Getting to the Excellence Part

I recently discovered that an old friend runs a business. I had no idea he even had a business, which perhaps should have been my first red flag. In any event, I discovered his business upon seeing a social media post from said business, venting about how people need to do a better job "supporting" small businesses. In short, his business was struggling, and unless something changes soon, they may have to shut their doors.

Curious, I did a deep dive into his last 12 months of social media posts. Here's what I found: 50% of the posts were about supporting small business, 40% of the posts were them taking stands on various political topics, and 10% of the postswere related to the business.

I reached out to my friend, offering to help. "Dude, I can't even tell what your business does from looking at your social media." Clearly annoyed, he responded, "People should already know what I do."

He asked if I had any ideas, seemingly open to outside ideas/perspectives. As a matter of fact, I had many......but one stands out above all others. He needs to get to the excellence part.....period. Just be excellent. Serve people well. Add value to his customers. Treat people with hospitality. Do amazing work. At every step of the conversation, he wanted to return to the idea that people need to "do a better job at supporting small businesses."

The same day, I talked to another friend who is struggling at work. He believes he deserves to be promoted, but gets continually overlooked. "Have you been excellent?" I asked. He just stared at me for a few seconds. "Well, I show up to work if that's what you're asking." After some prodding, here's what I discovered:

• He shows up to the office right on time.....never early.

• He NEVER stays past 5PM. If there's a project hanging in the balance, it can wait until tomorrow. "I don't work for free."

• He doesn't respond to messages outside of business hours.

• He admittedly does just enough to get by.

There's nothing excellent about that. I'm not advocating for his firing, but at the same time, I'm not sure why anyone would want to promote someone who doesn't exude excellence.

When all else fails, be more excellent. Are there people out to get us? Maybe. Is life fair? Not at all. Are crappy things going to happen to us? Without a doubt. But through all that noise, excellence stands out. Excellence is the linchpin to everything. There are a million things we cannot control, but our level of excellence is one we can.

So, today, whether you're an employee or a business owner, let's get to the excellence part. Excellence always wins.

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Must Be Nice

"Must be nice." Ah, gotta love that phrase. "Must be nice" is a politer way to say "You got lucky" or "I'm jealous." It's also a phrase that signals the beginning of the end. The mere utterance of these words signals that your inputs are detached from your outputs. Using this phrase means outcomes are not correlated with executon. Mentioning this phrase means you've lost before you've even had a chance to play the game.

These words were said to me on Saturday afternoon on the heels of the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market. My friend saw our huge line as he passed through the market and had some "feedback" for me afterward. He gave me permission to write about it, so that took away some of the sting. In short, though, he attributed our long lines to good fortune. Right place, right time.

He's not alone in this sentiment, and this doesn't just apply to Northern Vessel. If you've built something that matters (whether it be a business or career), there are countless people in your life who are sopping with jealousy. Or, in the words of one of my business owner clients, "Travis, you're the only person in our lives we can even talk to about this stuff. You're the only one who will genuinely celebrate with us." He, too, gets lots of "It must be nice" comments. Jealousy is everywhere.

The truth is, it does feel nice. It feels wonderful to create something that matters. However, ahead of that niceness is a ton of blood, sweat, tears, pain, suffering, failure, and growth.

In this conversation, my friend asked what I attributed our success to. I think there are a lot of reasons for it, and they all revolve around inputs, not outputs. While most people believe in obsessing about the outputs, we believe in obsessing over the inputs and merely measuring the outputs.

Here are some of our inputs:

• We're obsessed with finding the right people. It's extremely difficult to get hired at NV. TJ's standards and expectations are brutally high.

• Financially, we believe in paying our team ridiculously well. TJ hasn't given me permission to share specifics (yet!), but we created a compensation structure for the farmer's market that boggles the mind. Interests are aligned, and our team is incentivized to crush it.

• In turn, the work is a grind! It's like going to battle. Our team goes into market days knowing they will be wreckedby the time we're done. My hope is they look back on that experience and say, wow, that was awesome!

• Unreasonable hospitality. It's not good enough to quickly serve a coffee. Anyone can serve a coffee. But can you make people feel a certain way while doing it? The experience is everything.

• Constant obsession with getting better and more efficient. "Good enough" isn't good enough. Every team member has the green light to propose ideas for "better."

