Category Archives: Personal

The Decade That Was!

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A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post titled the Ten Great Happenings from Last Year and I briefly mentioned that this past year was unique because it wraps up the first decade in the new millennium. That realization got me to think about the ups and downs that have occurred in the past ten years. Upon that reflection no matter how bad things seemed at times (Y2K, 911, brother passing away, father passing away, stock market crash 1, housing bust, and stock market crash 2) I still have way more positive things that have occurred that outweigh the negative. Trust me, I have had my dark moments. My brother and father passing away was the hardest thing I have ever had to endure but my faith and my attitude has always helped me when times get tough. I am very blessed to have those strengths within me, and I know for some of you it is not always easy to believe or stay positive. However, if there is one thing that you need to start working on is having the right attitude! So, start off the next decade with the right attitude. Here are some questions to ask yourself in order to start planning your next ten years.

The first thing you need to do is start a “Life List.” Several years ago I came across an article that mentioned a guy by the name of John Goddard. John at the age of fifteen created a list of 127 goals he wanted to achieve in his life. What an inspiration to us all.

The second thing you must do is find your purpose in life. When I was young I never thought about that and had I at least put those thoughts into my head earlier in my life I would have had an easier time with the path I have carved out for myself.

The final thing that you need to do is to act. So many years all I did was read and think about how I wanted to be a successful business person. It wasn’t until the death of my father that I realized I needed to start doing the things I have dreamed about doing all these years.

So, as the next decade approaches make sure you start off strong by implementing these simple tips into your planning process. The past is the past and whether or not it was a bad ten years or a great ten years the next decade can be what you want it to be by using these three tips. I wish you a Happy New Year and a Happy New Decade!!

10 great happenings from last year

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The holidays are just about here and every year around this time I begin to reflect on the year that was. This year is unique because not only do we finish another year, but also wrap up the first decade of the new millennium. I can not believe that another decade of my life is complete. I’ll focus on that later, but today I want to talk about reflecting back on the past year. Last year I was introduced to Darren Hardy’s “How to have your best year ever” ebook and I have to admit I made some better strides in achieving the goals that I had set for myself. Maybe it was his system or maybe after all the years of me reading about people becoming successful I decided it was time for me to actually quit reading and thinking about being successful and actually start doing. Regardless of why I made better strides the real point I am going to make here is that one of the exercises Darren recommends to do is to write down 10 great happenings from last year.

The first time I did this exercise I had a difficult time coming up with 10 great things that had happened. I have to admit it really bothered me that I could not write down 10 great things that had happened throughout the year. However, what I walked away with after this exercise was really insightful. The light bulb finally went off and I realized that like most of us we tend to remember and dwell on the negative things that happen to us instead of the positive things that we experience. Once I had my list complete I realized what an amazing year it really was. Because of this exercise I came to the understanding that when something great happens you need to celebrate and also write it in your journal, so that when you reflect back you can realize that no matter how tough times might be there are plenty of things to be grateful for. So, as we wrap up this year take some time and write down 10 great happenings that you have occurred in your life. Once you have them written down reflect back monthly, quarterly, and at the end of the year to remind yourself of the great things that you have done in the year. Stay tuned for my next posting because I am going to share my 10 great things from this past year.

Coach Dave

I hate to lose…but…

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On Saturday it all came to an end. The Florida Gators lost the SEC Championship game to the Crimson Tide. The Gators 22 consecutive game winning streak, which was the longest in the country, came to an end as well. Now, I am going to be the first to tell you that I hate to lose. I am a very bad loser and typically take it really hard, however, this time was different. I am not sure why, maybe it is my age, maybe it is that after losing a father and brother you realize there is more to life, or maybe it is the fact that at some point you realize everyone is going to lose and losing can provide valuable insight. let me tell you if you are not failing then you are not pushing hard enough. You are probably sitting in a comfort zone. I remember when I  first started my career in the fitness industry and everything came pretty easy. My boss, who owned the gym, handed me clients without me having to drum up my own business. However, it wasn’t until I moved to Dallas and started all over again that I learned about failing. I would meet with new members as part of their incentive to join the club and time an time again all of those new members were thankful for the program I had designed for them, but they wanted to work on their own. I couldn’t close a sale to save my life. I tell you that first summer I spent in Dallas was eye opening and depressing. I was failing and was miserable, but I learned from it. I realized I needed to learn more about sales and business. It was that summer that I started reading and learning about sales, success, and business. Each time I would lose out on a client I would evaluate what I did during my encounter with the prospect. I analyzed what I thought went wrong and made sure not to do it again. You see, losing can bring out the best in you if you are willing to learn from the loss. Take notes and write down in a journal what mistakes you are making and learn from them. The really cool thing about writing it down is years later when you are looking through your journals you see how successful you have become because of the mistakes that you made.

