Sober Day 20, Social Media Holiday, Pandemic Update, Fighting the Dragon

“I’ve had many enemies over the years. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s never engage in a fight you’re sure to lose. On the other hand, never let anyone who has insulted you get away with it. Bide your time and strike back when you’re in a position of strength—even if you no longer need to strike back.”

— Stieg Larsson

Good morning, happy Tuesday; it’s a little crisp this morning, my friend. The fireplace is warming my side whilst I write these words. I slept great, no waking once, well waking about 30 seconds before my alarm thinking I’ve got another 2 hours of sleep and then beep, beep, beep, time to get up. Rest is a gift; I know some folks struggle with the almighty resting of one’s eyes, but we are lucky; we get excellent sleep night after night.

On day 20 of our sober journey, we enjoy the ride; we like to complain a bit around our drinking friends.  Many say they could not do it, I think they could if they committed, but I understand the want of keeping life in the same lane, never veering off to see what a country road might be like, we’re usually on the interstate, but for now, we are taking the side roads.

We had a new appointment with a firm in North Carolina yesterday; an Indiana connection referred us; most firms in their area have not come into contact with a hemp operation; it’s become something we engage in CO frequently.  Their current provider couldn’t wrap their minds around their exposures; we did a review and exposed some significant gaps and holes. We’ll fix the issues and welcome them into our family.

We had our coaching call with our business coach. We worked on planning for 2021; what are the critical success factors we need to focus on to hit our goals.  We picked six key areas; we will work on strategy and action items next month, my Queen and I work on our business, and I think that might be one of the things that separate us from our competition.

We left our home, went down the hill, and met with a couple of our STAR group members. It’s a strategic roundtable gathering of professionals; we try and learn a lot about our fellow members how we can help them, we share stories of recent success and challenges. We ran a couple of errands and then headed back home to wrap up our day.

One of our kids came out, Bay and I played some gin; she did a great job back in Indiana and is now back in CO to connect with some new faces and places. She had dinner and then headed back home; we love hosting friends at our home; it’s what we do.

My social media holiday continues; I think I’m a happier fellow not being sucked into the tweets, the Facebook posts, the news items that seem not to anger me, but more trouble me. All that trouble is gone, replaced with a keen sense of presence and focus on what is around me. If you have not taken a social media holiday recently, might I suggest a break for a week or two? It will help reset your mind to what is essential.

I Facetimed my daughter last night; she and her husband do a show and tell every time we connect. They are adding to their little home, their abode, if you will. They live in a lovely apartment complex; they have a fireplace, an office, close to where her husband works; I’m very happy for them. I did point out at their age, I was poor, living in a $12,500 home, scraping money to pay the bills; on the one hand, I’m happy they won’t have to live poor, but the other side of me wishes they had to scrape and save to gain a greater appreciation of wealth.

I think, as a father, I want a better life for my kids, and all three are in a good place; all three are college-educated and scored an excellent job out of college.  It will be interesting to see where their paths lead them; I’ll be watching from the sidelines, ready to visit when a new bundle of life appears, playing Grandson spoiling the next generation.  

It’s 6:10 a.m., I got up at 5:30, made some coffee, and dinked around getting my laptop and gum, and here I sit in the dark, typing some words to feed a few people enjoy a morning infusion of word soup. My cat talked to me this morning, no idea what she was trying to say, but it’s nice to have a friend at 5:30 try and have a conversation.

I’ve had many conversations with business owners; most of us are in the same spot. Very few of us had pandemic in our strategic plan or on our business bingo card. But instead of getting concerned or throwing up our hands, we have all decided to dig in, find the platinum lining in this event, and know that it will be over, and we can get our machines backing working at capacity. It’s a mindset, looking for things you can control and letting go of the things you cannot.

Our plan for next year is to continue our work this year, plodding, connecting, and picking our spots. Some industries and vectors are thriving; it might be a good idea to target those opportunities and refocus your efforts. Not all business is a profitable business, but that will change in time. Some segments have been harder hit than others; some people are hanging on for dear life while others sit in their bunker and plan for a better time.

We’re working on it; we’re keeping our team hoping; we are still in search of new opportunities, but there has been a fall off the last six months; this seems to be changing; people are sick and tired of waiting to see and are now looking at this time as an opportunity. I think the real opportunity will exist in mid-2021; I plan a coup, not a government coup, but of something else.  I’ll leave it that 2021 should be a banner year for myself and our company.

My attitude and outlook remain positive but tempered; I’m a realist, but also an opportunist. Many folks are hiding in their basement, leaving those of us freedom-loving folks to go out and battle the virus using our foot soldiers.  As a leader, I’m out in the field as well, setting an example for our team, showing freedom over fear; it’s our time to shine. I respect those that lean into the fear, but that is not my path; that is not our path; our approach is to fight the dragon, knowing our Aketon might be charred, but alas, now is a time for battle, be safe warriors, there is a battle raging, and soon we will claim victory.

“I’ve had many enemies over the years. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s never engage in a fight you’re sure to lose. On the other hand, never let anyone who has insulted you get away with it. Bide your time and strike back when you’re in a position of strength—even if you no longer need to strike back.”

— Stieg Larsson