You Have To Stand Up To Run

Things around our lives have been changing pretty darn quickly lately.

Recently I woke up on a Monday and by Friday we were entertaining the idea of acquiring not one but multiple businesses.

The thought is both extremely scary and also SUPER EXCITING!

What’s crazy about the whole situation is that early Monday morning I was thinking, boy it sure feels like we have been running a million miles an hour lately. 

I’m pretty sure the good Lord heard me say that and responded, “Dan you have just been crawling, stand up so you CAN walk.”

It always amazes me how in our current situation we feel that we are overwhelmed. 

When I first started working at Basin Coop, just a few years ago, in their feed mill, it amazed me how fast I had to move.

Or thought I was moving…

Then when I moved over to Crossfire, and they placed me as their DOT manager, and I was tasked with creating and implementing their DOT program from the ground up, I felt like I was running.

Then we started our businesses, I felt like I was running.

And now as we GROW and scale our business it feels like I am running faster.

Everything we do makes us feel like we are running. It’s in how we handle it.

Recently I took one of our client experience professionals (sam) with me on a business trip.  About ½ way through he said, “Dan you have to be the most productive guy I know.”

After I finished laughing, lol. I asked, “What makes you say that?”

His response shocked me,

“Well we have been together for 3 whole days, from 8 am to about 9:30 pm.  When we got stranded in construction, you paused, took a few moments, and then decided that we would do some team-building activities while we were stuck for 4.5 hours with no cell service and no real way to work.

Then after we decided to go back to where there was cell service, you still didn’t jump on your computer, you took the time to brainstorm new ways of growth.  Only after that did you jump on a few calls.

You seem to never stop moving.  Heck, you even listen to your books while you drive, at 1.75 times the speed they are normally read at. 

Any normal human would be like, ‘what the heck is this I can’t even understand it’. 

But you actually retain what you hear and ask questions about it.

The real thing that I have noticed on this trip so far is that I thought I had a TON going on, but I really don’t, and even though you have so much on your plate most people couldn’t even begin to imagine doing ½ of what you do. You still come across as cool, down to earth, and eager to listen to almost anyone. You do a great job managing, everything.”

It made me stop and think. I know, super-productive right?

Why do I move forward at such a quick pace?

The truth is that personally, I know what God has made me capable of.

And it’s a LOT.

The other thing is that I continually give it back to him.

When we have success, the credit goes to him.

When we have hard times, we turn to him for answers.

When we are thinking about acquiring new businesses, we turn to him to make sure it’s the right decision.

The whole point of this devotional is that we are all busy, and we all feel like we are running.  But we all move at different paces. 

I know that if I were to compare myself to someone who is running a much larger business with more moving cogs. It would look like I was standing still.

If I compare myself to where I was 10 years ago, again I would be standing still. Even though at the time I felt like I was running as fast I could.

So here’s to standing up, and actually taking my first step in this new world.

1. We are stoked to talk more about what happens, and I’m sure that as you continue to follow us you will hear more about it. 

If you know me you know that I HATE secrets, but I have been sworn to secrecy about what’s happening for just a little bit longer.  As soon as I can tell you about the AMAZING changes that are coming to our community, you can bet I will let you know.

Take Action

You can take action today by choosing to see the bright side of things.  It is your choice how we look at every situation.  We can either get depressed or take a step forward.

Look back on past events in your life and compare the way you made decisions, how fast you were moving, or some other factor to the way you are today. Is it better or worse? If it’s better why? If it’s worse why is that?

I know that I said that I look at others and how fast they move, but don’t compare yourself to others, unless it will help propel you forward.