TO DO LIST

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Did you ever notice that your to-do list is all about you? When is the last time you made a to-list that involved other people? It sounds strange but the discipline of writing down a list of ways you are going to bless somebody is quite refreshing. Even more exhilarating is to cross off the list as your week goes by. Here are a few ideas:

-Buy a cup of coffee for the person in line behind you

-Compliment a stranger

-Write down what you are grateful for

-Hold the door for somebody

-Leave a big tip

-Call someone you have been meaning to

-Say thank you

-Listen with all of your might

-Don’t have an agenda when meeting with somebody

-Turn your phone off when you are with people

-Give blood

-Drop off clothes at Goodwill

-Bring a friend dinner

-Have grace for those closest to you

-Be slow to anger while driving

-Count your blessings

-Smile

-Call your Mom

-Be nice

-Offer to pick up groceries for a neighbor

As you Chief Encouragement Officer, I want to offer you a bit of respite from yourself. Thinking about others is one thing, doing things for others is quite another. Let’s go out this week with a mission to make somebody else’s life better!

It’s not about you,

Matt Davenport

C.E.O.

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PTGO

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Post Traumatic Growth Opportunity. This phrase came to my mind when listening to a recent Simon Sinek podcast discussing how people respond to challenges. We face trauma in various ways throughout our days and weeks. When these dramatic events occur, we get to decide whether these events will serve us or damage us down the road. Quite astonishing when we say it like that. Situation arises, goes sideways, we choose which bucket to place it in- future building or future baggage.

I began my journey towards optimism 12 years ago. The catalyst was desperation. When you are starting a business, any negative thoughts have to be immediately wrapped up and thrown out the window. Why? Because negative thoughts lead to negative actions and negative actions lead to negative results. Plus, being positive costs the same as being negative. So why not flip the script and say this is going to be great.

With a PTGO mindset, almost anything life throws at you feels like an opportunity to learn. We need to recategorize difficult times from failure to data collection. I have been collecting data my whole life and that data is now protecting me from potholes down the road. The smartest PTGO mind setters hang around with folks that have already blown out a few tires and are eager to share their data points with you.

As your Chief Encouragement Officer, I would like to challenge the readers this week to do something nice for a stranger. This simple act of benevolence will set your week off on the right trajectory. One thing is for sure when we think less about ourselves and more about others, life seems to add up.

Pick your bucket wisely,

Matt Davenport

C.E.O.

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CONTROL FREAK

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We are 10 months into a year that will forever change the nation, the world and your life. The next 10 months will be different. That’s just it, every day is different. We can’t hold onto things of the past and effectively move into the future. It would be like holding onto the bumpers of 2 cars slowing pulling the opposite direction. Here is my advice, let go of both bumpers and simply give yourself the opportunity to enjoy today.

Control is at the center of most of our stress. We are stressed about the outcome of the election. What if your candidate loses? What if this happens, what if that happens? What will the economy do? What will the world look like for my kids? All of these concerns are to not be taken lightly but they are to be held loosely. If you are honest with yourself, you will admit that the greatest things that have ever happened to you were outside of your control.

We often have great things happen to us that were unplanned and totally undeserved. Instead of continuing to walk and enjoy what we received we put that blessing into a chokehold by managing the fun right out it. STOP IT. Attempting to control the outcome of every situation is exhausting and counterproductive. Not only does it not work but it makes being around you miserable. Here are a few tips for intentionally releasing control:

-Admit that you are not any good at control once you have it.

-Write down all the good events in your life that came outside of your planning

-Be quick to be generous

-Ask someone you trust to remind you when you are beginning to micromanage

-Get over yourself

In order to get over yourself entirely, you must accurately see yourself. This tall task cannot be done on an island and requires a community of good friends. As your Chief Encouragement Officer, I challenge you to take inventory of your stress and see how much of it is related to control. You may want to ask yourself this tough question if 2020 hasn’t beaten the control freak out of me, what will?

CHILL OUT,

Matt Davenport

C.E.O.

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ICEBERG AHEAD

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What happens to you when you identify an obstacle in your passageway. For most people, the vulnerability light bulb on the dashboard in their head goes off which is immediately followed by an attempt to change direction. This change in direction is intended to save us from sure disaster and give us the opportunity to steer the ship back to its original course. Needless to say, we make a double effort to make these changes smooth, subtle, and hardly noticeable to those traveling with us.  

Recently, I was riding shotgun with my 15-year-old daughter as she works to accumulate enough hours to become a valid driver. We were driving down a reasonably trafficked road in a suburb near our house in Southern California. She elected to change lanes which at the time felt like we were avoiding a deer. The sudden change in direction reminded me that often in life we are required to pivot rather than turn on our blinker, check the mirrors and comfortably float to the neighboring lane.

Pivoting requires a fixed point. Think of a protractor, half of your body must be anchored and the other half agile. We create plans for all sorts of stuff: Study plans, exercise plans, college plans, retirement plans, vacation plans, financial plans, business plans, 3-year plans, 5-year plans, and finally plans to make more plans. Don’t get me wrong, plans are good. I believe planning is a way for us to place value on our daily sojourn. While plans are good, they are oftentimes impossible to execute as predetermined. A great plan should always include plenty of room for pivoting.

Pivoting almost always pushes us towards the events in life that are most memorable.

Pivoting requires three things:

Be anchored in who you are. Without an anchor, you will become part of somebody else’s plan.

Know where you are going. This is a life direction that is broad and exciting.

Be confident saying that you have no idea how you are going to get where you want to go.   Get comfortable in a world of uncertainty.

Enjoy the Sudden Changes,

Matt Davenport

C.E.O.

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