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Little Red Baseball Hat
This post is inspired by true events that I am sure anyone who has experience with young children will appreciate.
As a parent we believe that our goal is to teach lessons to our children about life. Often, however, it is they, who teach us lessons, although not always on purpose.
I was having a very busy second half of the workday, so when I came home to the usual frenzy of activity, I had a little bit less energy than perhaps I might usually. My mother-in-law had stopped in along with a heavily pregnant friend. Dinner was in full swing as my twin daughters had an evening social activity to attend with friends from their school.
One of my 7-year-old daughters approached me and asked innocently enough “Did you find my hat?” This triggered a memory from earlier in the day – at breakfast my daughter had said that she could not find her “cherished” red baseball cap. She implored me to look for it and I did say I would try. Of course, what we both failed to realize was that as I was on my way to work and there would be little time for me to look for it during the day. What was also not communicated was how important it was to my daughter to find that hat for that evening’s event.
As I told her I had not had a chance to look for it, I could see the pain in her eyes and she began to struggle to control herself from an oncoming meltdown.
I quickly said I would take a look for it and spent the next ten minutes frantically searching for the red baseball hat. I was unsuccessful. Every parent needs to be resourceful, so before returning to my patiently waiting daughter, I collected a few alternatives to the “Red baseball hat” in the vain hope that it might suffice and quell the impending hysteria.
I had a smaller version of the “red baseball hat” that belongs to my son, but this was too small and would not be suitable. I also presented a blue baseball hat, a grey baseball hat, a purple baseball hat, and two black baseball hats. None would do.
The sadness in my child’s eye was heartbreaking – ridiculous, but heartbreaking. But this was the first part of the lesson – to understand that another’s perspective can be quite dramatically different to your own. Although I thought it quite silly and inconsequential that my daughter wears her hat to the evening activity, let alone that it had to be a particular red baseball hat, for her, the importance was significant and real.
This is true for adults too, whether in personal relationships or in the business context.
There are certainly times when friends appear to be making a much bigger deal about something that you think is justified. Or perhaps a client or business partner is getting all excited about something you think is not a big deal.
First, one has to appreciate that for the other person it is a big deal to them. Second, you may not have all the information to understand why it is important. The lesson being, to have a little patience and consider that there may be more than meets the eye.
This was true in the case of the “little red baseball hat.” What I didn’t know and was never told was that my daughter had promised a friend from school that they would both wear particular baseball hats that night. There was clearly a discussion and for the two of them, it was of the utmost importance. While I didn’t understand the reasoning and did not know the circumstances, what was clear was that this was of great consequence to my daughter.
So, I decided to have one last look. Lo and behold, I found the little red baseball hat. It was not anywhere that I thought it might be. Another lesson to be learned. The answers are not always in the obvious places. Sometimes solutions come from unexpected sources.
As a result of my discovering the little red baseball hat, I became an instant hero. My daughter’s mood transformed the moment she saw the hat and I became “the best dad in the world,” accompanying by a massive hug.
I was very pleased with myself, but the last lesson was yet to come.
We rushed out of the house, my daughter grinning from ear to ear with her little red hat fixed intentionally askew on her head.
As we arrived at the location, my daughter bounded out of the car with a beautiful skip in her step. A few moments later, my daughter came up to me as I was about to leave and handed me the little red baseball hat. She announced that she no longer required or desired it.
I was dumbfounded. How was it possible that something so urgent, so critical only moments ago could now be discarded without a second thought or care?
I searched my daughter’s face for the answer to this mystery when her friend from school came up to her. Clearing understanding my confusion my daughter simply smiled a cheeky little smile and said that her friend had forgotten her hat and therefore she didn’t want or need hers.
She and her friend skipped away, hatless and happy as can be. I stood there with the little red baseball hat in my hands and couldn’t help but smile.
I should have been annoyed or angry, but so is the affect of a happy child to a parent. The lesson here is that things can change in an instant (especially in the context of social media)– in all types of circumstances. There are times when something might seem extremely significant, but then something changes and it dramatically alters their importance.
Life throws us curve balls all the time and we need to be prepared and flexible, with or without a hat on.
Why I Am Doing a Juice Fast & Should You Care?
It is funny for me to think about the variety of responses I receive when I tell people I’m going to do a 9 day juice fast. It ranges from confusion to disbelief and from strong concern and caution to fervent support and encouragement.
