AUTHENTICALLY YOU

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something               else is the greatest accomplishment."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Who are you?

Are you YOU or are you trying to be someone else?

I'm sure you have heard the saying, "Keeping up with the Joneses."  I looked up the origin of that phrase and it has been around for a LOOOOONNNNGGGG time.  Prior to 1900 it was used, but became popular via a daily comic by the same name that ran in newspapers from 1913 to 1938.  It depicted a family who were always trying to "keep up" with the lifestyle of their (unseen) neighbors, the Joneses.

Why do we seek the approval of others?  Why do we have to "one up" the neighbors in "STUFF?"

You don't have to "BLEND IN" with everyone else....be you....AUTHENTICALLY YOU!  

Sometimes it hurts to be AUTHENTICALLY YOU.  When you are singing....others want you quiet.  When you are dancing....others want to sit it out.  Will it always be easy?  Hope. Worth it?  AB-SO-LUTE-LY!

Being AUTHENTIC is at the very core of having your BEST YEAR YET.  

You don't have to "fake it 'til you make it!"  Just get busy MAKING IT being REAL.  Be the BEST version of you...everyone else is already taken.

BE AUTHENTICALLY YOU!

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• The smell of fresh cut grass
• A soft blanket on a cold night
• Our military

START SCARED

"The thing that STOPS most people is the START."  Don Shula

It seems like I mention this quote a lot. I cannot tell you how many times I have said this to people who have seemed to be "stuck in the mud" of their lives....their journey.

Our BEST YEAR YET demands that we get out away from the comfort and safety of the "trunk" of the tree and "step out on the limb" BECAUSE "THAT.IS.WHERE.THE.FRUIT.IS!"

Steve Harvey said it best in this 2 minute video, "You Gotta JUMP To Be Successful".  (stop what you are doing and watch this).

START. 

START SCARED.

JUST START!

You got this....YOU can do this.  Maybe you have ran, leaped, and fallen.  Remember our illustration from the other day about the "PATH TO SUCCESS?"  It's not going to always be easy...be a straight shot.  YOU are going to have to break out of your comfort zone and JUMP!

What is it?  Get your plan of action together and then START....JUMP!  

Are you ready to risk and give up the good for the GREAT?  

START SCARED....START TODAY!

JUMP!

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• My Garage 
• Daily Leadership Tips
• Clean Clothes (thank you CHEERLEADER)

DON'T STOP BELIEVING

Journey - Don't Stop Believing (taken from my iPhone)

"Just a small town girl......"

A little over 3 years ago, The CHEERLEADER and I, through the help of our oldest, were able to "check" something off the "LIVE LIST" (I don't want to feel a pressure to get something done before I "kick the bucket"....I want to get them done while I'm LIVING!).  We went and saw the rock band JOURNEY.  

Near the end of the show, they broke out into, arguably, their greatest hit, "Don't Stop Believing."  It was so fun to sing along with this iconic song.  You know me, it got me thinking about life, goals, success, significance, etc., and the mental or belief side to what we do or what we go after.

Many, and for years I would include myself into this category (and still at times today), believe that if the path from "DREAM to REALITY" isn't a straight shot, then it must not either be "the will of God" or "just not my lot in life."

If not careful, we can have a skewed version/vision of what we go through on the way to achieving the goal.  The truth is, your BELIEVING is going to be challenged.  Jesus said, in John 16:33, "...in this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world."  Have you ever heard, "A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor!" ?  

It's not that we look for the trouble, or challenges, or choppy water, etc., but we know we are going to get through them.  It takes PATIENCE. That is such a difficult word for me to swallow.  I.WANT.IT.NOW!  Can I get an "amen!"  BUT, patience is a GREAT fruit to embody.  WE.GOT.THIS.  YOU.GOT.THIS.

DON'T STOP BELIEVING!

Don't let challenges, circumstances, ANYTHING, stop what you have on your heart to accomplish this BEST YEAR YET.  

As we progress in our journey, do your best to stay grounded to what your believe!  HOLD ON....your "finish line" is just ahead!

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• Rain Coats 
• Breath Mints (I'm not sure if this is for me or for others!)
• Entertainment

If you have been following along, today is my day 11 of "21 Days of Gratitude."  Each day I have 3 different things I'm grateful for and I share them right here.  How about you?  What are you grateful for?  I would encourage you to start picking out 3 things, each day, write them down and thing about the gratitude you have.  It is a GREAT exercise to go through....trust me, you will be the better for it!

THAT MUCH MORE

ex·tra

ˈekstrə/

adjective

1. 1.

   added to an existing or usual amount or number.

EXTRA.

So many things we could add to.  What is something THAT MUCH MORE you could do to get closer to where you want to go?

EXTRA.

Darren Hardy, in his book, THE COMPOUND EFFECT, discusses the idea/concept of EXTRA or THAT MUCH MORE and how by doing MORE today than the last time, results will be there.

What do you want to be better at today than you were yesterday?

• writing
• singing
• cooking
• exercise
• portion control
• acting
• coaching
• preaching
• reading
• anger management
• running
• etc.

Think of it like this:  you are standing at the bottom of a 20 step staircase.  You want to be at the top.  20 steps.  You are NOT able to do it in one step.  Maybe, 2 steps at a time, in some situations....but you cannot, nor do not, expect to go up 20 steps in one leap. Why would we expect to get our goal(s) "over night?"  What does it take?  

ONE.STEP.AT.A.TIME!

EXTRA.

Don't short cut the process....go ALL IN to get what your heart desires.

So, START today and tomorrow do THAT MUCH MORE to get closer to where your BEST YEAR YET journey takes you.

