Category: Uncategorized

Why Not

We often ask Why. If you saw yesterday’s blog, the entire thing was devoted to the question of why.  Today is a little more challenging.  Today I invite you to ponder the question, “Why not?”  Do you often ask this question?  I mean in front of others.

It is hard when someone tells you that something cannot be done, that there is no hope, or that something has to be done a certain way merely because it is tradition.  What makes this phrase worse is that the person you say it to thinks you are challenging them, personally.  When this happens, emotion spills into the room and the conversation. 

You want to avoid emotion if you are trying to make a correct business decision. Passion may point out some needed truths. Unfortunately, emotion can lead to ire and hurt feelings.  And hurt feelings can definitely cause good desires to go sideways.

You should keep emotion out of business.  If you can do so, write and tell me about it.  You would be the first person I have ever known to actually do so.

Just because something is hard to accomplish, that does not mean we should not try.  Why not at least try.  New discoveries are going on all the time.  Maybe we could help set a new precedent.  Why not.

Maybe we could help others to find new ways of learning, teaching, discovering, and enjoying life through new ideas.  Maybe the unsolvable problems would be seen in a new and more understandable light.  And, possibly good could come from different views.  Why not?

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Why?

Because… Why, is the shortest question to find an answer.  When you are not sure of what to ask or where to start, the beginning is always ‘Why?’ Why is this the way it is? Why is this not done differently?  And my favorite from every three-year-old, why is the sky blue?

It is no mistake that the curiosity of the very young mind starts with this three-letter word.  And such usage must ask for the top tier of knowledge.  What’s more, there is a substantial likelihood that your tot is asking the exact same questions that you asked when you were their age.  The same ones your parents asked their mom and dad.

Imagine if you had a real answer ready to go in return.  ‘Timmy, the sky is blue because that is the color reflected from the oceans around the world.’  The next time the same query is asked, you can say, “Remember, Timmy, it is because of the reflections of the ocean into the sky.”

Does this take a little legwork? Sure.  Yet every time you answer a question with real information, does that not make everyone just a little bit smarter?

Smarter, at a younger age, appears to open the way to better questions.  If you are hit with a subject you are not sure of, you can say, “that is a wonderful question.  Would you like to see how we find the answers?” Then you could take them to the library, look up the answer on your tablet or smartphone, or use some other method to find facts about the subject.  Even YouTube is getting better at this.

The more a child realizes that he or she is taken seriously, and real facts can be found, the faster real learning starts.  The answers are relevant both to knowledge and better future questions.  Does this mean your kid will be an Einstein by age 12? Probably not.  Yet even if the queries are short-lived, the way you answer could make a valuable and lasting memory.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Ask

If you don’t have something that you need, you should ask for it. How do others know that you need something if you do not ask for it? You have to get help, asking is not nagging. Just do so with the concerned smile on your face. They don’t need to see you to hear your smile.

People sometimes get so worried about bothering someone else that there are cases where the person has perished, not wishing to be a bother. It does not matter whether you need medicine or a way off the island, or to get out of the ocean because you’re tired of swimming. If you need help, only you can ask for it.

Yes, we all do get wrapped up in what we are doing. And often, we tend to miss the signs of those around us. If you need something or desire something and we cannot see those signs, it is in your best interest to share with us. We are not you. We are everyone else. And sometimes, we get so focused on ourselves, we forget to check on those around us. That is not an excuse. This is a reminder that we are humans. As humans, you have to help us out once in a while and remind us that you may also need assistance.

In times of war, brave men refused to be seen by medics until they know their pal is going to be okay. And sometimes they die doing so. And that is a shame. There absolutely is a greater love than giving your life for your friend. That love is ensuring both of you are taken care of and can go on with the rest of your duties.

Just a thought from the mean old master sergeant.

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Stuck Where You Are

It is snowing again.  It started early last evening and was only supposed to be flurries.  It snowed all night, on top of the snow we had two days earlier, and it is still snowing now with the expectation of one to four more inches by tonight.  So here I am stuck, not able to get to my office for the second day this week.

We all find ourselves stuck sometimes.  We cannot seem to be where we think we should.  We feel that we are being held back, or we find ourselves buried in all the extraneous actions we must complete when following our passions.