Why am I doing this? Here’s the story. Since my high school days of wrestling and having to make a certain weight for competition (I was basically anorexic for four months of the year), I think I’ve been mindful of both the food that I eat and in my general health.
As I have gotten older (a relative term for sure) and my metabolism isn’t what it used to be, I’ve put on a few more pounds than I’d like and I’m not as careful these days about what I eat. I am generally healthy (having passed my last physical with flying colors), but I am looking to be even healthier.
Enter Donny Makower. Donny is one of my closest friends, who I met when we both studied abroad in Sydney Australia. Donny has always been interested in nutrition and health. And when I say interested, I mean he loves it and studies it. He reads and researches extensively, watches videos and goes all-in to understand the complexities of the world of health and nutrition in an effort to make it simple.
Donny is my de facto health advisor, whom I consult about different diets, foods, etc. I have to admit, I don’t always do what Donny suggests (as some of his advice would require significant lifestyle changes), but I appreciate his perspective and the data and evidence he has to support it.
About two months ago, when I was chatting with Donny, he mentioned he was about to do a juice fast. Despite the popularity of juice fasting, I was not that familiar with it. He explained that he would have nothing but juice (mostly made from vegetables instead of fruit to keep sugar intake low) for about a week. He then suggested I watch a documentary from 2010 called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead about an Australian, Joe Cross, who’s having some health issues, comes to America, and then drives across the country while on a 60 day juice fast! That’s right, nothing but juice for 60 days.
I watched the documentary, which is AWESOME, and solidified my decision not to eat solids, but to do a juice fast for a limited period of time. After consulting Donny, I purchased the Breville Joe Cross Juicer and started my prep for my 9-day juice fast – which starts today!! For those of you who are juicing experts, I’m aware that masticating juicers (as opposed to my centrifugal juicer) are typically preferred. By I prioritized speed and ease of use over maximum yield and less oxidation (forgive the juicer speak if you’re new to this world), which led Donny to choose this particular juicer for me. Plus, this is the same style of juicer that Joe used for his 60 day juice fast.
I made the decision to do a juice fast for a couple diferent reasons. Joe Cross describes the juice fast as a reboot. At the start of the summer I found myself eating poorly. Too much junk and processed food. I didn’t feel good and decided I wanted to try a juice fast to see if I could reset not only my body but also my thinking about food. I might even lose a few pounds in the process – a common benefit to juice fasting.
In preparation, I started to incorporate juice into my diet last week. I had nothing but juice from the time I woke up until lunch. It’s already feeling great. So now it’s time to embark on the official juice fast – nothing but juice all day long.
You can follow along as I document the experience and maybe it will inspire you to do something to be healthier – or maybe it will convince you never to do a juice fast. Thankfully, I’ve got Donny on speed dial.
Why Should You Care?
People have been curious about the concept of a juice fast when I mention it to them. My pre-fast vlogs have received positive feedback. As you are reading about this, you may be thinking “Great, he’s doing a juice fast, so what? What’s that have to do with me?”
My goal is always to capture the attention and engage with my audience. My hope is that my content provides some “edutainment” – either providing a bit of a break from the glut of less compelling content that is constantly bombarding us, or perhaps sharing some nugget that helps in some way.
There are a few reasons why this process may be of interest to you.
Overall, this juice fast could be used as a metaphor. What are the nutritional ingredients you are putting into your life or business. Is it the equivalent of processed junk? Or is it micronutrient rich?
Watching me go through through the juice fast process may be amusing – or motivating. If you tend to like my content, in particular my vlogs, then this is in line with that content. This is also an example of Gary Vee’s concept of documenting rather than creating. For those looking to create content (and that should be everyone) the idea of documenting the daily happenings of your journey can be both authentic and appealing.
Perhaps this will be an inspiration to do something that you’ve thought about doing, but didn’t proceed because of the naysayers. Naysayers are great at criticizing and providing all the reasons NOT to do something. Prove them wrong.
I believe in imperfect action. Trying to create the perfect [fill in the blank] can paralyze you from doing anything. I believe it is better to take action and go for it. You won’t connect with everyone, but if you do nothing, you are certain to connect with no one.
A final note – THANKS. I appreciate you taking the time to read this and to share in my latest journey. As I document the long and winding road of my life and business, hopefully there will be something of value that you can use in your life or business to make it a bit better – whether it is a simple smile or the motivation to take the leap towards a richer life.
I Am British (Aren’t I?)
