Are you in the funk zone?

Do you ever find yourself in the "funk zone?"  What is funk anyway?

My beautiful Lori and I were recently visiting Santa Barbara and went through the "Funk Zone."  In Santa Barbara the "Funk Zone" is not a terrible place.  Rather, it's the opposite!  It has boutique wine tasting rooms, cafes, galleries, shops and night clubs.  In the musical sense, it's really more of the funky zone.  Santa Barbara's Funk Zone is a fun and happy place!

In the traditional sense, being in a funk or in the funk zone is not quite as entertaining or joyful.  Being in a funk means that you are sad, depressed or melancholy.  Let's say you get your report card and your grades are worse than you thought, for the next week you might be in a funk.  Or your best friend moves to another city ... in another state ... on the other side of the country ... you are now in the funk zone.  Or your girlfriend/boyfriend breaks up with you.  No doubt that we've all been there, whether we defined it as such or not.

Time is needed to travel out of the funk zone, but how much time depends on whether or not you allow yourself to linger in this state.  Yes, it is up to you!  The longer you linger the deeper your funk zone will get, making it even harder to get out.  Sadness is an important part of life; as it's been said in many different ways, happiness would have little meaning if you didn't know the feeling of sadness.

Moving from sadness to happiness, or from a funk to funky, can be achieved with a few simple steps.  Notice that I said the steps are simple, the process isn't necessarily easy, but the steps are simple:

1. Acknowledge that you are sad or in a funk.  Many times people around you will ask "what's wrong?" Possibly agitating you.  Realize that they care and they noticed you are acting different.
2. Identify what is causing your funk.  This may or may not be obvious to you.  Maybe a pet died, a friend moved away, or you didn't get a promotion at work.
3. Accept that bad things happen and we don't always get everything we want.  However, as the famous Rolling Stones song says "but if you try sometimes you just might find that you get what you need."
4. Cliche alert!  Visualize your happy place!  Remember the good times that you've had with the pet or your friend.  If you'd rather not ... then imaging yourself at the beach watching a sunset or in the mountains with no distractions, just you and nature!
5. Understand that this isn't the end ... it's the beginning of another chapter of your life -- THAT YOU GET TO WRITE!
6. Write the next chapter of your life.  Yes LITERALLY WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU WANT THE NEXT CHAPTER OF YOUR LIFE TO LOOK LIKE!  Don't make it all rainbows and gumdrops, wishing for the easy life.  Write some challenges into your next chapter.  Grow your skills, your mind, your spirit!
7. Begin to live out that chapter

Have a blessed day!

Whatever it takes ... really?

Have you ever heard the expression "Whatever it takes"?

Have you ever said "Whatever it takes"?

Did you mean it?

Think about that phrase and those words and what they truly mean.  It's not a phrase that should be used casually ... but I for one, hear it pretty often.

Just know that if you say "whatever it takes!"  You are saying that you will travel to the ends of the earth.  You will give it your all.  You will utilize every resource at your disposable: time, money, energy.   You won't stop until you die!

That is what is meant by "whatever it takes!"

In order to fulfill that commitment you will have to act like the ant.  They truly do "whatever it takes!"  They are ultra focused and only have one mission at a time, they will stop at nothing.  If you see one marching down the sidewalk and you put your foot in it's path it will climb over your foot, go around your foot, go under your foot ... whatever it takes.  You could build a brick wall in it's path and it will keep going until it gets around the wall and fulfills its destiny ... or dies.

So the morale ... if you use the phrase "whatever it takes" ... mean it.  And if you use the phrase "whatever it takes" it'd be wise of you to be ant focused, ant intense, ant impassioned!

Have a great and blessed day!

Being "that guy" or "that girl"

I guess today you find me bragging on myself ... but I am "that guy" and you should be too.

As I talk to friends and colleagues there seems to be one thing that all of us who own phones (which is all of us) are plagued by:

               1) Erroneous, constant and annoying calls from telemarketers & fundraisers

Like many, I have a personal and a work cell phone ... plus, I still have a landline at the house!   Everyday there is a minimum of two calls to each of my numbers that are from the dreaded fundraisers or telemarketers.  Most of the time they don't pronounce my name correctly, some of the time they call asking for the ex-wife - correcting them doesn't seem to matter, they just say (paraphrasing) "oh, gee ... guess you'll do."  And, without fail, if you don't answer they don't leave a message.  Safe to say, they didn't really need to talk to you!

Today was a little different.  I received a call from an unknown number that was from a city I've never been to, or, done business with.  I was busy at the time, so I didn't answer.  When I wasn't busy I noticed that there was a voicemail, curiosity got the best of me, so I listened to the voicemail!

The message was a mis-dialed call from a man who sounded like he owned a small well drilling/servicing business and was calling someone back about a potential job.

      [Here's where I pat myself on the back ...]

Visions were running through my head of a guy who is trying to make a living servicing customers who desperately need water!  Of course I had to let him know that he got the wrong number!   Someone out there was dying of thirst or couldn't shower because their well pump wasn't working.   Immediately, I texted him and let him know that he called a wrong number.  I felt it was the right thing to do.

Regardless of the visions that ran through my head, the right thing to do was to let him know he reached the wrong person.  It only took me one minute to send the man a text and I've got 1,440 everyday that I get to choose how to use.  The action that I took is what used to be known as "common courtesy."

I felt it was a good use of my time ... and then this happened ...

The mystery well driller texted back!  It was a simple "thank you."

Another example of "common courtesy!"

And then, I knew it was a good use of my time!  Please be "that guy" or "that girl" today.

Thank you and have a blessed day!