“What is past is past. Today we start anew, and what we do today will make our life for tomorrow.”
William Thomson Hanzsche
In November, 2005 my wife, Cindy, came home from a physical and let me know that she had cancer and that it appeared to be advanced. In January, 2006, she had surgery which included the removal of several lymph nodes, all of which were later found to be cancerous. In the three years since, she has faced significant challenges, worked with some great medical teams and overcome the cancer. The experience, of course, changed her perspective in a significant way. It also has had an enormous effect on my life.
I spend a lot of time on the road doing workshops, keynotes and coaching. I sometimes find myself at high stress levels, not focused on those priorities I know should be at the forefront, and despite all that I move
forward relentlessly pursuing my dreams the same way I have throughout my life.
When I was a 20‐something fighter pilot, I was consumed with being number one in all my pursuits. During Air Force pilot training, my class would head out for social time on Fridays and Saturdays. I’d be studying for the next week’s activities, spending time with the simulators outside the normal business hours, or focused on whatever else would improve my chances for “winning the race.”
I found success, as defined by the mindset I carried back then. I graduated high in my pilot training class and I left the training assignments as top gun and top of academics. I flew amazing airplanes and was ranked high amongst my peers, and I worked with others who also carried this need for not only speed but for winning every competition, flying the finest aircraft, and being named number one in daily, weekly, quarterly, and career‐long competitions.
As a 30‐something corporate executive, I worked 60‐80 hour weeks, climbed the ladder, received relatively high levels of compensation and by some measurements I found great success.
As a 40‐something, I began to realize that life was moving along quickly and that my life style may have been at significant cost to my wife, to my family, to my friends and, perhaps most significantly, to myself.
