Author Archive
What Did You Say?
Posted by: | CommentsI was turned onto a site (PG-13) this week that made me laugh out loud. This site is about funny and embarrassing text messages sent out due to erroneous auto-corrections made on phones and computers these days. As funny as I found these messages to be, alot can be learned from them. Take your time when sending a message, think twice about your recipient/audience and most importantly, don’t say anything you didn’t mean to say.
With the advent of text-messaging and emails, so much can be left up for interpretation and even more can be left up to individual mood and preference. Email is a two-dimensional communication – there is not tone of voice, no body language, just words. This is unfortunate but it is our reality.
What might you be saying in your daily interactions that someone else is interpreting differently? What are you saying to your kids, your co-workers, your spouse? And more importantly, how is what you are writing being interpreted?
Did you know that approximately 2.8 million emails are sent every second and some 90 trillion emails are sent per year? Around 90% of these millions and trillions of messages are spam and viruses, but 294 billion messages per day are sent by around 1.9 billion email users each year. With that kind of email traffic, there are bound to be some mis- (missed/messed-up) communications.
The Winds of Change
Posted by: | CommentsJust when you think you have it all worked out; when you know exactly what the next few months of your life are gonna look like, a Southern wind blows in and changes direction, without the convenience of the weatherman giving you a heads up. That’s what happened to me in a short twelve hour period last Tuesday.
The announcement was made that the company I’ve been working with for 12 months, Rockhouse Partners, was acquired by a ticketing company; it was a surprise to me. That same evening, the fans and advocates of “Save My Fairgrounds” made an historic showing at a council meeting to let their voice be heard that their fairgrounds wasn’t just something that could be tossed out with last years funnel cake dough. They were able to persuade the council in an unanimous decision to STOP the demolition of the 106 year old racetrack and to continue the Tennessee State Fair, world-class flea market and Expo Center–at least for now. It was quite a day and night from where I sat and with that announcement came change and at least a question I had to ask myself. Do I have it in me to run the Tennessee State Fair again?
There’s Still Time
Posted by: | CommentsIf you are like me, you know how precious time is. You’ve also suddenly realized that twenty (or thirty) years have flown by in a flash. Aside from a dozen or so life-changing and amazing moments I can’t recall everything I’ve done in all those years that mattered, I mean really, really mattered; I can probably better tell you what I haven’t done.
This quote by Henry Van Dyke sums up time best, “Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.”
After careful contemplation I’ve concluded that outside of love, time is the most valuable commodity in the Universe. Time and love are two things we can never have enough of; and they are the two things we spend our lives fighting for and once shared you can never take either of them back.
You may find it odd how many times I write about love in a blog that is about business. But I find it odd that we don’t talk more about love in business. Without getting too philosophical, I can tell you that after my recent trip home for the funeral of my friends’ 17 year old son; it’s apparent that time and love are the only two things that matter in the end.
Do You Dare Rock the Boat?
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You should. We all should. If I’ve heard it once this week I’ve heard it 17 times; living your life for the approval of others will cause you to drown in your own disappointment. Well I didn’t hear it exactly like that, but that’s how it made me feel. Striving for approval means a little less you and a lot more of what “they” want to see from you. THEY will eventually cause you to sit so still that there’s no chance the boat will even sway let alone full-out rock! Hey, if this boat is a rockin’ – you better come knockin’ because it means I’m doing SOMETHING that I’m passionate about.
When we make a conscious decision to do something bold there are usually two things present: conflict and passion. And living my life without either of these would mean I was merely floating down the river of life without purpose.
Supposedly variety is the spice of life; I say LIVING is the spice of life! Variety helps, but just beyond variety our elusive friends pain and pleasure lay in waiting; watching and laughing at the countless things we will do to either avoid one or run full steam in pursuit of the other. So, am I saying that taking the path of least resistance is like living with no rock in your boat? Kinda.
What Inspires You?
Posted by: | CommentsWhat does inspire you? Is it faith or family? Is it money or purpose? I sat back this week…yes, I sat back…and thought about my recent trip to New York. I once again soaked up the smells, sounds and sights of my favorite city…and I quickly began to realize that PEOPLE were what inspired me the most. People, humanity, reality!
