I am a fitness writer. I write about fitness. But interestingly enough, I often times write about life more than fitness. I believe fitness is only a component of our make up as people. However, its impact on us is felt is all realms of our being. So with Thanksgiving over and December steadily approaching, I wanted to write a piece that could be applied to a variety of aspects of life. I set out for 2014 with only two things in mind that I wanted to accomplish; publish my first book (released in January and can be purchased here. and launch my personal training studio. In 4 days I will have accomplished both. And I will say it feels good. I worked hard to get here and I will have to work even harder to stay and grow here, but I can say I did it. “How do you want to be remembered?” Is a question from a great speech I routinely listen to that often puts me into a zen-like thinking spell. I hope to be remembered for inspiring others to have aspirations of greatness because greatness can be achieved by all, it is not limited to the chosen few its in all of us. Sometimes you just have to pull it out of yourself. Aspire Fitness is here, 130 W Tiverton Way Suite 125 Lexington, KY 40511 7 days and counting… Thank you to all that help me get to this point, you know who you are. Thank you. Here are a few thoughts…
I can be accused, justifiably so, for being a workaholic and someone who is passionate and borderline obsessed with his work and craft. But I will say for all that I sacrifice; personal time, vacations, time with friends and family, I do my work, not because I have to but because I want too. I lead this life the way I want. Everything is my choice. Some people will love me and some won’t. That is the nature of life.
So putting fitness aside, I thought I would write about life in general. And pose the question to everyone; “Are you living to die or dying to live?” Here are five steps to separate yourself from everyone else and be who you are suppose to be:
Radical Self-Responsibility
We have become people who always point the finger at others. As to say it is always someone else’s fault or problem why we are where we are. At the end of the day, the responsibility falls on our shoulders. If you didn’t workout today, that is your fault. Manage your time better. In order to get out of the usual and become someone of distinct characteristics, we must take full responsibility for everything.
Stop Caring What People Think
Right or wrong we all care what people think of us…to a degree. I care what my family thinks of me. However, I do not let them sway me one bit. Some people will love you, others will not, stop caring what those who only want the worst for you, think. “Wolves do not fret over the onions of sheep.” Are you a wolf or a sheep? You pick?
Stop Being So Superficial
At the end of the day, we will all die and the way we looked or the things we had will not matter. What will matter most is the impact we had on the people we leave behind. Treat your body right but don’t obsess. Have nice things but realize they are only just that, things.
State Your Opinion
This is a difficult one. In today’s landscape, having an opinion can be looked at as a hindrance more than a benefit. However, I was always taught to stand up for your beliefs and to give your opinion if asked. To this day I do not shy from stating my opinion no matter how unpopular it is.
Realize Life Will be Over Soon
To quote a phrase, “I’m not here for a long time, I’m here for a good time.” None of us are here for a long time. We are given a certain amount of time on this earth and we must make the most of it. If you want to try something, go try it. You want to start your own business, go start it. Fear absolutely nothing and careless what anyone has to say about it. Leave a legacy someone could be proud of. It will make a vast difference in the world, trust me.
We were all meant to be extra-ordinary in our lives. But you can’t do this from your desk or your couch at home. You must get off your ass and change your mindset on being you, the real you. Show people who you are. It will make a world of difference.
I often struggle to reconcile my progressive values with my love of shopping. I don’t want to patronize companies whose policies are at odds with the environment, LGBTQ rights, fair treatment of workers, and so on, but I also love a good bargain. (My ultra-liberal husband gets weekly updates on which businesses we should avoid based on a wide variety of criteria, making it almost impossible to find an acceptable retailer or gas station!)
But fortunately, it turns out that there is a retailer which is ‘good and good for you,’ where we don’t need to sacrifice our own needs for those of the community – and it even manages to make great profits while espousing progressive values. In any head-to-head comparison with Walmart, and Costco comes up on top regarding employee benefits & wages, ratio of executive to average worker pay, overall customer satisfaction, AND profit. Meanwhile, there are all the stories lately about Walmart forcing employees to work on Thanksgiving, spending a fortune on lobbyists while paying employees poorly, and making taxpayers pay to compensate for those lousy wages and huge executive bonuses, not to mention the pitifully small fraction of a percent the Walmart heirs contribute to any kind of charity, and the Scrooge-like requests for employees to donate canned food to their equally underpaid colleagues.