Yet, in most things, there really is a purpose. If we take a little time to actually examine everything, we may find ways to actually make more positive strides to where we want to be and what we want to accomplish.  Sometimes a delay or a sideroad happens to allow us a moment of reflection that shows a new way to a better outcome. 

It is up to us to use these moments of serendipity to look around and study where we are and how we can best take our next steps to where we want to be.  We hold the action of pangs, purpose, or procrastination.  And we alone can decide which road we walk to find our goals.

When you find yourself sidetracked or in a rut, you must look for the way back to your main path in life.  You do not have to do it alone.  There are always friends and professionals there to point the way.  Keep moving in a positive direction, ask for help as needed, and keep your faith in what you are doing.

I believe the most significant part of succeeding is seeking.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again soon. 

Taking Care

It appears to be a cold day today. Wind chills are dipping down towards a -29 Farenhight, and schools have been delayed two hours in hopes that the temperature will climb a little. It is days like today that I want to talk about taking care of ourselves.

We try to watch out for the crucial things in life. Most of us swim with sharks as little as possible. Bungee jumping is not a daily occurrence, nor is scaling peaks without the proper safety equipment. And, we’re pretty careful with the big things in life.

Quite often, though, it’s not the big things that get us. We seem to succumb more to the small items that we tend to neglect. And therefore, the little things in life are the ones that tend to disrupt us the most. Forgetting to put on a coat as the temperature turns cold for the year. Not ensuring the car is ready for winter driving. Not eating a balanced diet is a biggie, and my nemesis, not getting enough sleep.

Our bodies are well-tuned machines that can do great feats if we take care of them. Treat our minds right, and they will do well for us. Yet if we ignore them, corrosion and erosion will take their tolls, and the tremendous biological machine we inhabit will slowly succumb to neglect.

Many of our bodies, if taken care of, can last nine or 10 decades. And although demise is always there at the end, our medical technology is always pushing the boundary back. I still believe in trying to get the most out of everything I have, and the body is no exception.

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

We Strive To Do Our Best

None of us are absolutely perfect.  We try, and we often want to believe we are the best we can be, and yet it is almost impossible to hit the mark.  We must remember that we are not perfect every time in every way.  So what do we do? 

For me, it is striving to do my best and to keep the things I do real.  I cannot pretend to be the best.  There is always someone better and someone worse.  I just need to be the best ‘real me’ that I can.  This means I have to work in the real world to do so.

Many of us like to hide in our thoughts, where we think we are doing fantastic.  That may be true in our fantasies, we need to live in the real world. Remember, nothing lives in a pure vacuum.  If it only happens in your mind, it never really happens.

You can formulate an idea in your mind and bring it to life in the real world.  Any thought, like everything else in our world, must be shared to thrive. Without sharing, things do not get nourishment, moisture, heat, and other essentials needed to survive.

Will all ideas survive the real world? No. Thoughts are like everything else that has faced the harsh truth of natural selection.  Everything has to adapt to stay in the world.  If your ideas can adapt and overcome adversity, they may do very well an even be a marked improvement in our culture.  If they cannot, they may not survive.  The only way to know is to set them out in the real world and see what happens.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Are You A Good Life Coaching Candidate

You might have heard me talk of this before.  And, it does bear repeating from time to time.  Life coaches are here to help, and at one time or another, almost all of us can significantly benefit from a life coach.  We need to ensure we are ready and want to make the changes we need to do better.

Not everyone is the right candidate for life coaching at a given time. It takes some determination and some motivation to get what you need out of life coaching. Below are some explanations as to what tendencies some people may have. This is to give you an idea of what plays well for life coaching and what does not.

Are you willing to change?

Life coaching is all about wanting to change for the better. Life coaching is about your discovery of who you are and what you want to be and where you want to go in life. If you don’t like change, or you are unwilling to change, you may not be the best candidate. Life coaching is about understanding yourself and finding the changes that will make you a happier and better person.

Is your life good enough?

If your life is okay, and it’s good enough for you, then what is your motivation to change? Life coaching is about figuring out where you are in life and where you want to go. Life coaching helps you to figure out those where and whys.

Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.

Life coaches are not here to hand you a path of what to do. They are here to help you examine your life needs and desires. I could tell you what to do, and it would be great for me, but it would be entirely wrong for you because we are, after all, different people.  You have to face and answer your questions to know what you need and how to get there. Life coaches help by asking questions.

Do you have needs or desires you find unfulfilled?

If you do have needs that you are willing to look at and ask yourself the tough questions, and you are ready to take a chance on yourself to be a better and happier person, then you could be a suitable candidate for life coaching.  If I can help, please let me know.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Ways A Life Coach Can Help

Many things we help with boil down to having a misconception on how a person views their life and actions.  Although we are often willing to give someone else a break, we often see our own lives as stark 100% right or wrong with nothing except the extremes.  Life is not black or white; instead, it is infinite shades of grey.  Here are some of the ways we work ourselves into a rut.

We have a tendency sometimes of dramatizing small actions into gigantic events, which will end our chances for good things. Sometimes an error is just a tiny thing that is understood, and everyone moves on.

We love to jump to conclusions.  We probably think this would save time, yet we do not know what the future will bring, and we are usually not the best mind readers.

 We spend a lot of time in our past trying to tell ourselves what we should have done.  You cannot change the past.  Trying to find ways to fix that past is just a waste of time.  Change “I should have” to “I will.”

We often blame ourselves for not doing the right thing.  We forget that we were not the only ones involved, and we use emotions rather than facts to keep focusing on the negatives.  We need to balance our thinking.

If you find yourself labeling yourself and others or using some of the worries listed above, a life coach could help you refocus on better and more productive thoughts. If I can help you in any way, please let me know.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again soon.

Mike Balof, Life Coach

415 N. Tejon St.

Colorado Springs, CO 80903

719-205-2773      mikeb@reveile.rocks     http://www.reveille.rocks

Your Destiny

Are you on an adventure?  Most of us are, whether we want to admit it or not.  What makes our lives an adventure? We want to do something, go somewhere, or end up in some location doing specific things and living life to a particular style.  Why is this an adventure?  Good question.

Our lives are adventures because although we know what we would like to do, we may not understand all the hurdles of procuring what we need and getting to where we want to be.  The biggest problem is that the future is continuously changing, and no one can tell you what is actually going to happen.  Side note: If you can actually see the future, I need the winning numbers for the upcoming Saturday Powerball.

We can guess at the future. We can use what has happened in the past as a stepping off point for the future.  We can watch what others are doing and pattern ourselves after them.  Yet there are no guarantees.  The best hope we have is to choose our path and walk it with our head on a swivel looking at the terrain and knowing when we see something different so that we can adjust as needed.

With Artificial Intelligence on the rise, we do not even know if the career we are working in will be accomplished by humans.  Even life coaching has a chatbot on your phone to help you.  I prefer the human to human experience.  At least we can better relate to each other.

The only thing worse than going off into the future with no plan is not to go at all.  We each have our own destiny, and we must each face it, head-on.  The best thing is that if we work at what we want, we will probably do okay.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Taking Care

When you look at a superior business that draws in good revenue and repeat business, it is not the fancy machines. In the long run, the volume is only slightly controlled by advertising.  The companies that do exceptionally well year in and year out are the ones with dedicated employees who are happy and pleased to be working with their clientele. 

These employees are a cut above.  Employees that are always willing to help, always cheerful, and always putting the need of the client first.  These are the employees that you can put your faith in and trust.

Any worker can be an exemplary employee.  Each employee reacts to how they are treated and how they are groomed for their position. The staff does not show up and get hit over the head with a magic wand to become outstanding.  They are trained and cared for by management that knows the worker will approach clients with the same care and attention that he or she was is given within the company.

I have not invented the idea of taking care of your staff so that the team can take care of the employees.  It is a business model you can see in action throughout many sectors. I am just asking leaders to take a look at the idea and see if it is something that could help your bottom line.  How would you use monies saved by a lower turnover cost?   How much would customer retention recover for you in advertising costs, and how stable could your business really become?

Just a few thoughts.

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.