Now, don’t think I am saying to go out and lose because you play to win, but when you lose, and trust me you will lose at some point, learn from the loss. As John Maxwell says, “Fail Forward.” Learn from your loss and move forward. Keep pushing the envelope and make it your goal next year to aim high and guarantee yourself some losing lessons.

We Must Protect This House

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This past weekend I had the privilege of going to the UF vs. USC game. It was a present from my wife for our nine year wedding anniversary. What a lucky guy I am? Now, most of you know the Gators pulled out another victory and they are three wins away from reaching their goal of repeating as National Champions, but I have a bigger story to tell about the weekend and it centers around Veterans Day.

You see the trip that we took would not have been possible if it wasn’t for our brave men and women who protect this country. Last week was Veterans Day and what I did not know before I got to the game was that we were going to be able to meet the founder of Under Armour, Kevin Plank. Under Armour just happens to be the official sponsor for the South Carolina Gamecocks and for this Veterans Day weekend UA teamed up with the Wounded Warriors Project ( http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/) to raise awareness for these soldiers who have been severely wounded in battle and need additional medical treatment and resources due to the nature of their injuries. It was truely amazing to meet some of these men and women who served out country and even despite their injuries their positive attitudes are to be envious of. It really made me be thankful for the life I have and to be thankful for those that give us that opportunity to go sit and scream at a football game. If for some reason you are feeling sorry for yourself or down about this economy go to the Wounded Warrior website and read some of the stories that these young men and women have endured and their attitudes on their future. Until next time keep looking up because life is short and you need to be thankful for everything you have!

 

Help make a difference in health care reform

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The other day I wrote a blog post,“It does not matter what Health Care Bill gets passed because they are forgetting an important component”, and today I just received this email from someone from IHRSA asking me as a former supporter and lobbyist for the WHIP ACT to write again to my Congressional leaders. Coincidence? At first I was like hmmm but after thinking about it there has not been a single piece of legislation in the past decade that means so much to this country and that is why everyone’s voice makes a difference. Please see the letter and follow the links to write to your Congressional leaders and ask them to support the WHIP ACT. 

Coach Dave

 

Dear David:

As a past attendee of IHRSA’s Legislative Summit, you’ve spoken to your members of Congress or their staff. You know that it is your voice, more than the voices of the paid lobbyist, they want to hear from and listen to.  I’m emailing now to ask you to exercise that power and reach out once more and ask for their support

As you know during the last ten months, IHRSA has been actively working to include exercise as prevention as a part of health care reform, including passage of the Workforce Health Improvement Program (WHIP) Act and the Personal Health Investment Today (PHIT) Act. 

Right now, we need your help to generate support for efforts to introduce the WHIP Act as a floor amendment when health care reform is voted on in the Senate.  We know that the lead sponsor of the WHIP Act, Senator John Cornyn, with support from Senator Tom Harkin,  intends to introduce the bill as a floor amendment. To make sure that happens, we need your help to generate support for the WHIP Act from the other members of the Senate.  

As someone that has previously lobbied your Senators for support of the WHIP Act, would you be willing to reach out again now? This may be the most crucial time. You can use the link at the bottom of the email to send them an email message or click here to find their Capitol Office phone numbers (talking points available online).

Thank you again for your continued support of our federal health promotion efforts. Please let me know if you have any questions or need additional information.

Sincerely,
Helen
Helen Durkin, J.D.
Executive VP, Public Policy
had@ihrsa.org