Isn’t it great to be able to feel morally superior while getting a great deal on everything from toilet paper to tires?
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Tue Dec 2, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET
When taking photos one thing always distracts me: monkeys. As soon as they arrive on the scene I watch them carefully to ensure that the crafty primates don’t steal my things. Beyond that my attention is attracted to them because of their facial expressions, behavior and physics-defying leaps. I can’t help but snap a few photos of them, but when time comes to put things together for LivingIF I can’t find a way to work monkey photos into it. Today though it’s time for monkey business, here are a few of my favorite monkey photos and where you can meet these crafty creatures on your own.
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INDONESIA
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In the archipelago of Indonesia you will find monkeys of all shapes, sizes and colors. City dwellers are wise to human’s ways, raiding fruit stalls and harassing house pets while the jungles are home to a wide variety that will be as interested in you as you are in them. Ubud, Bali’s Sacred Monkey Forest is home to beautiful, but pesky monkeys that know humans as an easy source of food.
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The wise elderly monkeys sit atop temples watching people pass.
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The young scurry around to get food from tourists. This happens one of two ways: the people give it willingly or the monkey scares them into dropping it.
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The very young nestle in the safety of their parents.
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INDIA
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Like the people of India, the monkeys are often forced to interact with hoards of people in sprawling cities. They have learned many tricks such as raiding rooftop gardens and kitchens.
Read the rest of… Erica and Matt Chua: Monkey Business
I love Thanksgiving. It’s my favorite holiday. What’s not to love? Food, family, and football are three of my favorite things. The prodromal smells of homemade cooking pervade the house which means turkey and pecan pie are only days away. Smiling is easy this week while making sure everything is perfect for the welcome cacophony of our kids and grandkids returning home to our empty nest for a holiday visit. Thanksgiving spirit warms the soul.
The best part of Thanksgiving is taking time to reflect on the things we’re most thankful for. It’s a strange tumultuous time and yet it seems as if there is more to be thankful for than usual. Perhaps it’s during trying times, with so many people suffering around us, that we are grateful for things we otherwise would take for granted. I am thankful for many things and thought if I shared them openly perhaps others would share what they are thankful for too. Who knows, maybe the Thanksgiving spirit will catch on.
Here are eleven things I am particularly thankful for:
1) A wife who is my best friend and the love of my life. I met her 40 years ago on December 7th, a day that will live on in infamy! She is a saint for tolerating this innovation junkie.
2) Three great children who despite our parenting have made us proud by becoming incredible young adults. They learned their lessons in irreverence well and are all exceeding my one expectation, to be interesting. (I should say four great children, including our son-in-law who makes us a better family and fires well on the aforementioned irreverence and interest dimensions.)
3) Incredible twin granddaughters, now three years old, who light up everything and everyone around them and give me incredible hope for the future. Being a ‘Papa’ is the best.
4) The Business Innovation Factory (BIF) team who keeps me young and continues to stick by me while I keep reinventing myself. I learn by hanging around them every day and I intend to stick by them. Together we are catalyzing an inspiring movement to transform our important social systems. I can’t believe we just celebrated our tenth anniversary together.
5) A growing network of smart and passionate people that remind me every day that social isn’t something you bolt on to the way your life currently works but an entirely new way of living. Connections seem an impersonal way to describe it. More like friends and fellow innovation travelers.
6) Living in a time when so much innovation is possible. We are blessed with the tools to enable purposeful networks to work on the real social system challenges of education, health care, and government. Transformation seems within our reach.
7) The temperament to thrive on steep learning curves and the confidence to realize how much I have to learn. The goal is to get better faster.
8) The blessing of time to write and for a network of innovators who encourage me to write more.
