100 Business Days Out: Day 64 - Spirit, Part II

On Thursday the 3rd of July (the last Business Day before the Holiday) I wrote of the spirit of competition and what was upcoming on the Fourth of July here in Quonnie. To give a quick recap on that, I finished 17th of 151 people in the annual four mile road race. I also was fourth in my age group, which since I am in the back half of the 40-49 year old age bracket, I didn't feel too bad about that. As far as the Fourth of July Parade contest for best float themed "Olympics 2008", our entry: "Gold,Silver, Bronze...Quonnie Style" didn't take home any medals. We were in the "unrelated category" (meaning two or more unrelated families together) and we were beat out by a bunch of kids who wore white t-shirts written on with magic marker as the Miracle Hockey Team. I didn't have it in me to remind the judges that hockey is a winter Olympic sport. But, it was fun to compete and fun to create and execute on an idea. We remarked more than once as we were cutting, gluing, painting, etc. that there is a set of skills that get you from idea to execution.

Switching directions now. Today was marred by the fact that at 10AM our puppy Louie had to be taken to the hospital for excessive vomiting (he hadn't be able to keep food down since Thursday and we were in and out of the hospital all weekend). We thought we had it licked come Saturday night after he had spent Friday and Saturday at the hospital undergoing tests and trying to determine what was wrong but on Monday AM he left a day and a half of food in his crate and we were off to East Greenwich (about 40 minutes away) for the second time in three days. It was a tough day of emotions and agonizing over the right course of treatment (surgery is the next step). What I learned about myself today is that the training we get in the workplace to manage crisis and the unexpected is invaluable in these types of situations. At one point in the day, it was like mind muscle memory took over and it wasn't about Louie or any particular situation, it was about how to look at a problem, figure out the numerous courses of action and then decide and act. We followed that process a few times today and with that (and lots of prayer) we were able to calm ourselves enough to make it through the day and make the decisions that needed to be made. I also think that that spirit of competition that I wrote about on Thursday is also relevant here. When dealt a hand of adversity you have a choice...play it to win...or fold. If that spirit to win and overcome is inside of you, you play to win each and every time and sometimes it is that spirit that allows you to make the next move. Even in those life and death times when you must play to win. I was so thankful today for the mind muscle memory of the years of crisis management and the instilled spirit of competition. Because, when we needed it, it was there. So, today, whatever you are up to, know that even though it might be hard and challenging and you might wonder why am I doing this, you are being prepared for a time when you will need to exercise those muscles and spirit. Work is good for that!