I am British. OK, let me clarify. I am a dual citizen (British and American). It is debatable whether I can call myself British. In fact, my wife Nita, who was born in England and hence authentically British, argues I am decidedly NOT British. Even though I lived in Manchester, England for 10 years and have a British passport. My three children were born in England and are also dual citizens – are they British? Sadly, their accents would say otherwise. We do hang a dual British-American Flag outside our home to represent our family duality.
Living in England for 10 years did rub off on me in some ways. While I never really picked up an accent, my father reminds me that I still say some funny words (rubbish being a favorite or should it be favourite). I recently created an infographic showcasing some of the different words each nation uses. The odd part for me, now having lived back in the States for nearly five years, is that I sometimes can’t recall if a word or phrase is British or American.
From my time living in England, I did notice some general differences in the way Brits and Americans approach the world. The stereotype of Brits being conservative, stiff upper lip types did hold true in some sense. There were times I felt in business Brits were more half glass empty and saw obstacles more than opportunities. Like with all generalizations, there were plenty of exceptions, but the “can-do” positive spirit of Americans definitely feels more prevalent on this side of the pond.
In spite of our differences, our nations seem to be fascinated with the other. While living in England, people would often ask me to simply speak, as they liked to hear the American accent. I would be peppered with questions from friends and strangers alike about what America was like (and why would I not want to live there). On the flip side, people often comment on Nita’s accent and enjoying her say anything and are fascinated by stories of happenings on the small island.
The point of this all, I suppose, is to encourage that we all get along and recognize we are all more alike than different. It is with inclusion and tolerance that enables better relationships, whether in business or personally.
On the cusp of England playing in the semi-final of the World Cup for the first time in nearly 30 years, I feel an inexplicable pang in my stomach as I root for them to win. Perhaps this is the Brit in me!
S1E9: Scott Blumstein |The Deuce of Hearts
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I am a huge poker enthusiast. I like poker much more than I am good at it. That is not true of this episode’s guest, American poker player Scott Blumstein.
Blumstein graduated from Temple University with an accounting degree before becoming a professional poker player.
Last summer, he entered his first World Series of Poker Main Event, along with over 7000 other hopeful players.
Outlasting everyone in a week plus of poker play, Scott Blumstein won the World Series of Poker Main Event, a coveted WSOP bracelet and $8,150,000.
He won in dramatic fashion when the Deuce of Hearts landed on the river (which for you non-poker players was one of only 3 cards that could have won him the event).
In this episode we explore Scott’s story and his views of higher education and how he went from online player to a poker World Champ.
Not surprisingly his favorite card in the deck is now the 2 of Hearts.
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S1E8: Rich Middlemas |My Bromance with Brad Pitt
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Rich Middlemas won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for producing the high school football story UNDEFEATED.
Rich began his career in Hollywood working in the office of the President at MGM Studios working on films such as Legally Blonde, Agent Cody Banks, Barbershop and James Bond film, Die Another Day.
Rich Middlemas graduated from University of Tennessee’s College of Communication and Information with a BS in broadcasting.
In this episode, Rich shares his Oscar experience as we follow the journey from making a little football documentary to getting into SXSW’s film festival, to his bromance with Bratt Pitt at the Oscar nominations luncheon, to going on stage to accept the little gold statute.
We are happy to report Rich’s Oscar is no longer in a paper bag in his cupboard, but you’ll have to ask to find out what place of prominence it now lives.
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S1E7: Nick Bayer | Make Life Better
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Nick Bayer has always been in the business of bringing people together, whether it’s as one of Philadelphia Business Journal’s Most Admired CEOs or as a consummate team captain since Little League. So when he created Saxbys in 2005, he never really considered it to be a coffee company — instead, it’s a hospitality company fueled by great coffee. Saxbys has since grown from one corner café to a 30-unit, Philadelphia-based hospitality business with a mission: Make Life Better.
Inspired by his parents’ hard working ethic and grit and determination, Nick Bayer believes in setting yourself up for success. Nick grew up in Chicago- a strong athlete who loved to play baseball, basketball and football throughout his school years and into college, he dreamed of being an athlete.
Not cut out for the various traditional positions he tried his hand at, being a people-person and thriving off the energy of being around other people, Nick ventured into the role of entrepreneur.
After graduating from Cornell in 2000, Nick found himself in Philadelphia- the center of America’s social community businesses and since then has been working with higher-ed partnerships and entrepreneurial enterprises to build a solid foundation for young ‘business ninjas’ at Saxbys- which is more than just a coffee shop- Saxby’s ‘Makes Life Better’.
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