9) Twitter, Facebook, Medium, Google, and Apple for enabling this free agent to punch above his fight weight. Self-organizing is no longer an oxymoron.
10) Being surrounded by people with an incredible sense of humor who make me laugh every day.
11) The opportunity to do what I love and to love what I do. Passion really is the secret sauce.
The way you pack can either make or break your trip. Hanging around the airport lost baggage office is a drag (I’ve been there), as is opening up a suitcase and finding everything in a crumpled mess. With some foresight and planning, however, you can make the process seamless and worry-free. Read on for 9 tips on how to pack like a pro:
1) If you travel frequently to the same location, say from your east coast office to your west coast office, leave a trunk or suitcase at the hotel. Most good hotels are happy to do this for frequent guests, and often without charge. Lifestyle engineer and frequent traveler Tim Ferriss recommends this, and while you may not keep lentils and whey protein in your trunk like Tim does, his idea is enormously useful for clothes and shoes which can take up a lot of space in your luggage. When the clothes you wore are dirty, simply give them to the hotel laundry and tell them to put them back in your bag when they’re clean. Every so often you can switch things out so you aren’t repeating outfits too much.
2) One can tend to accumulate things along the way when traveling, particularly for leisure. In order to make sure everything fits on the way back and/or that you can still fit your bag as a carry-on, bring along 4-5 empty gallon-size Ziploc bags on your trip. When you’re packing to come home, fold and put your dirty clothes inside the bags, then (and this is the key), SIT on the Ziploc to squeeze out all of the air, and then zip it shut. You’re essentially vacuum-sealing your clothes. This works great for dirty t-shirts, underwear and socks, and it saves you a huge amount of space. When you get home, the contents of the Ziplocs go straight into the laundry. No sorting required.
3) Keep a separate travel toilet kit with travel-size versions of all the toiletrees you’ll need for travel. Don’t touch it except for when traveling.
4) If there’s one thing that makes suitcases unwieldy, it’s shoes. Try as best you can to only pack one pair of shoes. That means you’ll need a couple of pairs in your wardrobe that are extremely versatile. A brown dress shoe (lace-up or monk straps – see #8 on avoiding a major shoe fail) is a great call because you can wear it with everything from jeans to a suit. If you’re going with brown shoes, also pack or wear a brown belt. And if you want bonus points, make sure the buttons on the sportcoat/suit jacket you’re bringing have brown in them too like in the image above.
Read the rest of… Julie Rath: How to Pack Like a Pro
Thanksgiving is about more than just food. Family, gratitude, fighting over ancient resentments…it all plays a role. When a bunch of people (whether related or not) gather together over a holiday, there will be quirks. And possibly arguments. But, mercifully, there will always be food. Lots of delicious, button-popping food. And while life may be as unpredictable as your Aunt Suzy’s newest hair color, you can always depend on your favorite stuffing.
While I’m a big supporter of experimenting with food and beverages, there are times when tradition reigns supreme. It can be fun to try eccentric twists like apple cider risotto or curried carrots, but ultimately, many of us crave the classic sides that filled our childhood plates this time of year.
That’s why I turned to Kahlil Arnold, the chef of Arnold’s Country Kitchen based in Nashville, Tennessee, for several of his signature creations. Arnold’s is a mainstay of Nashville, known for its meat and three, country-style cooking and warm atmosphere. Patrons range from politicians and lawyers to construction workers, who return again and again for dishes like squash casserole and banana pudding.
Just in time for Thanksgiving, Kahlil shared recipes for several of his most beloved side dishes: southern greens, mac and cheese, and sweet potato casserole. If you prepare these for your gathering, get ready to become the family legend, the keeper of the Thanksgiving flame. Or at the very least, up for consideration of graduating from the kids’ table.
