Where is all the good in the world?

Where is all the good in the world or is there even any good left? If you watch the news or even if you listen to society, this could easily be a question that you ask yourself. We do not see or hear about good news as much as we should but does that really mean that it does not exist? My answer is that good does exist, we have just been told by society that we need to pay attention to the bad and ignore the good. I honestly do not even care how it started or who started it, I just want it to stop.

We far too often look to the news to bring us good news, there are two major problems with us looking towards the news or to any sort of media to bring us good news. To begin instead of waiting to hear about something good, go out and create good and second if you can’t do good or even if you can, why not tell the world about good things happening around you? Yes, this may mean you may have to go out and find it. Why not tell people the good that you see in the world. Since when did we need to rely on someone else to tell us about all the good that is happening around us

I do not argue or believe that there is not any sort of bad in the world, in fact I know there is I have witnessed and I have taken part of it in some part of my life, we all have. What I do argue is that the good acts, people and groups far out weigh the bad. It is only that we do not know about them because we have been told that bad news is the best news.

The good you do, does not need to be anything huge. In fact I challenge you to practice small acts that make the world a little better place. A small act can change and has change the world.

So instead of asking yourself “Where is all the good in the world?” ask yourself “What have I done to make this world a better place?” and go out and do more of it.

12 hours; 75 miles; 1 Treadmill

I was able to run for 75 miles over 12 hours on a treadmill along with my good friend Ryan Norton. My friends Sam Benjamin, Brian Gruender and Josh Pierce all managed to run over 100 miles in under 24 hours. If this sounds like a terrible way to spend a day, let me tell you it is not. In fact it was one of the most inspiring ways to spend your day.

Do you want to know what does suck, hearing your child’s doctor tell you that they have cancer.

The run was put on by the Snowdrop Foundation of Wisconsin, which helps raise money for pediatric cancer research as well as scholarships for college bound pediatric cancer patients and survivors

For 24 hours so many people endured the suck that is running on a treadmill but it was only for 24 hours. Children with cancer are rarely given a timeline of when the pain will go away or when they will be able to go back to a normal life, unless they are being told that they only have months to live. At the end of 24 hours we were all allowed to go back to our normal lives and continue living, for them the fight never stops. There are no rest breaks. It is a constant fight.

If 75 miles sounds impressive to you, I want you to think of the children that are fighting cancer right now at this very moment. I signed up for this, they did not. They did not have a choice in the matter, I could have gotten off the treadmill at any time, they cannot stop and they won’t stop. The strength that it took for me to keep going is nothing compared to the strength they have every day.

If running for that long, sounds annoying, I want you to think about children that are battling cancer and the hours, days, weeks and months they spend in the Hospital. Running for 75 miles is nothing.

I have been told by some people that they are inspired and in awe of my ability and determination to run for 75 miles or for 12 hours on a treadmill and I have to humbly disagree. If you want to be inspired look no further than children battling cancer that have a smile on their face and have a passion for life that many of us could not even imagine. There is your inspiration.

On a side note, running for this long with this many amazing people taught a lot of important lessons about life. One that I want to share is that you should always leave everything you got, out on the table. It is only when you leave it all out there that you can find what you never knew you had, go further than you ever imagined and take part of events that will change your life.

My case against Instant Gratification

Instant gratification is all around us, no matter where I look it seems that I cannot get away from it and I hate it. You need to look no further than get-rich-quick schemes, miracle diets or the growing need to have everything at our fingertips as proof.

I think instant gratification is killing our future and the hope of a future. Instant gratification implies that we will never be enough or have enough and that we should expect anything and everything right away and if we do not see or get what we want it has been a failure. It neglects the long-term vision, success and ideas that truly form real success. Instant-gratification is not sustainable.

We will never be enough or have enough with instant gratification because once we get it, we want more and we want it now. In fact we cannot possibly get it fast enough. If we get one thing in a minute everything else now needs to be under a minute or it is taking too long. This goes for not only material things but things like love, success and relationships.

If you are always focused on what you want right now, you will never think about your future and how you want to get there and instant gratification only allows us to focus on the present. Think about it in terms of living a healthier lifestyle or wanting to lose weight. In the moment it is so easy to eat that piece of cake because it will make you feel great, yet in the long term it will hinder your goal not help it. That is the problem with instant gratification; it puts the long-term against the very short-term.

The shelf-life of instant gratification is just that an instant. It is gone in the blink of an eye and a majority of the time you have nothing left to show for it. What you get from it is the want for more and to be more, do not get me wrong I am a strong believer in constantly improving but putting it all in an instant is not the right way, it takes time.

