I’ve been through this exercise many times in
seminars.  Before we can go anywhere, we need to take stock of where we
are, who we are, how we got here, and where we want to go.  From there,
we can begin to develop a map of the course it takes to get where we
want to go. 

The first question is — Where am I now?
o I am in the early stages of putting together a stable self-run business.
o I am having an incredible experience in personal growth, building
close personal and business relationships, and for the first time in my
life actually having a direction and goal where I can see the results
of my labor.
o I am confident and committed to our success, and to building a better life/future together.
o I am happily married, but there are clear signs of stress in our relationship due to 2 years of life-work imbalance.
o I am committed to helping my wife find the inspired work she seeks
that shows her talents and that drives her commitment and happiness.

Second — How did I get here?
o I worked for 15+ years in high-tech through multiple positions and
disciplines that increased over time and provided an incredible career
and lifestyle.
o I ascended quickly to a plateau of position and responsibility, eventually growing more disappointed.
o I was unhappy and dissatisfied with my corporate career trajectory and distasteful business practices.
o I found the opportunity to grow myself into my own business and partner with my wife.
o I started working part-time in real estate while learning the
business and establishing what our own small business would look and
feel like.
o I have spent 2 years building an incredible foundation, brand, core values, and sphere of supporters.

Third — What do I love?
o Working to build things — houses, cars, business, relationships
o Designing something complex
o Solving a problem nobody else has been able to solve
o Inspiring people to believe in themselves, to see an incredible future
o Modern architecture, furniture, fine clothes, art

Finally — How do I incorporate these passions into my daily life?
o Identify an investment group to buy, remodel, and flip houses I find
o Have Sabrina and I move into a new project home every few years, start over, remodel, …
o Start working with small builders on their projects
o Find a charity organization working on distressed homes
o Pursue my pre-fab housing interest and find a way to work as part of their business team

I guess that puts it out there for all to see.

-mark

The work begins for the first week of
organizing my work life.  I notice that each month will start with a
couple of new habits that I will need to incorporate into my life. 

This month, we start with 1) Making my bed every
day.  Psychologically this allows us to bring the day to a beginning
(when we get out of bed) and an end (when we roll back the covers to
get into bed and go to sleep).

And 2, each day we need to carve off 5 minutes to get
away from the desk (or workplace) and go for a walk, take the stairs,
etc.  This is designed to snap our mind away from whatever we are so
intensely focused on and give us the chance to recharge our mental
batteries for a few minutes.  It has the added benefit of being a
healthy activity!  For me, my schedule is so random with client
meetings, running around viewing properties, and talking on the phone
to all the folks it takes to pull a transaction together that I don’t
think I will have the chance to fix a time for this.  I’ll have to see
how it goes.

I’ve been told that it takes 30 days of repeating
this same activity for it to become a habit / routine.  I’m sure
Sabrina will be happy if I just make the bed 30 days in a row —
becoming a habit, that’s just too much for her to think about!

-mark