Arnold’s Southern Greens
Ingredients:
2 pieces of applewood smoked bacon, chopped
3 tablespoons margarine or rendered bacon fat
1 turnip bulb, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 (8 to 12-ounce) ham hock
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons prepared horseradish
4 tablespoons ham base
6-10 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
1 pound collard greens, washed, stemmed and chopped
1 pound turnip greens, washed, stemmed and chopped
Directions:
In a large, heavy pot over medium heat, add the margarine, onion, bacon and ham hock. Sauté until onions seem translucent, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients with six cups of water, except the greens, and whisk together. Add the greens and cook on medium heat, partially covered until tender, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes-1 hour. If necessary, add more water. The longer you cook the greens down, the more flavor the greens will have. Taste to see if more salt and pepper is needed. When the greens and turnips are tender, it’s time to eat.
Arnold’s Mac & Cheese
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons margarine
2 cups milk
2 1/2 cups shredded American cheese
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground mustard seed
2 cups of macaroni noodles
2 tablespoons of canola oil
Pinch of salt
Paprika
8 cups water
Directions:
In a medium pot, bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of canola oil and 2 cups of noodles. Cook for 20 minutes, or until noodles swell and are soft. Drain in colander. Meanwhile in a double broiler, melt 2 tablespoons of margarine. When melted, stir in flour and cook for a few minutes until browned. Slowly add milk, whisking vigorously. Next add 2 cups of shredded cheese and stir until melted. Whisk in black pepper, mustard, and parmesan cheese. Taste, to see if a pinch of salt is needed. In a small casserole dish, add noodles and stir in cheese sauce. Sprinkle ½ cup of shredded cheese in top. Lightly sprinkle paprika on top. Put in preheated oven at 325 degrees. Cook for 30 minutes, or until cheese is bubbling around edges.
Arnold’s Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients:
6 pounds sweet potatoes
2-3 cups sugar
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup (4 tablespoons) butter, melted
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
For the pecan topping:
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1 cup chopped or whole pecans
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
For the filling: Roast the sweet potatoes on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet for approximately one hour, or until tender. Cut the sweet potatoes in half and cool until able to touch. Peel and mash the sweet potatoes with a fork or potato masher. (This should yield approximately 8 cups.)
In a large bowl, combine the mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, cream, butter, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Spoon the sweet potatoes into a lightly greased 2 quart – 4 quart casserole dish.
For the pecan topping: In a medium bowl combine the brown sugar and flour. Using a pastry blender or your fingertips, cut the butter into the brown sugar mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the pecans. Sprinkle the pecan topping over the sweet potato mixture. Bake the casserole until the topping is golden brown and bubbling, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Cook’s Note: The sweet potato casserole can be assembled the day before and kept in the refrigerator until ready to cook.
As most of you know I have been planning my own studio for a long time and this week a lot of my hard work has come to fruition. I am very close to opening my own business, through hell and high water.
But what I learned about myself this week is it is easy to lose enthusiasm when going through hard times but you must persevere. Soon, my dream of having my own business will come true and for that I am thankful and enthusiastic. So why not talk about enthusiasm and the components of during Turkey Week?
So I went back into the archives and brought back this piece that I wrote three years ago for a magazine in Pittsburgh. It fully explains how I feel enthusiasm is created and how greatness can be pulled from us.
Give this a read and please have a Happy Thanksgiving (eat and drink responsibly). “There is a real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment.” I bet that got your attention.
So does enthusiasm really separate those that are mediocre and those that are great? Is it passion? Is it hard work? What is it? Well, let me rephrase the question; what separates those that get results and those that don’t?
I’ve pondered this since I started working out as skinny, 18 year old kid. Why did I get results and others didn’t? Why did some of my clients get results and others didn’t?
Here is the deal there are many attributes that separate the haves from the have not’s:
Fun- those that get results do not look at working out like a chore. In their own way they make exercise fun. Whether they work with a trainer, take a group exercise class or just make their workouts enjoyable to them. If you enjoy something you will do it. Take it from me you can make exercise exciting and fun or dreadful and boring, you make that decision in between your ears.
Attitude- those that get results have a great attitude. They don’t let minor setbacks deter them or keep them off track. They stay positive always and they encourage others to do the same. Remember, your mind if stronger than your body, if you feel a negative towards something odds are you won’t perform well. Conversely, if you take a positive approach the outcome will be much different.
