Turning “Fiddy-One”, Meeting People Where They Are, Letting go of Anger, Fear, and Concern

"Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears."

— John Lennon

5:45 a.m., I made myself stay in bed for the sunrise; it was glorious. Today marks the start of my fifty-first year on this spinning rock flying through space. I can’t recall a time I was more at peace, in love, or had so much opportunity for personal and professional growth. My Queen is sleeping, as is our cat Jolene. This is my time, a time to make some word soup for those that might hunger for something a little different than what you might find at other free internet soup kitchens. 

I got a call from a friend yesterday; he was checking in on me, wishing me a happy birthday. I invited them out; he said they were not ready to venture out. They had been on lockdown, and they were camping for the first time at a local reservoir. I said when you are ready; our house will be open for a visit. 

It’s interesting the spectrum people are on concerning this virus. I have my thoughts, but respect others views and opinions. I think we should meet people where they are and respect their chosen set of facts and data. There is a lot of information out there; it can be confusing especially with the seemingly two sides of our media

Our friends Dave and Anna surprised me on Saturday, we ate, we drank, and then got up yesterday and went to a ranch where they were cutting cows. Not physically cutting, but I watched as two people got in a ring with about 12 cows, all were numbered, and a man outside the ring would call a number. One of the horse people would “cut” the cow from the herd, while the other rider would block the entrance of the pit not to allow another cow to escape. Dave’s going to join next week, we might head over and watch.

My Queen is up; soon, she will bounce downstairs, give me my morning sugar, and then grab a cup of joe. She will plop down next to me, sipping her coffee and scroll through her phone. This is the start of our everyday. Jolene just sad on my lap, the struggle is real, making soup with a cat on my lap is a new daily challenge. 

I’m working today, I’ve got an 8:00 a.m. conference call for an advisory board. I then have calls most of the day; we will plan on working and then heading down the hill for a birthday hike. My inbox was empty yesterday morning, I just checked, it’s up to 75 “fresh” email, I’ll tend to those after I finish this soup.

I’m missing my family and friends back in Indiana. It’s a trade-off, not traveling back weekly to see our people, but not getting on a plane each week has been refreshing. Add to that my lack of any drive time, and I have reclaimed a lot of time to put back into innovating, thinking, and doing.  

I’ve enjoyed meeting a lot of new folks both in person and virtually. My typical workday is filled with virtual calls; if there is good energy with one of the attendees, we connect and then meet in person, usually for a hike.  When we do return to Indiana, I’m going to spend some time finding hikes in our area, we hike almost every day in Colorado, but not much in Indiana. We live in the city in Indy and on a mountain in CO, which might explain our different lifestyles in each city, but still, I think using the urban trails and going to some state parks would scratch our hiking itch.

Our kids will be returning to CO soon; I miss them, I can’t wait to watch our girls thrive, jive, and survive in their new home. If my plan works out, I’d like to hire three more young professionals and grow our sales team in 2022. We’re going to take the next two years and massage our team to maximize growth and then ignite a rocketship. 

I think the economy will begin roaring back the third quarter this year, and then, my personal belief is people will want to return to work, but our society will evolve. I’m not sure what that evolution will be, but change is coming. New companies will form, innovation will be the rule of the day, we will begin living, working, and playing in new ways. We will use the virtual world for most tasks and rely on the face to face meetings for “serious” business. 

Not all companies will change, medical professionals will still operate their offices, but many service companies will revert to a telecommuting approach. The thought has crossed my mind a few times to push our firm to 90% virtual. The savings are dramatic, and I think most people have seen the value of working from home. Our productivity has increased, our expenses have decreased. 

It’s a new world, a new way of living, and we are leaning in. Now is a time to rethink, reform, and relate to the changes occurring around you and in society. Respect other’s ideas and meet them where they are. Don’t judge, be kind, give of yourself to others in new ways, and try and remove those negative emotions like anger, fear, and concern.   Replace your loss with love, joy, and happiness. That is my choice, and for me, it has made all the difference.

"Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears."

— John Lennon