Tomorrow is Easter or Resurrection Sunday as I like to call it. As I reflect on my faith, it is relevant to me to take notice of the warrior side of Jesus the man. I could go on and on as to the physical punishment he bore but I will leave it short for all of us to ponder a sacrificial approach to our existence as well as the “resurrection” which is available to all of us.
Happy Easter, Happy Resurrection.
Certainty does not exist anymore. As we move into a new phase in our country, It’s apparent that we are faced with a governement that does not understand free markets or the best approach to stimulate growth. My thoughts will not go into fiscal or monetary policy at the macroeconomic level but instead boil down to the most basic and primitive elements of our existence. Why you ask? It’s basically the only thing we can control in the “here and now” since what was “once” a vibrant, robust, bullish America was “here and for now, gone”.
Net, net on this people is this, spiritual, physical, mental. Focus on those three aspects of your life and we can all get through this storm. I will go deeper on each one in future posts but I wanted to get this off my chest as I believe it’s what I and you should be focused on in the short term.
Love to hear from you.
The time for change is now. As we are fully into the new year with a fresh Commander-in-Chief, it is time to take aggressive action. There is no time to waste as we turn the page in our history.
Where do we go America?
Do we drink cool-aid or make it? Do we tear away from this computer/blackberry/i-pod/TV/cell phone and “engage” life or do we head down the spiral like Rome and other founded and lost civilizations caught up in ourselves or do we re-define who we are…individually, personally?
Should we not look to our forefathers who founded this country and took massive risks? They drove towards a goal taking the consequences and personal responsibility. Should we stand or sit with our hand “out” waiting for some government bureaucrat to send us a check for $1,000? Should we be looking for a papa or momma to give us a loaf of bread? Taxation without representation is a problem Mr. Blago.
Do we sit and wait for something to happen? Do we step out of the foxhole and take a risk? Do we stick our necks out? If you get held at the line of scrimmage, do you throw yourself on the ground and have a temper tantrum? We can’t control the fact that the crooks on Capital Hill and Wall Street have walked away with billions in bonuses (most of them). Despite the atrocities, I’m stepping out. I know no other way.
I’m fired up to get moving and let my actions speak louder than these words I’m writing. “Godfather, Godfather, what should I do?” was a stupid question for Don Corleone?
I chose not to depend on someone or something or some institution to dole out the sustenance for my existence, I personally chose to take matters into my own hands, take personal responsibility for the good and bad and live free.
New Hampshire has a great state motto. I’m sure someone will tell me to “relax” or “chill” but I guess that’s what makes the world go round. Peaceful action is better than no action.
I’m taking action. I hope you’ll do the same. Peace Out and let’s get moving.
My ears are open.
I just can’t take the hypocrisy of these politicians anymore. It’s out of control. We all make mistakes but the lack of humility with these guys is abominable. What does the governor of Illinois have to do with The Maximus Movement? Basically everything. The Movement is about personal accountability and responsibility and we are taking accountability for our actions and trying to move forward in a positive direction. It’s hard to stomach these people when they commit corrupt acts and then boldly continue to do them again and again after being caught. If they admitted their mistakes and quietly exited the political scene, I could stomach that a little bit more. When you are put in a position to represent the people, serve the people and use our tax dollars wisely, a tremendous “trust” is put in your hands. Many politicians continually violate the public trust for their own agenda and we as citizens are continually being pushed down to a non-relevant entity. We need to look hard at these charlatans and consider a different approach to choosing our elected officials. I scratch my head and wonder what we were thinking in electing Obama to the highest office in the land considering the “witches brew” of politics from whence he came.
I would love to run “Big” Rod Blagojevich through several Maximus Workouts to really see what this guy is made of. I wonder if his “brazen” tough mafiosa talk would hold up to hoisting a loaded sand bag for 2 minutes straight.
Call me crazy but I needed to get this out in the open.
You’ve got to be certain you can help! I’ve been speaking lately to some friends that have lost their jobs and now feel the need to not only find a new job but in fact switch industries. The magnificence of capitalism and free markets is that the opportunities are endless…if you have the stomach to take some risk.
This is no longer business as usual. It might sound great, even cozy, smart and “slow and steady wins the race-ish” to stay with IBM, or Merck or even GM for 30 years. One might accuse you of being stupid, irrational or juvenile for searching out other jobs or careers and “job-hopping”. One might say “oh he’s an idiot or he doesn’t know what he wants”. One might smugly look down on you and even think you are crazy for jumping around from job to job and have switched industries several times. If you have a weak stomach or a limp “resolve”, you might even develop a “complex” and need some therapy.
