?? ??????'?? ???????? ???? ???????? ???????? ???? ?? ?????? ?????????? ????

I spent last week “working" remotely in Hawaii.?

I love to get out of my home environment to reset my thinking.?

When I’m on vacation, I start every morning with an hour at the beach or watching the birds playing in the lake.?

I read, meditate, relax, and just spend time thinking and taking it all in.

This is my time while Ellen sleeps in.?

When I slow down, ideas come to me.?

Clarity comes to me.?

I'm sure you've heard the phrase "Slow down to speed up".

The thought process behind this is you need to slow down before you can speed up.

We're all busy.

Running around with our hair on fire.

Pushed to the limit at work, plus a busy personal life.

You know what it feels like when things pile up and overwhelm you.

When I feel things spinning out of control, I intentionally slow down.

I slow down and take a look at where I'm spending my time.

I slow down and clear the clutter from my business.?

This allows me to get more done in less time.

Less is more.?

Lately, something has changed for me.

Maybe it's becoming a grandfather for the first time.

Maybe it's losing close friends.

Maybe it comes with getting older.

You may have noticed I've been slowing down lately.

I'm looking at my business and my life to clear the clutter.

But this time it feels different.

I don't want to slow down so I can speed up.

I want to slow down so I can slow down.

I've been working my butt off since I started working in my parent's restaurant when I was 10.

My father grew up during the Depression.

He would take me to work with him at 6 AM in the summer while other kids were swimming and goofing off.

Every morning we made fresh bread, rolls, and fresh desserts.

Everything was made from scratch every morning.

I was a short-order cook and worked through the lunch rush.

Then I could catch up with my friends and enjoy the summer.

My father taught me a lot about running a successful business.

However, he didn't teach me how to slow down.

He would go to work at 6 AM and get home around 9 PM six days a week.

He thought his job was to provide for his family, no matter what.

He worked so hard that it almost killed him.

I often catch myself falling into that trap.

I'm at the point where it's time for me to slow down and focus on what makes me happy.

I'm not retiring.

I'm slowing down to enjoy my journey.

Stay tuned...