A Simple Way

"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” - Dr. Seuss

There are days when you struggle to figure out what you want, need or would like to do. There are distractions happening all around you and the answers simply do not come along.

For me, I have those days trying to find the answers to questions posed to me. In some instances, I struggle for a good share of time on and then I simply set them aside for a while. In those moments I will go and do something completely different.

Take my mind off the issue, allowing it to open up.

Typically I will research other issues, read part of a book, or even surf the web just throwing out search words. In once particular case I searched the internet using the words "doctor seuss answers" because I figured he always has an answer for most anything.

And something new out of the blue happens.

As I read through the information, the quote shown above struck me as simple enough. So I went back to the work problem and started from scratch looking only at the most basic and simple of solutions. To my delight, the solution came fairly quickly.

It was a reasonably simple solution as well. Was it Dr. Seuss who helped me find the answer or dumb luck? I tend to think it was a matter of looking at it from a different perspective; the easy perspective.

We tend to over complicate our lives and over think it.

Sometimes the answer is truly simple and it is the question we made complicated. Try not to over complicate your life. Sometimes the best way to get past the complicated is by choosing not to let it be complicated.

Taking the simple path you can get to your destination quicker. If a boulder sits in the way, it might be easier to walk around rather then trying to roll it out of the way. You will find a way.

Stay inspired my friends

Confidence With Learning

"I'm not afraid of storms, for I'm learning to sail my ship." - Aeschylus

It starts early in life, from the moment we are born.

We begin our learning process.

We learn new sounds while in the womb, figuring out the voice of our mother or father.
With first light of birth, we connect voices to faces, processing every bit of information.

On it goes through pre-school, elementary, high-school and college.
It matters not not that you go through all of the formal education.
Knowledge is a constant thing in our life.

The more we learn, the more we understand the world around us.
The more we learn, the more we understand our place in it.

We can choose not to learn.
We can choose ignorance and become mired in the mud of life.

Or we can choose to learn and lift ourselves to greater possibility.

These are choices we can make each and every day.

Choose to learn more each day.
Choose to make your life greater.

Stay inspired my friends.

Overcoming No-See-Ums

“Only the moon's smile can cure the unseen scars of darkness.” ― Munia Khan

It has been several days since I have been able to write. My week was filled with work at our company's annual customer convention called EMCWorld in Las Vegas, Nevada. A place for over 10,000 people to get together and learn about the latest trends and products in data storage. Afterwards, I took a few days and traveled to Salt Lake City, Utah.

A chance to view one of nature's great treasures.

Just outside of Salt Lake City is a lake called the Great Salt Lake. It is the western hemisphere's largest salt water lake and fourth largest in the world covering anywhere from 1,000 to 3,300 square miles depending upon the time of year and water levels.

For my visit the weather was cooperative and a few of us traveled out to Antelope Island State Park which sits in the middle of this vast lake. Antelope Island is the largest of ten islands located within the Great Salt Lake and home to abundant wildlife and various promontory spots to hike and capture breath taking views.

Capturing the beauty nature has to offer.

A group of us walked up Buffalo Point to capture these views and as we reached the peak the wind calmed and swarms of hatching Ceratopogonidae flies, otherwise known as "No-see-ums" found us in great numbers. Not often am I distracted from the views but these flies were doing their very best to keep me from enjoying this time.

Very quickly I took some pictures, one of which you see above. What you do not see are the flies swarming all around me and many in our group starting their descent in a very quick manner. These flies are so small you simply can not see them, thus the name "no-see-ums".

Descending the rocky path, we were harassed by these unseen foes.

Many times in life we are attacked by unseen detractors in life. These are the people trying to ruin your life experience. Many times we allow them to destroy our joy of all that is good around us. The detractors come at us with their negative attitudes, trying to pull us down from our joy. These detractors could also be those circumstances in life which try to defeat us on our journey towards something great.

The unseen forces in life will try to knock us off balance but we each have the ability to succeed in spite of their ways. We can still see the beauty which surrounds us while fighting off their bites or words of discouragement. There is so much for us to enjoy in life that we must not allow ourselves to be distracted.

Overcome the "no-see-ums" in your life.

Keep your focus on the beauty which exists all around you. And stay inspired my friends!

Breakfast With Salman

#RewindWeek from June 2011

"With the brush we merely tint, while the imagination alone produces color." - Theodore Gericault

Once in a while you get the chance to brush by fame. In this case it was Salman Rushdie. Or so I believed it was he when having breakfast at my hotel in London one morning.

I was on a business trip and due to my frequent hotel stays, the club room is a convenience which makes the trip much easier. The quiet of these mornings away from the hustling restaurants are a pleasant and invigorating respite.

There are those who always asked me afterwards, "Why not ask to take a picture, why not engage in a conversation, why not...."

But I did not ask and here is why.

In all of my travels, it is very rare that I come within ear shot or even see famous people. For all of the media exposure so many people get, there are many others who are average, everyday people like you and me.

So it was with great interest to me that the man sitting one table away seemed very familiar. In my hotel in central London, the business lounge provides breakfast on the top floor for members. This particular morning I chose a later time to arrive.

With only three of us in the room, there was no particular reason I sat at a table near this man. The only thing which drove me in that direction was closeness to the television showing international news. It also gave me a clear view of the Thames River.

Maybe the river view was my primary reason for sitting where I did.

There was something about the presence of the man sitting near me. His familiar face told me he was of some importance or celebrity. After a short while it dawned on me that it could very well be Salman Rushdie. Yes, that famous author who wrote Satanic Verses which became the scorn of many Muslims worldwide.

In 1989, Ayatollah Khomeini, (religious leader of Iran at the time) issued a fatwa or decree telling all Muslims to kill Rushdie and his publishers. Salman Rushdie was placed under police protection by the British government. As best I have learned, Salman has not been harmed, but it is said thirty eight others connected with the book have been killed.

The power of the written word still amazes me.

So my mind kept thinking and rationalizing his presence in this place. No body guards or entourage, yet after so many years, I had to think he had slipped back into some level of obscurity and maybe it just was not as big of a concern anymore.

But was it really Salman Rushdie?

I never asked because I have always felt there are times of approach and there are times of quiet. This certainly seemed like a time of quiet. We both nodded a good morning to each other at one point and then left each other to our quiet, peaceful breakfast.

This man may have simply been a person who looked extremely similar to Salman, but I like to think otherwise. My story is that I had breakfast with Salman Rushdie and we enjoyed the peaceful quiet of the morning.

All of us need these quiet moments in time.

It allows us to pull ourselves back from the hurried and noise filled life which surrounds us each day. The quiet allows time to reflect on things that matter to us. A time to let down our guard a little bit and not have to be looking over our shoulder.

Maybe next time I'll ask to be sure, but then again knowing the real answer just might disappoint me. Then the peaceful and quiet breakfast I had with Salman Rushdie will disappear forever for me. And I chose to allow that memory to linger for myself and for Salman as well.

Stay inspired my friends.