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Have you ever caught yourself working so hard at something, but felt like you weren't making any progress?  Yeah, me too...

LIFT THE ANCHOR

“Sometimes the answer is not rowing harder or faster. It’s about lifting the anchor.”

Join Dave for some UPLIFTING talk about:

• THE GREAT CONFUSION: MOTION VERSUS PROGRESS
• SOMETIMES WORKING HARDER ACTUALLY MAKES THINGS WORSE
• WHY DO WE AUTOMATICALLY ROW HARDER?
• WHAT DOES AN ANCHOR LOOK LIKE? 10 COMMON ANCHORS
• ANCHORS AREN'T ALWAYS BAD
• 10 SIGNS YOU MAY BE ROWING AGAINST AN ANCHOR
• SOMETIMES SUBTRACTION BEATS ADDITION - THE MATH OF THE ANCHOR
• ROWING IS STILL REQUIRED
• FIVE THINGS TO STOP DOING
• FIVE THINGS TO START DOING

There's nothing wrong with being a hard worker.

• Work hard.
• Care deeply.
• Show up.
• Be disciplined.
• Keep your word.
• Do difficult things.
• Row like hell when rowing is what's required.

But every once in a while...put the oars down. Look around.

Ask yourself whether all this effort is actually moving you.

Because your life isn't measured by how exhausted you became trying.

It's measured, in part, by where you went.

Sometimes the breakthrough isn't learning to row harder.

It isn't rowing faster. It isn't becoming stronger.

Sometimes...you just have to lift the anchor.

And once you do...you might be amazed how quickly the boat starts to move.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever picked out the GOOD STUFF from a collection of trail mix, songs, or food items on a buffet?  Yeah, me too...

When I was growing up, my mom used to buy cans of mixed nuts.

Dad would go through and pick out all the cashews. My sister would pick out the peanuts. Then Mom and my other sister would make their selections.

By the time that can got to me, all I got was the Brazil nuts.

Join Dave for some NUTTY talk about:

• Ten good things we can find in most days
• Sometimes the good stuff comes in surprising packaging
• Five ways to find something positive every day
• Five ways to make positive things happen
• Five things that keep me optimistic on even my most pessimistic days
• Find a little good. Make a little good. Give a little good.

By the end of the day, those little things can add up to a life you’re glad to be living, and if you happen to get to the mixed nuts before everybody else…save me a couple of cashews.

Giddyup!!!

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Have you ever been looking for something and realized it was right in front of you all along?  Yeah, me too...

Have you ever driven the same road a thousand times, then one day spotted a little restaurant and thought, “How long has that been there?”  Probably years...

Or you’ve known somebody forever, and one ordinary Tuesday they say something that makes you realize how wise they are. They didn’t become wise on Tuesday. You finally heard them.

Join Dave for some OBVIOUS discussion about:

• How do we miss what’s right in front of us?
• Ten times life says, “There it is”
• Five things that can trigger noticing
• Can we learn to notice?
• What do we gain from noticing?

Maybe there’s something in your life right now that’s been there longer than you realize.

A person who believes in you. A chance to begin again. A lesson you’ve already paid for. A patch of beauty on a road you travel every day.

Maybe you notice it today because your circumstances finally made room for it. Maybe the timing feels too good to explain.

Either way, don’t beat yourself up for missing it yesterday. Be grateful you can see it today.

Stop for a moment. Notice it. Recall what it connects to. Apply what it teaches you. And if it’s good, tell somebody. If it needs fixing, begin. If it’s a gift, receive it.

It may have been there all along.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever had to wait on news - test result, job offer, decision by someone?  Yeah, me too..

I’ve heard some beautiful words in my life.

Love. Home. Yes. Congratulations. Approved. Healthy. Free.

But I’m beginning to think one of the most beautiful words in the English language is one we rarely put on a coffee mug.

Benign!!!

Join Dave for some news about news that we all have or will receive:

• WHEN A WORD CHANGES THE ROOM
• THE WAITING ROOM BETWEEN WHAT WE KNOW AND WHAT WE FEAR
• TEN TIMES WE WAIT FOR THE WORD
• WHY WE HOPE FOR THE BEST AND STILL FEAR THE WORST
• AND WHAT IF THE WORD ISN'T BENIGN?
• THE POWER OF GOOD NEWS
• TEN POSITIVE RESPONSES TO NEGATIVE NEWS
• FIVE WAYS TO PREPARE FOR NEWS
• FIVE WAYS TO BE THERE FOR SOMEONE WAITING
• FIVE REASONS TO REMAIN HOPEFUL IN THE FACE OF DESPAIR
• FIVE WAYS TO BE GRATEFUL EITHER WAY

We don't get to choose every word that enters our story. But until the final sentence is written, we still get a say in what comes next.

