My Riffs

Embrace life. Both the ups and downs. Cause they’re both equally a part of life. If you’ve got a fighting chance, you’re alive. And that alone is good.  Embrace all parts of life. The easy but also the difficult. There’s something good in both. Or something to come of both.  Embrace life!

It’s easy to say hi. It’s easy to pat a back. And those things matter. But in doing so, make sure you connect. It doesn’t always require a long time, but it’s important to connect.  Connection happens when people feel your care. 

Find your why.  It makes your life have all the meaning you need. 

It’s connections that matter.  Real connections. In person, face to face connections.  That’s what really matters.  Technology allows us to connect with people we can’t physically connect with. And that’s a wonderful thing. And that connection is better than no connection. However, face to face can’t be replaced.  So your quality of life is tied directly to the connections you have and how often you make them. 

Make the most of daylight.  In 24 hours you only get so much day light.  In your lifespan, you only get so much daylight.  Don’t waste a moment of it.  Let there be purpose in your action. In rest, in leisure let there be purpose. In work and relationships, find purpose.  Daylight only lasts so long. 

What does money matter when you don't have health. And health is a complex thing. It's physical, yes, but also mental, emotional, and spiritual. If one has true health, that is their wealth.

Data is important. It helps us make decisions. But it's good to learn how to look past the data. There's usually more than just numbers. Understanding all the nuances behind the data is important. Decisions can be made based on data alone, and some should be. But some decisions can be made with data as a factor but accounting for other aspects too. A balanced decision is best, where head and heart can agree.

Find more mentors. Mentors don't have to have every answer. But they can provide support and guideance you can't have on your own.

Greatness often looks like hard work. It looks like lots of small, repeatable habits.  It looks like faithfulness.  Then when the big moments come, you’re prepared.  Greatness happens on the off days. On the days you don’t feel like working or showing up.  Greatness looks like a lot of preparation and hard work  

Is what you’re doing repeatable?  If not, it likely won’t change anything for you. Our life is changed yes by big decisions, but what really changes us is the repeatable habits we embrace. Good or bad, the habits we embrace will form who we are. 

What do you want your legacy to be? Is there a better legacy than kindness?

Family comes first. The reason is simple.  They’re the ones who maximize your efforts.  The love, time and focus you invest goes the furthest. Not in a transactional way, but in the way of purpose.  Our main purpose isn’t to generate wealth, or accumulate the largest social network. It’s not even to achieve personal accolades. Let everything you do lead and point to the benefit of your family. 

You can’t get through life without trust and faith.  A life absent of these elements is devoid of building blocks.  Trust and faith elevates. Trust and faith renews, restores and rebuilds. 

Say what you want and get it. If you don't aim at something, you won't get anything. Name what your after, make a goal and go for it.

Some people are so divisive. Always looking for differences and reasons to cut off.  Others are unifiers. They look for things that bring people together.  From any situation you can be either a uniter or a divider. 

One of the hardest things to do is to be fully present.  Distractions have never been greater.  Attention spans never shorter.  Our minds can’t stay focused on a single task for long. And so it’s difficult to be present in important moments in life.  It’s something to be aware of and keep practicing. Being fully present allows us to glean everything we can from the moment. Being semi-present makes it difficult to get much from the moment. Having one foot in the present and one in some other fleeting thought or notification is an unsteady foundation. Firmly be in the present, life will feel so much different. 

Keeping pace with everything is a guaranteed burnout.  Purposely slow down. Even daily. Find a time and space to disconnect, decompress and slow down.  The world moves too fast for us. We get far too much information in one day and feel the need to do far too much.  It’s okay to slow down. It’s the secret to productive longevity. 

If you want to experience more you have to get out.  Get out of your ruts. Get out of your limits. Take a detour from your mundane routines. Routines are good. But it’s also good to enhance them with some changes or experiences like a trip or different way or doing your routine.  Get out there, there’s lots to learn and explore. 

Hang on, it will pass.  Not every season in life is easy and desirable.  But hang on it will pass.  Today had a few storms blow through. It got dark, rainy and there was thunder, lightening and potential of tornados. But it passed. The evening was sunny and clear.  A good metaphor for life. It gets rough at times, but look ahead cause there will be sunshine again. 

You know what tasks feel the best to take care of? The ones we dread. The ones we’ve been putting off.  Purposely getting those undesirable tasks done gives us a boost and momentum.  So dive into the things you’ve been avoiding. 

What you say no to makes a huge difference in your yeses.  Saying no refines what is necessary and filters out the unnecessary. Saying no preserves your resources for your yes.  Don’t waste your yeses on frivolous activities that don’t support your big goals. Refine. Say no. Put that energy into the yeses that matter so much the more. 

A true friend will tell you where you can get better. They may do it kindly and subtly but a true friend will help you get better. 

What you love will always be revealed.  Your actions will reveal what you love and cherish.  Your love can only be hidden for a short time, it will be revealed. Set your love on things that are worth it. 

How you feel on the inside and how healthy you are on the inside will show on the outside.  If not immediately, eventually.  Do the inner work. Those around you will benefit. 

Be full of light. Shine light. Nobody needs darkness.  Radiate, reflect and shine light. 

Healing takes time. Healing isn’t always linear.  But healing will happen so long as you keep moving forward. Baby steps are great steps.  It’s worth the work. 

Edit and edit. It's okay if you don't get it right the first time. It's okay to refine. It's okay to start with less than ideal. The important thing is to start. While many are weighing, pausing and analyzing, you are working. So start. Work. Edit!

If unified, together can accomplish so much more than one.  Together you can accomplish more than just 1 + 1.  Together you can accomplish exponentially more.