more air, not less!).

This means that when someone is dealing with me in a moment of need, I’m probably not at my best. I probably let my ego and insecurities get in the way. The bigger the need, the harder this is.

Over the years a phrase has come to be a habit of mine (at least in my head) – “Be of service – with love.”

Without the love part, dealing with someone in their moment of need just doesn’t work.

I think of the kids when they were little and got sick. They looked so helpless and it immediately caused strong feelings of love for them and a desire to help in any way I could.

I’m not suggesting we get all sentimental and teary eyed with every service call. I’m trying to remind us (maybe just me, you probably got this figured out) to be aware of how we make others feel in their moment of need. To cultivate a feeling of love towards those we get the opportunity to serve. If we serve with love – then we are the ones who received the greater portion of blessing and joy.

A client whose service ticket gets solved gets a little bump. The service person serving clients with love – that guy/gal is on top of the world.

Ok – maybe all of this has gone too far. Jake’s gotten a little ahead of himself. Fine. Let’s just try to move the needle a little bit today. A little more love. That seems more reasonable.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Bonus point – when you are in a time of need – ask for the help. Receive the love. Appreciate the service. Let go of your ego.

Feels like we have our own little pandemic going at Maxlider/Mavidea this week. I found this daily attitude email from back when the whole thing started. (Bonus point to add to the original thoughts – don’t be afraid to ask for help.)

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” ― Fred Rogers

Such a great thought for the scary times we’re in.

In the midst of all the uncertainties and fear – there are people helping.

Nurses, doctors, first responders come first to mind.

But there are also the people still working at Wal-Mart, etc. to get groceries out to all of us.

And Mavidea’s on the list too.

We’re helping our customers through a tough time. Helping them still get work done and communicate with their customers.

In every crisis there are positives.

A big one for me during this crisis has been how our team has responded. Everyone has stepped up and offered to help in whatever way they can.

Our clients are receiving help.

Make it a great day.

Jake