My taxi driver, Ahmed inspired me as he spoke of his journey from India with his wife and kids; my nephew, Nathan who greeted me at the hotel elevator, as the consummate optimist, with a grin from ear to ear as he showed me to my matchbox-sized room in Midtown. It was the group of boys on the corner hustling CD’s (possibly blank, but I bought one for 7 bucks anyway). It was Richard, our tour guide, on the Greyline who prided himself on his knowledge of history and HIS city! It was the sales clerk at The Gap who went above and beyond to ensure I found what I was looking for at a store across town.
Your Time to Blossom is Now
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I liken this time in my life, in your life, in our lives to the Lotus flower whose seed is planted deep in the bottom of a pool of muddy water; and through stormy and calm seasons has fought its way to the surface. As it grows from its root it pushes onward and upward toward the light. And just after it breaks the waters’ surface it blooms into the most beautiful, vibrant water lily one can imagine.
There is a Chinese poem that depicts the life of the Lotus flower most eloquently, “The leaves break the bandage of the green stem, stretching themselves and form a green pool with untidy edges. Now the flower comes from out of the vast surface of the water, just like a very beautiful woman coming gracefully from her bath.”
Chinese poets also use Lotus flowers to inspire people to continue striving through difficulties and to show their best part to the outside world, no matter how bad the circumstances may be. This is understood as being just like the Lotus flower, bringing beauty and light from the murky darkness at the bottom of the pond.
The Ugly Truth
Posted by: | CommentsIn the business world, and more so in politics, ugly is the only word I can use to describe the nasty things people so badly want you to hear about their opponent. I call it the “ugly truth” because it is no more related to facts than the monsters under the bed. It does not seem to matter anymore whether these nasty things are based on fact.
With the advent of social networking, blogging and do-it-yourself website-creation people can say whatever they like; true or false. Many believe that if it’s on Facebook, Google or worse yet, YouTube, it must be true. Thus begins the familiarity with the ugly truth of renegade journalism and activist rhetoric and some of the clowns who speak merely to hear the sound of their own voice. It’s unfortunate. I’d like to think the viewing audiences are smart enough to realize their own truths, but sadly in large part they are not. And as Jack Nicholson so eloquently stated in A Few Good Men, they probably “couldn’t handle the truth!”
Something Worth Fighting For
Posted by: | CommentsWhat are you willing to fight for? Where are you willing to draw the line? What motivates you to take a stand? Questions you should know the answer to long before you have to pick a side. As I go through the political mire of the transitioning the Tennessee State Fair from metro government into private hands, I realize there are very few people willing to suit up for battle. But, through all of the people that aren’t willing…there are those who are! And the ones who are, inspire me.
Everything we do matters and everything we don’t do matters, too!
In researching the people over time who have made a historical stand you see the common denominators as being a combination of heart, fight and integrity. The “greats” who stood tall did so no matter what the consequences; their stories stood the test of time.
What we’re doing at the State Fair does not compare to Rosa Parks or Joan of Arc, but it IS important to the future of agriculture in the entire state of Tennessee; it’s important to 3rd, 4th and 5th generation farmers to perpetuate the art and the education of their importance to our dinner tables. It doesn’t always have to be something so huge in history to make a positive difference, but it does require you to DO something.
Overcoming Disappointment
Posted by: | CommentsIf you think you’ve read this before, you may have. If you’re reading for the first time, welcome to my world. I’d like to think that I’m learning along the way and that when I’m faced with new challenges I create new solutions. But sometimes, just sometimes…disappointment comes back around to greet us like an unwanted house guest…we take it in, but hopefully we have established new boundaries and “house rules” on how long we’re going to let it stay!
Here’s a repost from July of 2009 entitled “How to Deal with Professional Disappointment,” (ironically, about he same disappointing time in the process of planning the State Fair this year) where we lost many of our livestock competitions due to lack of funding. The story is similar but the heartache is exactly the same…allow me a moment to wallow and reflect and then smack me and tell me to move on! Thanks for indulging me!
