START YOUR STORY TODAY

Everyday is a day to begin your new story... own YOU.

My life right now. Living the retired life … the R word … . Everyone expects you to do something but this life is about being …living in the moment and taking advantage of each moment as it comes. Even if thats nothing . It’s not about pushing to do something as I’ve been busier now than when I worked full time …no its about learning to be in the moment.

You see no matter what the back story is everyday you can begin a new story. You just need to own YOU. You decide ... when, how and what will play or not play. You can fall down everyday ...get back up and keep starting a new story until it clicks and with effort it will.

Three months into this new life and I will say its been a challenge but I've enjoyed every moment. Finally, slowly, all the pieces are getting into place… its a process and some find it easier than others. For me it was hard to go from 120 mph to the speed limit but I found you can do both... there are no rules because you make them. You don't have to wait to retire either, you can do that in your daily life too.

Right now …today I’m fully optimized, and I’m living my authentic truth and life where I've been most of my days on earth just outside my comfort zone and balancing it comfortably. My time is already spent doing the things I want to do with it. My attention is already in the places it needs to be. I am connected to the people closest to me regularly.

That’s literally my life right now. It’s fully optimized, I’m living my authentic truth. My time is already spent doing the things I want to do with it. My attention is already in the places it needs to be. I'm figuring this R thing out day by day and getting more comfortable with each passing day. My former co-workers will love that too as I have to have my Monday conversations with them but promised that too will subside as I get deep into me changing priorities. I’m doing keynotes, motivation, mentoring and even back basketball coaching but on my time .Sure, there will be myriad of mishaps along the way, and I still have some things to work on like taking care of myself on a more consistent basis, but my life is the unconventional five-card 21, and I still took the pot. The dream is real, so why yearn for more? Its life .... you never stop dreaming.

I’ve never been wired for the cookie-cutter life, my friends and family know that about me. Why? Because for me a dog , a cat .a white picket fence and house are not validation that of living your authentic truth. Many people just float through life married and bored and exist day too day and never live. many I admire live full with that dream too. Its just a matter of each ones perspective and that ok.

My book "Off the Bench" has been about … Risk, Trust..Conversations and Sense of purpose. Those in a balance prepare you for extraordinary moments. You don't need to capture them all either.... YOU choose the moments you want to participate in at an extraordinary level. I choose them all rise or fall. I mean even fame is not validation that you’re living your authentic truth. So may famous people are average at best and afraid of living out loud. The exclusive is — you do things “the right way.” your way.Thats the only form of validation that you need.Do things in a way that plays to your expectations you place upon you — just go for it life is short . You will either safely meet them, or spectacularly exceed them. Choose to be spectacular more often than not.

Do what you encouraged you to do … do good to your friends, family and culture. Follow YOU first that's key. YOU don’t need anything else because you already have everything I need. You are all you need and that will be enough.

Once you do that you will already find something far superior: YOU. And YOU get to wake up and be that person every single day, warts and all (and there are many warts). You know your life and the impacts you make on others daily. And if someone falls in love with that, or someone feels the need to elevate you, because they like the way you do things and think it adds value to their life or to humanity as a whole, then great. You’re right here for it being You and thats all that matters.