No one ever injured their eyesight looking on the bright side of things
Man, there is a lot of negative sh*t going on in the world, if you really want to spend your time and energy looking for it. Increased COVID cases, forest fires, unseasonably high temperatures, and high gasoline prices across much of the country. Nobody trusts politicians or the media. The real estate market is super challenging for buyers, sellers, and those people who work in and around the industry.
Over the last 10 days, I’ve traveled over 5865 miles across this country. Some of those miles were in the car and some were on airlines. None of it was easy…but then, if you’re honest, none of it was really hard either. Traffic? yep. Mechanical delays? You know it. Construction? Isn’t the orange barrel the new national mascot?
If you only focused on the negatives of travel (or life in general), it sure could make you never want to leave the house…or turn on the TV…or go online. As speaker/author Zig Ziglar said many times, you’ve got to get rid of the stinkin’ thinkin’ and bring a positive outlook to your day.
- When I flew to Oklahoma City, I got to sit next to Josiah. The story I shared about my chance meeting with this young man was one of my most viral posts ever on social media and I think it gave those who read it a smile.
- My daughter secured her first teaching job as a building substitute at a local elementary school in our hometown.
- I enjoyed a wonderful 24 hours in Oklahoma City, playing golf with my son, and having a great dinner before we packed him up and moved him home from his summer internships.
- I was able to breathe a sigh of relief as both kids were under the same roof for a few days…even if it was brief.
- We had an uneventful journey down to Starkville, Mississippi to move Ryan into his new apartment for his sophomore year. His new place is just minutes from campus and the Cotton District full of restaurants and student hot spots. The window in his bedroom affords him awesome views over the treetops at Dudy Noble Stadium (home of the 2021 National Champion Bulldog baseball team) and from his balcony, he and his roommates can see the lights and upper deck of Davis Wade Stadium. The ride home was long and somewhat bittersweet, but traffic was light and spirits were high.
- Finally, traveling out to Northwest Montana meant two long legs from Columbus to Denver and then the last leg to Kalispell. Mechanical issues caused a 90-minute delay and those aforementioned forest fires mean low visibility and the overwhelming odor of smoke out here, turning the “Big Sky” vistas into hazy, overcast conditions with low visibility. But you know the beauty is all around you and even with the delays, I still got here about 24 hours sooner than I would have if I drove straight through.
Watch Your Filter This Week
Instead of looking at what you HAVE to do this week, perhaps it might help to think about the things you GET to do this week. What opportunities do you have ahead of you? Who will you meet? Who can you help? What magic might happen?
If you’re looking for bad, there’s plenty of it out there. But there is also a whole lot of “good sh*t” happening out there too. Leave the negativity to others. Get yourself a healthy dose of positivity this week.
Build some new relationships or deepen a relationship that you’ve had for years. Solve some problems that customers, clients, or people in your community might be having and you’ll make someone else’s day/week/life better.
And if you have fun doing it…well, it’s just hard to see how that can’t help make things a little brighter.
Grab some sunglasses. It’s going to be a good week.