So hope for benign. Pray for benign if that's what you do.

But whatever word comes back...Take the information. Take the hand of somebody who loves you. Take the next step.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever had someone give you a word, look, or comment that encouraged you out of nowhere?  Yeah, me too...

Random acts of encouragement.

Because kindness says: “I care about you.”

Encouragement says: “I believe in you.”

And sometimes that is exactly what somebody needs to hear.

Join Dave for some ENCOURAGING words about:

• WE ARE SURROUNDED BY PEOPLE WHO NEED ENCOURAGEMENT
• THE SCIENCE OF ENCOURAGEMENT
• ENCOURAGEMENT IS LIKE A HUMAN JUMP START
• WHO NEEDS ENCOURAGEMENT?
• A DAY CAN CHANGE IN TEN SECONDS
• ENCOURAGEMENT CAN CHANGE A LIFE
• ENCOURAGEMENT CAN CHANGE A FUTURE
• 20 RANDOM ACTS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
• WHY DON'T WE DO IT MORE?
• 10 TRIGGERS TO GIVE ENCOURAGEMENT
• FIVE WAYS TO REMEMBER TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE EVERY DAY
• THE ENCOURAGEMENT CHALLENGE

Encouragement is one of the few gifts we can give where we don't need to see what happens afterward for it to have been worth giving.

So don't ration it. Don't save it for birthdays. Don't wait for tragedy. Don't assume people know.

Say it. Text it. Write it. Show it.

Encourage somebody.

Then encourage somebody else.

And keep going.

Because sometimes the smallest thing you say today...becomes the voice somebody carries with them tomorrow.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever been around someone who can take a nice conversation to a new level of depression?  Yeah, me too...

We all know one. You tell them you got a promotion. They say: “Congratulations. Of course, now you're probably going to be working a lot more.”

You tell them you're going on vacation. “Oh, nice. Airports are a nightmare right now.” 

You tell them your daughter is getting married. “Weddings are expensive. You know half of marriages end in divorce.”

Join Dave for some uplifting ways to live with DEBBIE DOWNERS:

There are people walking around this world who apparently believe their responsibility is to make sure no positive statement goes unpunished.

• NEGATIVITY HAS SOME POWER
• THREE KINDS OF DOWNERS
• WHAT SETS THEM OFF?
• WHERE DO WE FIND THEM?
• WHY DO PEOPLE DO THIS?
• WHAT DOES CONSTANT NEGATIVITY COST THEM?
• FIVE WAYS TO DEAL WITH DEBBIE DOWNERS
• FIVE WAYS TO HELP SOMEBODY CHANGE

Life brings plenty of bad news without us manufacturing additional inventory.

People lose jobs. Relationships end. Bodies get older. Plans fail.

Don't make every room heavier because you walked into it.

Bring perspective.

Bring humor.

Bring honesty.

Bring solutions.

Bring encouragement.

And when somebody hands you a little piece of happiness...for God's sake...don't hand it back with a warning label.

Don't ignore what's wrong.  Just don't become the person who can't see what's right.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever had someone tell you that you shouldn't, they wouldn't, or you CAN'T do something?  Yeah, me too...

Shouldn’t. Wouldn’t. Can’t. They Are Not the Same.

There are four words that have always gotten my attention:

“You can’t do that.”

Really? Can’t? That is a pretty definitive word.

Join Dave for some conversation about POSSIBILITIES:

• THE SHELLFISH TEST
• CAN’T. SHOULDN’T. WOULDN’T.
• WHY WE ACCEPT OTHER PEOPLE'S LIMITATIONS
• 10 THINGS WE HAVE ABSOLUTE PERMISSION TO DO
• 20 THINGS I'M TOLD I CAN'T DO...THAT I KEEP DOING ANYWAY
• NOT EVERYTHING YOU CAN DO IS SOMETHING YOU SHOULD DO
• THE FOUR QUESTION TEST
• STOP LESS. GO MORE. NEVER QUIT.
• DON'T MAKE YOUR WORLD SMALLER THAN IT NEEDS TO BE

I've reached a place in my life where I don't need everybody to understand me, I don't need everybody to approve, and I certainly don't need everybody to do what I do.