Hard work- Make no mistake about it getting results is hard work. It takes time and you must dig deep and be persistent. When you get to the gym you have to work hard. You never can skip workouts and you have to always make them count.
Perseverance- there will always be obstacles. There will always be flat tires, babysitters can’t watch the kids and you have to stay late at work. The best look at obstacles like opportunities, conquering them towards becoming a better person. At all costs never, EVER give up. Keep moving!
There are more attributes that contribute to success in a gym setting but these four are what I commonly see in people that overcome the odds and shatter their own personal goals. Remember this, life is all about wins and losses; some days you win, some days you lose but as long as you learn from the mistakes and keep a level head on the wins you will be ok. Momentum is all you need to carry you to the finish line. Tell yourself 2015 will be the year of YOU. No more excuses, no more procrastination, no more obstacles. This is your life, you chose what you do with it. Choose wisely.
By Lauren Mayer, on Wed Nov 26, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET
One of the best scenes in Blazing Saddles is when the railroad workers negotiate with Rock Ridge to help build the ‘false front’ town that will fool Hedley Lamarr’s evil army. The racially mixed workers want to be repaid with land in town, and at first the townspeople object to including various ethnic groups. Eventually they agree to accept the Chinese and African Americans but “we don’t want the Irish.” However, when Sheriff Bart insists, the group’s leader finally says, “Oh, prairie sh*t, everyone!” and a happy ending ensues.
Apparently, not much has changed in 40 years (I know, those of us who remember when that movie first came out are OLD), as far as some people’s reactions to President Obama’s recent executive actions on immigration reform. Right-wing stalwarts like Michele Bachmann and Steve King project a ruined country overtaken by illiterate criminals, and even saner politicians are accusing Obama of acting like a tyrant, emperor, king, or dictator, when multiple Republican presidents (including ‘Saint Reagan’) did basically the same thing without any protest.
Meanwhile, there are very few of us in the country today whose anceestors weren’t immigrants at one time, so to help everyone chill out a bit, here’s a relaxing musical tribute to immigration . . .
By Erica and Matt Chua, on Tue Nov 25, 2014 at 8:30 AM ET
My disclaimer on 36 hours in Bangkok is that no sane person should ever attempt to see Bangkok in 36 hours. You certainly won’t be able to get through the aggressive timeline that I lay out below even if there was no traffic, heat or throngs of tourists to deal with. That being said book a few extra days to see this remarkable city and learn the in’s and out’s of the city’s mass transit system because bypassing it will immediately change the way you feel about this Asian metropolis. In fact if you really take the time to enjoy Bangkok you will find quiet wat’s off the beaten path and tree lined neighborhoods that provide a much needed respite from the chaotic city that surrounds you.
Friday
5 p.m. 1) RELEASE THE BIRDS
Visit Wat Indrawiharn and the 32 meter (over 100 feet) standing Buddha, which is the largest Buddha in the world. To get your weekend off to a good start you can release birds, which is supposed to increase ones positive karma in this life thus leading to a better life in the next incarnation.
6:30 p.m.
2) GOLDEN MOUNT AT THE GOLDEN HOUR
Read the rest of… Erica and Matt Chua: 36 Hours in Bangkok
This is the eighth in a series of conversations originally published on the Time website, authored by myself and Nicha Ratana, with transformational leaders who will be storytellers at the BIF10 Collaborative Innovation Summit in Providence, RI.
Innovating in Afghanistan certainly brings new meaning to the corporate term “change or die”. Over the course of the project, Col. Fritz had to resolve vast technological limitations and overcome cultural and language barriers. Together, he and his team synchronized the activities of 16 nations, spread across six geographical locations within Afghanistan, to build air power capability and ensure security for the country’s future.
The colonel, who in his spare time curates a blog at GeneralLeadership.com and tweets management insight from his @fritzmt account to 95,000+ Twitter followers insists that lessons gained on the battlefield have many applications in the boardroom.