So what should we be doing instead of wanting instant gratification? We should be setting long-term goals and realizing the small victories that come along with them. I believe we need to celebrate our successes but we need to see them as part of the bigger picture. If you have a dream write it down and think of everything that leads up to it. These can be your milestones to celebrate. Success takes time. The success you see is just the tip of the iceberg. Just like an iceberg it is not the tip that you have to be worried about or that has the most mass it is what is beneath the surface, it is what you cannot see, when you see success remember that there is an iceberg beneath it supporting it. Finally remember how awesome you are and that you have an amazing gift to give the world.

Run with it

Running has changed my life, in more ways than one. It goes beyond the physical and is far more about the mental, emotional and spiritual. It has helped me become who I am today. Here are just a few of the lessons I have learned from running.

1. One step at a time: As much of a broken record it may be, it is the truth. Take life just one step at a time. No matter what run I have been in all it took was one step at a time. Those steps turned into feet, feet into yards, yards into miles and those miles became the finish.
   
   Have a place you want to go, a dream you want to reach, or a race you want to run, but never forget all it takes is one step at a time.
2. You are far stronger than you could ever imagine:  I will be the first to admit that running is not always pleasant, fun or enjoyable. There are days on my training runs, where I hate it, I cannot stand it and want to stop, but I continue on. The simple reason, is I know that I can. I remember one run where I fell numerous times, I slipped and could not keep up with my group. It was painful run. Yet I kept going. It is an amazing when you run your longest run ever or break a PR. It is amazing because you get to find out just how strong you are. It proves to you that there is more that you can do.
   
   You are far stronger than you believe and far stronger than everyone tells you that you are. You are strong enough to accomplish anything you put your mind to. You need to believe it to achieve it.
3. Stop caring what other people think: I get asked all the time, "Why would you ever want to run a marathon" or "You are crazy for running a marathon" If you are a runner, no matter what distance you run, I am sure you have heard something along those lines.
   
   Just imagine if I were to listen to those people. I cannot even imagine how different my life would be. In life, you are always going to have people around you telling you that what you are doing is crazy and should not be done. Forget them and do not listen to them. Follow your heart and do what you want.
4. If you want to change the world, do one thing: One of my favorite things about running a race, besides the massive amount of food I get to eat are the people (especially in moments of hanger.) I love the people out on the course cheering everyone on. The greatest part, they did nothing more than come out, stand and cheer us on. Some made signs, some brought cow bells others whistle however it was those small acts that got me through some of the toughest parts of my runs.
   
   Stop trying to change the world and change one persons life with one simple act. Give them the gift of yourself and make there day better in some small way that will change their life. Far too often, myself included, I saw changing the world as something that seemed unreachable. Stop looking at the whole world and focus on one small part of it. Go out and give the people in your life the gift of yourself.
5. Surround yourself with people that inspire you: The fact of the matter is, you do not have time for anyone else except for the people that inspire you. You deserve to have the most inspiring and amazing people in your life. Running has taught me this. I am lucky enough to call some of the most inspiring people out there in the world my friends. It is not just the runners, it includes the fans cheering you along the way, supporting you and making you feel amazing. It includes the people that get up far before I do for a race, set up the course and assist those runners in need.
   
   It has been said that you become the people that you spend the most time with. Ask yourself, do you want to be inspiring or uninspired?
6. Its all about relationships Last but not least, it is all about the relationships. When you die, no one will remember how many runs you completed, your best PR or how many miles you logged. What they will remember however is the relationship you had with them. (P.S. This does not only go for running) No one will remember how much money you made, positions held or how big your house was. They will remember the relationship they had with you, good or bad.
   
   Running is not a solo sport, it is one of the biggest team sports in the world. While there may be only one first place, we all end up being winners. We help and encourage one another. Life is all about relationships. Running has brought some of the most amazing and incredible people into my life. It has changed my life and has been and continues to be one of the biggest blessings in my life.

Go run

It is the journey, not the destination

I want to tell you a secret that I just learned about leadership. It is all about the journey and has nothing to do with the destination. In fact you will never reach your destination, if you think that you have you are incorrect. It is when people believe that they have reached their leadership destination when they fail. Great leaders go to their grave knowing that there was more they could learn and they are okay with it. They are okay with it because they constantly gave their best to the world and took every opportunity to learn.

The great news is that since it is about the journey, you can start anytime that you want, you do not have to wait for anything or anyone to tell you that you are a leader, you just have to take steps to be one. The first step you take is when you become a leader.