By the way....don't be like this guy:

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• Salvation
• Weekends
• Running

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE

I'm sure most of us have heard the term, "HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE."  It's used to describe the benefit the home team has over the visiting team, primarily in athletic contests (man, how many are missing sports right now?).

So, for today, in our journey for our BEST YEAR YET, I want us all to think about this from the perspective of our literal home...our spouse/significant other...our family.

How is your "home" doing?  I have quoted the late Roy Disney once said, "When your values are clear, decisions become easier."  I believe your home life with your family is near or should be near the top of your values list.  For most (not all..but most) their values list look close to this:

• Faith
• FAMILY/HOME
• Health/Fitness
• Friends
• Etc.

If "inside" your HOME is good, then "outside" your HOME will be good!  

How can we have a good HOME from the "inside?"

WORK AT IT!

I believe that the CHEERLEADER and I have a good HOME from the "inside" to the "outside," but it didn't just happen.  We have WORKED at it for the 33 years - 10 months - 1 day that we have been married.  Has it always been easy?  NO!  ANYTHING that you value, you must continue to WORK at it.  

It is an intentional act.  A decision that you make.  I'd even go so far as to say a discipline. Remember, my response is my responsibility, so if I want to have a HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE, it's up to me to do MY part to be prepared.  I can't just think that if things don't go as planned that it's the CHEERLEADER's fault.  I have to ask, "was I prepared with doing my part the best I could?

I love my wife AND I don't just tell her (although I tell her multiple times a day...I do the same each time I talk with my sons, too), but I show her by doing the dishes (sometimes); helping out in other ways that aren't my "typical" assignment around the house; we take walks together; I hold her hand outside the home in public...which is just an "outside" demonstration of the "inside" love we have for each other.

How about you?  Does the HOME TEAM need some work?  Make a decision that YOU are going to be the change.  Maybe you are good.....that's great!   Keep it up!  Be a role model and demonstrate to others what a true HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE looks like.

So, as you "travel" through your BEST YEAR YET, always tighten up your HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE from the inside and when you find yourself "outside," you will be prepared for the WIN!

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• At home exercise equipment
• Song (music that moves me)
• Committed Friends

SAY WHAT?

"The biopsy shows prostate cancer."  

This is what I heard four years ago today.

In the past, I have talked about the events leading up to this "reveal day."  I have been asked if I ever felt sick leading up to my biopsy.  NOPE!  That is why it is SO important to have an annual physical and get your ("yous GUYS out there") PSA levels checked.

My personal care doctor had been keeping his eye on my PSA levels the past few years, before this. He told me that it had slowly been rising, but nothing that was out of the ordinary for men my age.  UNTIL......

"Until" can get you, if it is out of the blue.  In my case, it really wasn't.  My doctor explained his reason for concern and wanting me to see the urologist.  He said that there was a big "spike" in my PSA numbers from my previous physical to this one.

Annual physicals = Early detection.  

Many, if not all of us, have either been affected by a cancer diagnosis; whether that is a diagnoses given to you, a loved one or even a friend.

But does the "c" word have to define you...me...others?

"How we view and define ourselves is perhaps the most essential paradigm we have as human beings. It determines all of our actions and reactions...The bottom line is this – 

we act in ways that support our true image of who we are." 

David Clark, "Out There, A Story of Ultra Recovery"

My identity is not in what I have done or what  has been done to me.  The story of my life....what defines me...my identity is WHO I AM....and more specifically WHO I AM IN CHRIST!  All the things I have done or that have been done to me and in me...they are all just a part of the journey....part of my BEST YEAR YET.

Do I ever wish that I didn't go through what I did four years ago?  ALL.THE.TIME!  I wouldn't want this vile disease to happen to anyone...EVER.  THAT is why I speak out on preventative measures; annual physicals; good health and nutrition; etc.  

"But early detection and your physical didn't prevent the cancer from attacking you, Tim."  You are correct, but the annual physical and EARLY detection most likely saved my life. 

WHAT DEFINES YOU?

• Is it your job
• Hobby
• Status
• Ministry
• Bank account
• Lack of bank account
• Where you were born
• Marathon medals

Don't let what happens TO you be the final determining factor on how you will live your life. 

Is there life after a cancer diagnosis?  By all means, YES! 

Live it to the FULL.  There is still so much for you to do in your BEST YEAR YET!


My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• Someone who knows how to draw blood good
• A reliable car
• One more day

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

"Who can find a virtuous wife?  For her worth is FAR above rubies." Proverbs 31:10

"Her children rise up and call her blessed..." Proverbs 31:28

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all the moms out there and especially those in my life:

• Colleen DeMuth
• Jacque Remington
• Cathy Ritter
• Camy Cooney
• Jacquie Hemphill
• Grace Peterson

AND especially THE CHEERLEADER... Chris Peterson!

I have been blessed my whole life to be surrounded by GREAT women from my mom, Colleen DeMuth, to my wife's mom, Jacque Remington, to my sisters, and also my brother's wives as well as my own wife.

On this DAY that we set aside to celebrate "MOM," realize that a mom's work is NEVER done.  Talking to my mom recently, she reminded me, that although I am an adult, the love and care for the children never cease.  

I have found that to be the same for me and also as I watch the CHEERLEADER interact with our boys; talk to them; pray for them; and spend time, when she can, with them.

So if you haven't done so yet today, reach out to your mom and let her know that you are thinking about her and encourage her to have her BEST YEAR YET.  

If your mom is no longer with us, take time to celebrate the life she gave you to make you who you are today.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOM!

My 3 things I'm GRATEFUL for today:

• Mom
• The smell of coffee in the morning
• A good book