Well my friend, that notion is now out the window because again, this is no longer business as usual!! You see, I may have been accused of all of those things mentioned above, as I’ve actually worked in several high margin sales industries for over 21 years. Within that time, I’ve worked in over seven industries and sub-industries. I’ve taken huge risks and some of them have not paid off, but as it sits right now, I would not have changed much in doing what I did. There is something to be said for climbing a mountain and moving to the next one. In my view, climbing the same mountain over and over, every day is and was a boring proposition, but give me a new mountain and will I get after it. You see, we need to adopt this philosophy in this market because it is what we are all facing right now. Big mountains in front of all of us. If I’m a hiring authority right now or if I’m in a foxhole right now, I want the person next to me to be certain that they can either help me climb that mountain or get out of that foxhole safely. I don’t really care if he climbed Kilimanjaro or McKinley, but if they can clearly articulate to me how they tactically climbed that mountain and how they can use the same pick, ax, shovel, snow shoe, parka and dog-sled to climb the mountain that I need them to help me climb well dang-it, I want them with me. let’s get passionate about how we can take our skills anywhere. A good doctor can be dropped down in a third world country or a forest and help the sick. You can typically transfer your skills to any job if you are willing to passionately explain why you can help and then go about doing it, and by all means, be “certain you can help”.
Think outside the box and consider other industries when trying to get back in the market. Then take big risks with big “courage” to articulate, with passion, why you are the person to help someone climb a very large mountain. Fire yourself up!!
Let me know your thoughts as I will be building out a plan to help you get into a new potential growth industry!
It can always be worse when you consider what has gone on in India, an unemployment report over 6% and the worst since 1974 and the despair in our economy right now. If you still have your job, again, it can always be worse and even if you’ve lost your job, we remain the best place in the world to start a small business or find a new job. I was on a rant in my own head over the past 24 hours. Basically speaking to myself about the fact that life can get overwhelming, crazy, and sometimes feel unbearable but dang it, it can always be worse. We murmur and moan over situations and conditions that most people would welcome. I’m committing myself to consider the plight of the less fortunate when my 2 year old won’t let me put her down or some series of snafu’s rub me wrong.
Last night, I brought the little ”chimp” down into my home gym and had her jump around on a mat while I tossed my kettlebells around for 15 minutes. I ended up having a great workout blasting through 5, 2 minute circuits and then throwing in some chins-ups and leg extensions/curls for some prophylactic knee rehab. If you balistically move 53 lbs for a solid 2 minutes straight, it’s a pretty intense workout. I did that for 4 sets progressing from swings to cleans to clean/presses to snatches and then moved over to the 70 pounder. Try that for 2 minutes straight and gasp for some air.
The “net” here is that things have been pretty crazy and stressful but it can always be worse and finding a short 15 minutes to grab a workout is better than not getting anything in. The other side of it is that grabbing a hunk of metal and tossing it around for 15 minutes has the effect of clearing your “head”. (can you believe it?)
Do your best to keep your head “clear”, keep pushing, keep driving and most of all, keep the faith!
I’m always interested in hearing back so drop me a comment! Thanks.
It’s been said by one of the “greats” that winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing. I don’t neccessary disagree with this quote from the great Coach Lombardi, but from the Maximus perspective, the only thing we ultimately control is ourselves, our actions, our intensity and our effort. Our individual effort and output truly is the “dictate” of the day. We might win if we don’t put out a 100% effort but we seal our fate and can walk off the field mat or business engagement with a high head if we give everything we have. If we stoke the flames of the soul and drive the mind forward to higher levels, only then will the body follow.
As I’ve been strength training my students over the past few weeks, the message has centered around the fact that these young athletes are NOT defined by the number of matches they’ve won or games they’ve lost. They aren’t defined by the letters on their jackets or the skulls on their helmets, nor the final score on the scoreboard, nor the crushing blow of having their shoulder blades pinned tightly to the mat. They should be defined by the effort they put out. The fire in their belly and the heart and desire that they show when they step into the arena. For God’s sake people, we need to re-focus on giving it everything we have, forget winning for a minute, let’s just tighten the chin-strap, take a deep breath and push harder. Take control over what we CAN control and that is the fiber of our very being. We take care of that and intensely focus on our effort, and winning will be a logical outcome.
These athletes have done just that. In one weekend, 4 wrestlers went 14-2. These were the opening matches for the season and as we’ve trained in 22 degrees plus a wind chill, outside with stones, tires, ropes, log lifts and explosive runs through the woods, I’ve watched these kids push themselves during their training sessions. It’s been said that you perform how you practice and the last time I checked, there are no scoreboards at practice, no one is keeping score but Man, sometimes it’s crazy when you see the results of old-school hard work, and humility. There is something to be said for busting your arse. When it get’s down to it, winning is not the only thing, but when you work hard, I mean really hard, 14-2 just happens. In fact, undefeated seasons happen as well.