“Don’t hand me your ‘I wouldn’t’ and call it ‘you shouldn’t.’ And don’t take your ‘you shouldn’t’ and promote it to ‘you can’t.’” 

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever been in a situation where you weren't sure if you needed more, less, or none at all?  Yeah, me too...

There are three words that control an enormous amount of our lives:

STOP. GO. QUIT.

We hear them from the time we're children.

Stop touching that.

Go clean your room.

Quit hitting your brother.

Then we grow up, and somehow the instructions get harder.

Join Dave for some direction talk about"

• STOP LESS. GO MORE. NEVER QUIT.
• WE HAVE BECOME VERY GOOD AT GETTING READY
• LIFE RESPONDS TO MOVEMENT
• STOP LESS DOESN'T MEAN NEVER STOP
• TEN TIMES YOU NEED TO STOP
• TEN TIMES YOU NEED TO GO
• TEN TIMES PEOPLE QUIT WHEN THEY PROBABLY SHOULDN'T
• THE ACTION MANTRA
• FIVE WAYS TO LIVE IT EVERY DAY
• FIVE ADVERSARIES
• FIVE WAYS TO BEAT THEM

So live with some energy.

Live with some curiosity.

Live expecting something good to happen, while being strong enough to handle it when it doesn't.

Stop staring at the starting line.

Stop waiting for perfect conditions.

Stop asking whether you're completely ready.

STOP LESS. GO MORE. NEVER QUIT.

Stop when you need to recover, go when life gives you a chance to live, and never confuse changing direction with giving up.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever had a decision that needed to be made and you struggled longer that you should have or maybe delayed it?  Yeah, me too...

At some point in life, every one of us hears an invisible voice say:

“Alright. Enough talking. Put on your Big Boy Pants.”

Join Dave for some Grown Up talk about:

• LIFE EVENTUALLY REMOVES THE TRAINING WHEELS
• WE DON'T REALLY HATE DECISIONS. WE HATE UNCERTAINTY.
• AND THEN THERE'S DRAMA
• SOME PEOPLE DON'T WANT RESOLUTION
• THE DRAMA INFLATION CYCLE
• RUMINATION FEELS PRODUCTIVE BECAUSE YOUR BRAIN IS BUSY
• THE HELICOPTER PARENT PROBLEM
• HELPING IS NOT THE SAME AS RESCUING
• WHEN ADVICE BECOMES PERMISSION
• YOU DON'T NEED EVERY POSSIBLE OPTION
• EVERYTHING HAS A CONSEQUENCE
• FIVE THINGS BIG BOY PANTS REQUIRE
• TEN DECISIONS THAT REQUIRE BIG BOY PANTS
• THE 24-HOUR DRAMA TEST
• FIVE WAYS TO PUT ON YOUR BIG BOY PANTS

Life does not require us to make perfect decisions.

It requires us to participate.

To choose.

To act.

To learn.

To adjust.

To occasionally say: “Well...that didn't work.”

“Freedom is having the right to choose. Confidence is believing you can handle the outcome. Maturity is making the choice without needing everybody else to approve it.”

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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Have you ever TOLD or BEEN TOLD what you SHOULD do?  Yeah, me too...

There is a word we use constantly that sounds helpful, caring, intelligent, even loving, but sometimes it’s none of those things.

The word is: Should.

“You should leave him.” “You should forgive her.” “You should take that job.” “You should sell the house.” “You should call your kids more.” “You should exercise.” “You should be grateful.” “You should get over it.” “You should stop worrying.” “You should be happy.”

And eventually you want to look at somebody and say:

“Would you PLEASE stop shoulding me?”

You SHOULD join Dave for some conversation around:

• WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “SHOULD” SOMEONE?
• WHY DO WE SHOULD PEOPLE?
• 5 COMMON SITUATIONS WHERE WE SHOULD PEOPLE
• THE 5 GROUPS MOST LIKELY TO GET SHOULDED
• 5 REASONS WE SHOULDN’T SHOULD PEOPLE
• When WE INVITE THE SHOULDING
• SO WHAT DO WE SAY INSTEAD?
• MAYBE WE SHOULD OURSELVES THE MOST

So the next time somebody looks at you and says: “You know what you should do...”

Smile. Listen. Consider it. Maybe they're right. Maybe they're completely full of crap.

But remember: They get an opinion. You get the decision.

And maybe that's the difference between advice and wisdom.

Giddyup!!!

Email [email protected] or [email protected] for comments, questions, or ideas for content on an upcoming O'talkin' with Dave podcast.  Otalks.com

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