Living a Remarkable Life
“No one chooses which culture to be born into or can be blamed for how that culture evolved in past centuries.”— Thomas Sowell
Good morning world; how are you this morning? Join me as I create some word soup and watch the sun come up on top of a mountain. We spent the day at home after brunch with a few of our friends. The Queen is using crutches; I’m making my best Nurse Anson impression. I think our ice on ice off might be helping; she was limping around last night sans crutches.
She’s fast asleep; we got to bed at a decent hour, I’m up, coffee is made, the dog is fed, and PVHT is testing me to see how many times I’ll get up and let her out. As of this moment, we are at four times I’ve let her out, and now, of course, she wants back in. We are supposed to get more snow today; we will probably get snowed in again; that’s ok; we have food and beverage rations. Getting snowed in with my wife is not a bad thing; we just sit, read, love, read, and during the workweek, we can work virtually.
I know most are watching the NCAA basketball “madness.” I was asked to do a couple of pools, I thought I might, but when it came time to make my picks, I thought I have no idea what I’m doing. I’ve not watched any games, it used to be a big part of my life, but I have evolved into a different being, my interests have changed.
I think we will get to see our granddaughter today. I’m working with her dad to get some time to sing her some songs and let her know how amazing she is and will be. I have very high expectations for our grandkids, we raised some fantastic young people, and I trust they took a few cues from us about how to and how not to raise a kid. Mistakes were made, but the finished “products” are masterpieces.
I’ve shared before who I am. In short, I’m a father, lover, writer, teacher, and I own a small business. I prioritize my jobs in order of importance. I am here to serve and give my children guidance, love my wife, continue dumping ideas and thoughts to a small audience, and help people manage their risk. I wonder if I asked who you are, how might you respond. Most people seem to be defined by their vocation; my vocation does not define me but gives me the means to impact our world.
I saw a memory on social media that this past week marked the anniversary of our first weekly team call. When COVID hit, we were forced to figure out new ways to stay connected. We began our weekly Zoom check-in, we have kept this practice, and it is one of my favorite calls of the week. I think that we are stronger than ever due to our adoption of a virtual working environment.
About 80% of our work is now virtual. Face-to-face meetings are still occurring but have become the exception over the rule. Why drive one hour to meet someone for coffee when you can catch up via Zoom. That hour of drive time is an opportunity to connect with two other humans. The concept of opportunity cost has always been top of mind; what can I do to maximize my time? Less driving makes a lot of sense these days, but virtual work is not for everyone. I have clients that don’t like it, and for those people, I have to decide if we are still a fit.
I’m starting to see some opportunities for my teaching and training company. I’ve not spent time marketing that company; yes, I have a website, yes, I have clients, but my primary role is still helping The Thompson Group drive sales. Both jobs are fun, but I do get a lot of personal capital helping others. As the second company grows, we plan to use my TTG income to hire other young producers, train them and develop our firm to a national presence.
It’s a plan I’m executing now, it will take time, but I do have clarity about my life in the next five years. I’ll ask you, do you have the same clarity? Do you have a vision for what your life might look like next year or maybe in five years? I think planning for the future is a crucial reason I now live on top of a mountain.
This week, we have a busy week, time to wrap up a few projects I’ve been working on finishing. The Queen’s little slip put me a day behind; I could not get my Friday list complete; I’ll have all my to-do’s done by noon tomorrow. Next weekend we are heading to the hot springs with some friends, it will be our first time doing the hot springs, we are looking forward to the experience.
A little reminder that if you have ten friends, one of them is struggling right now. We all have things in life that don’t work out as planned; we miss an opportunity to decide to no longer tolerate some bad behavior. If you can, try and be a beacon of light; if you know someone is hurting, reach out and talk to them. Maybe one day, when it’s your turn in the barrel of confusion, they will return the favor.
Not my most decadent soup, just a minor update on the life and happenings of the happiest man you will meet today. I live from a perspective of abundance; there is so much to give and receive. If you are kind, karma will return your good deeds 100 fold if you show up and open your heart for others. A reminder to be kind to all no matter their thoughts or beliefs, heck open your mind, and you might just learn something. Today is another opportunity to live your most remarkable life.
“No one chooses which culture to be born into or can be blamed for how that culture evolved in past centuries.”