“People may not see innovation as one of the core competencies that come out of a military career,” Fritz says, “It’s actually the opposite — military leaders deal with change in complex situations every day.”
As a leader, “I am constantly finding ways to make my message connect with my team,” Fritz says. He considers himself a firm believer in “getting feedback and exchanging stories” — perhaps an unusual admission from a colonel who commands such authority.
Expected to deliver change on an incredibly tight schedule, Fritz encouraged his team to engage in conversation with their Afghan counterparts, in the hope of getting valuable feedback. The result: the coalition and their Afghan partners participated in one of the most open exchanges in the history of the mission. As a result, Fritz claims, they were able to “question basic assumptions and together, transform the training process.”
He adds, “Leaders often get wrapped up in the brilliance of their ideas and forget to include their teammates… Americans are used to doing things the ‘American way’; but in this case, what’s important was being Afghan-right.”
In conversation via Skype from Afghanistan a few weeks before his return to the U.S., the square-jawed, direct-speaking Col. Fritz makes it clear that he will not discuss politics (“because I don’t influence that”). He is a man of ideals – “more than just a guy in a uniform,” Fritz says.
One ideal Fritz lives by is that everyone should embrace “service” in their day-to-day lives, “in businesses, teams, churches and communities,” he says. He believes service should not be a concept singularly assigned to the military.
Fritz traces this ideal back to his grandfather, a shopkeeper in small-town Arthur, Illinois, who also served as the town’s mayor. Grandfather modeled for grandson the behavior of the ideal citizen — committed, engaged, proactive. “He used to say, “If it’s to be, it has to be me.’ That’s something I grew up with. Especially in a small town, you’re expected to participate in church, community and school; otherwise it just isn’t going to work.”
As a first step, Fritz recommends that we slow down and be more intentional. Talk to people, listen to them, see what they know, he says, just as his grandfather did while sweeping the sidewalk in front of his store.
Matthew Fritz looks forward to sharing his story this month at the BIF10 Collaborative Innovation Summit, a storytelling jam featuring transformation leaders, hosted annually by the nonprofit Business Innovation Factory (BIF) in Providence, RI.
How he helped to bring the Afghan Air Force to self-sufficiency is a tale about how to drive complex change management simply, a tale Col. Fritz is hopeful will resonate with the BIF10 community, a group he began to engage with via Twitter from Afghanistan.
He adds, “I hope to share a perspective into the military that might be a little bit different, and engage in the conversation.” He is “beyond excited” to be participating in his first BIF Summit. “I’m nervous,” he confesses. “I have worked with congressmen and ambassadors, but the folks at BIF10 are real movers and shakers. People whose work I’ve read and learned from, now I get to meet in person!”
The BIF Collaborative Innovation Summit combines 30 brilliant storytellers with more than 400 innovation junkies in a two-day storytelling jam, featuring tales of personal discovery and transformation that spark real connection and “random collisions of unusual suspects.”
I am a fitness writer. I write about fitness. But interestingly enough, I often times write about life more than fitness. I believe fitness is only a component of our make up as people. However, its impact on us is felt is all realms of our being. So with Thanksgiving over and December steadily approaching, I wanted to write a piece that could be applied to a variety of aspects of life. I set out for 2014 with only two things in mind that I wanted to accomplish; publish my first book (released in January and can be purchased here. and launch my personal training studio. In 4 days I will have accomplished both. And I will say it feels good. I worked hard to get here and I will have to work even harder to stay and grow here, but I can say I did it. “How do you want to be remembered?” Is a question from a great speech I routinely listen to that often puts me into a zen-like thinking spell. I hope to be remembered for inspiring others to have aspirations of greatness because greatness can be achieved by all, it is not limited to the chosen few its in all of us. Sometimes you just have to pull it out of yourself. Aspire Fitness is here, 130 W Tiverton Way Suite 125 Lexington, KY 40511 7 days and counting… Thank you to all that help me get to this point, you know who you are. Thank you. Here are a few thoughts…
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