Push yourself, Throw some wood on the fire of your mind and soul, get yourself “fired-up!
While watching the Wizard of Oz over the weekend with my two year old, it became apparent that Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and The Lion would stop at nothing to get to the Wizard. What amazed me as well, was the fact that while the Wiz was Wonderful, he had nothing that the foursome didn’t already have within themselves. As we trained this week, Thursday night under cover of night and Saturday morning, both days, I talked to my students about giving it their “all” and the awareness of the fact that we are not defined by what we win, but instead by what we give. If we give our “all”, the outcome is sealed. We delivered what was expected and that is a “best” effort. The outcome of any match, game, test, ect. will always take care of itself if you give everything you have. The other major point that came out was that within each of us is a “pilot light” like flame that is there and will always be there. We need to recognize that flame and feed the fire. The answers are all within us but we need to look inward and outward to find it, find the fuel source either within or without, stoke the fire and let it burn.
We went very “primitive” this week. Stones, gravel, all out sprinting up and over hills, scampering down and up gravel hills on all fours, carrying stones and sandbags, rain, wind, elements. It comes down to “brick” my friends. Years of a softening culture have left us searching for something. Something that only comes from living a physical life in a physical world. We need to get back to the hard road. We need the real road not the cyber road…we need to get back on the Yellow Brick Road. Get on the road, because the “Movement” is here but won’t wait too long.
Job losses, auto industry implosions, chaos…People, movement is the order of the day. Muhammad Ali, self proclaimed “The Greatest” was a classic example of movement. Rope a Dope, Thrilla in Manila, Float Like a Butterfly-Sting Like a Bee. While I did strongly favor the style of for Joltin Joe Frazier, and have great disdain for The Nation of Islam and Farrakhan, I had to respect the athletic prowess and professional tenacity of “The Champ”.
The message is all about “movement” keep moving on the job and get physical off the job. There are a number of basic movements that I’ve been doing lately and they require very little space, time, warm-up and zero equipment. They include the following:
1. Wall bridges: leaning back towards a wall standing about 2 feet away and arch your back until your hands hit the wall. Then hold the position walking your way to the lowest point in this arched position. Hold it for 20 seconds then walk your way back up with your hands. As you progress, you can do arched push-ups off the wall for reps. This is a brutal stretching, conditioning and strengthening workout for your back, shoulders, neck, hips and thighs.Start slow and you’ll be shocked at how good you feel afterward.
2. Hindu-Pushups: Squat down as low as you can dropping your butt down as low as possible. Lean forward onto your hands like a wild beast of the field. Do a forward pushing horizontal push-up then drop your hips towards the ground without bottoming out on the floor. Move back, bringing your hips back up into the original position and start again.
Start slow and easy and within 5 reps on both these moves, your entire body will be envigorated and fired-up. I guarantee that if you do these every morning, you WILL begin to “move” with more confidence and energy. I train my students with these movements for up to 3 minutes straight and it’s an awesome workout.
Give it a shot and don’t forget to get “moving” on the job as well. Showing is up is 90% of the game so bust it out and get going.
Thanks and hit me with any questions or comments.
Professional flexibility is key. We must remain nimble, being able to assume different positions as necessity arises, in all areas of life, especially in our careers. Over the years, I’ve been professionally flexible in changing industries. It has insulated me from massive downturns in the markets.
As some of you know, in addition to my profession in orthopaedics, I am the Strength Coach for a group of kids in Warren NJ. One of my students has transitioned from quarterback to running back. Wednesday night, I witnessed their team “romp” another team under the lights in the driving wind and rain. What struck me most significantly was the performance from my student who made this transition. As he slashed left and right and quite often blasting through defensive players, I was amazed at his ability to change positions mid-season and perform so well in the middle of a storm with driving rain, wind and chill. His intensity level was unbelievable and his desire to dominate and excel was something to emulate.
The lesson here for all of us in this terrible economy including off the chart job losses, devaluation of our retirement accounts and criminal Wall Street executives walking away without even a slap on the wrist, is that we need to remain nimble, professionally flexible and aggressive in life, career and health. The best part about this lesson, from my perspective, was that I embraced this idea while watching a young football player “playing” a game. We can “play” this game of life just like a child if we let go of our fears and drive forward with flexibility.
I will be incorporating some of my messages on career and industry changes as this blog evolves. What I’ve learned covering several different industries and making mid-career transitions has helped me personally sustain my income despite significant market downturns. Professional flexibility will drive the “day” in this economy.
Keep the comments coming.