Leadership is not one giant step, it is a bunch of tiny steps. Steps that many times you may not even notice. Steps that a majority of the time 99% of the world will never know. However if you choose an action that impacts one persons life in a positive manner, you are a leader.

It is my belief that we have leadership all wrong.We make it about changing the world in one action. We compare ourselves to the ones that have gone out and changed the world and we idolize them for their greatest actions. What we forget far too often are the steps that led up to that moment. No one just happened to show up one day in August to hear a man named Martin Luther King give a speech. He dedicated his life to make that happen and it all started and was built upon tiny steps along the way. 

Take one step today to make the world a better place by having a positive impact on one person's life. This is what leadership is all about.

I cannot leave this post without telling you about an amazing organization that I have been lucky enough to be a part of. This organization is called RYLA. It is a leadership retreat that is led by youth. If you want to see leadership at its best you need to look no further than this group and the ones that came before them. They are driven to go out and change lives in everything they do. I would love for you to attend and have your life changed by their awesome presence. To find out more follow this link: http://greenbayrotary.com/ryla6220/

Here is my source of inspiration: http://www.ted.com/talks/drew_dudley_everyday_leadership

Forgiveness and Forward Progress

I listened to a podcast yesterday that I found to be very informative and had an impact on my life. It was about dealing with fear, guilt and achieving your dreams. One major point is, we have to deal with our fears and forgive ourselves to truly be the best version of ourselves. Here are a few tips that I gained from the podcast, if you want the full version visit here.

In order to move forward in life you must first identify the limiting beliefs that are holding you back. When you think of your dream life, what are the thoughts that stop you from pursuing it. How do they impact you and how do they make you feel? Why do you think that way? What triggers it and how can you stop it. There is a magic here that many of us forget, if it does not work the first time, we can always change it. Limits were made to be broken.

There are so many times I have set goals for myself and I have fallen short, sometimes I have not even started them at all. I used to beat myself up for not meeting them, get in a bad place and the thoughts would just pile on from there. Where did I get, nowhere, how did I feel, like crap. The result of my negative thinking created nothing positive in return, in fact it created everything negative, yet I thought I deserved to feel this way. I took the present over the future.

A majority of the podcast talked about forgiveness but one thing they did not hit on was appreciation. I think appreciation and forgiveness are very closely related. One of my drivers, that the wonderful folks at Pathmakers helped me discover is appreciation. In order to forgive yourself and to forgive others I believe you have to appreciate who you are. See yourself for the person you were born to be and how you can change lives just by being yourself. This does not mean you are settling in fact it is the exact opposite, you are setting yourself up for great success.

From the podcast, I learned how to handle a breakdown. The steps can be seen here

1. Handle a breakdown
1. Identify it
2. Take responsibility
1. Even if it is not your fault 
2. No ego
3. Acknowledge what happened in a positive light
4. See the opportunity it it
5. How are you acting that stops you from achieving your goals
1. What is missing
2. What do you need
3. What needs to be removed
6. Forgive yourself
2. How to spot a breakdown
1. Know the warning signs
2. Get feedback from your friends
3. Do not avoid what you are afraid of

Since this is a new activity for me, I wanted to share with you one of my breakdowns.

I had a goal to start my own business that would help people understand their gifts and lead their life from place of passion, freedom and joy. However I have not done that and I have failed in many steps in that direction.

1. Handle a breakdown
1. Identify it: I did not reach my goal of starting my own business.
2. Take responsibility for it:: I did not follow through on taking the necessary steps to make this happen. I let other things get in the way.
3. Acknowledge what happened in a positive light: While I should have been working on my business, I was able to meet people that changed my life forever. 
4. The opportunity I have is reminding myself of why I want to start my business. I want to help people live the life they have always imagined.
5. How are you acting that stops you from achieving your goals
1. What is missing: I do not think about the future as much as I should. I am missing the self assurance that what I believe and what I can do is enough.. I lack structure or a progress timeline. I do not have the carrot to get me going. The biggest one is the fact that I lack belief in myself to do what I love. I see so many great people out there and I wonder how can I measure up. 
2. What do I need: I need to support myself and restructure my belief system to see that I am enough and I can do what I love. I need structure to help me get to more progress. I need to keep the end in mind.
3. What needs to be removed: Negative and judgmental people, anger, fear, holding grudges, holding on to the past and forgetting my gifts.
6. Forgiveness: At the end of the day I need to forgive myself for what I did not do and where I fell short. If I do not, nothing good will come from it.