I pray you get rid of the phrase "It must be nice" from your life, and keep all the "It must be nice" people at arm's length. Whatever you're into, obsess about the inputs and measure the outputs. Keep going! "Nice" is coming.

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5.2

Yesterday marked a hallmark day in my year: The first day of farmer's market season! This is the third year Northern Vessel has set up shop at the Des Moines Farmers' Market (regularly voted one of the top five markets in the country). 

Our operation is simple, but difficult. The simple part is that we only sell one product: our signature oat milk cold brew latte. The difficult part is scaling it to levels that challenge common sense and any form of reasonableness.

The market is open from 7am-12pm on Saturday mornings, May through October. Five hours, once per week, for six months. 26 bites at the apple. You get one shot to make the most of that precious time. Heading into our first year, we had no idea what we were doing. We essentially winged it, figured out what didn't work, tweaked, tested, and repeated. Eventually, we plateaued at a point where we could sell 2.8 drinks per minute. It was a massive success! We were proud of our achievements and thoroughly enjoyed the process.

Heading into our second year, we knew our peak was around 2.8 drinks per minute, but we aspired to do it better. A better experience, more fun, more hospitality, a better overall vibe. We wanted that three-minute experience to be the highlight of someone's day. 

By the third week of our second season, we realized our minds were far too small. After testing (and failing) new ideas, our constant tweaking yielded results we never even imagined. In the heart of that season, we capped out at 5.2 drinks per minute.....it was bonkers.

In this last offseason, heading into the third year, we looked at it differently. No matter how close we think we are to our peak, we realize we still haven't even scratched the surface of what's possible. This mere notion led our team down a rabbit hole of obsession. For the past few months, we've tested new ideas and debated countless tweaks. What if this person stands here? What if those cups are positioned there? What if we used this other piece of equipment to fill cups instead of the normal one? What if a different person fills that role?

As this season approached, that 5.2 drinks per minute number lingered in our minds. This time, though, we didn't look at it as a ceiling, but rather a floor. In our minds (or perhaps imaginations), we believed we could blow by a previous record that never seemed possible to begin with. Our new goal: 7.0 drinks per minute for five hours. Yesterday was our first test. In yesterday’s market season opener, with unseasonally low temps, we landed at 5.2 drinks per minute.....tying our previous peak-season record. Now, we tweak.

I love this team!

I have much more to say about this, but I'm quickly running out of real estate. I'll pick that up soon. In the meantime, here's my takeaway. Whatever you think is possible....is. Whatever you think isn't possible.....isn't. And whenever you think you've reached your peak, you haven't even scratched the surface. Keep tweaking!

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Sign Here

I met a blog reader yesterday. We spent about an hour together, and I thoroughly enjoyed our time together. We dabbled in conversations around careers, meaning, materialism, parenting, debt, marriage, and budgeting. Overall, it was such a treat to meet him, and I hope it's the first of many encounters.

He said one thing that was particularly fascinating to me, and on the spot, I told him that it needed to be today's blog. I'm going to paraphrase him, as I don't remember his exact quote. In short, he said that between the ages of 20 and 30, we tend to make financial decisions based on what other people tell us to do. Parents, mentors, co-workers, friends, family. After all, we're young and this is our first time dealing with real-life money stuff. Thus, we trust.

He also added that we spent much of that decade "signing away":

• Sign here, and these loans will pay for your college.

• Sign here, and you can use this shiny plastic card to buy whatever you want.

• Sign here, and you can buy this car (but only after you sign here on this other document for the loan).

• Sign here, and you will own this house (along with all the not-yet-known responsibilities that come with it).

• Sign here, and you can take all these furniture and appliances home without paying interest for 36 months.

• Sign here, and you can marry this person (this one is actually pretty awesome).

• Sign here, and you'll be the parent of record on this child's birth certificate (this one is pretty amazing, too!).

We sign, sign, and sign.....for a decade. Then, we wake up sometime in our 30s and realize our life looks a lot different. The wisdom (or lack thereof) in each of those signatures has set the foundation for what our life now looks like. For many of us, it's scary, daunting, and suffocating. We realize some of those signatures, in hindsight, caused tremendous damage to our lives.

As my new friend was sharing this idea with me, I couldn't help but think back to all my "sign here" moments during my 20s. Each of those moments, without knowing it, caused ripple effects that I still feel 15-20 years later.

Perhaps we need to slow down....especially in those young adult years. Perhaps we need to more carefully consider our "sign here" moments, thinking through the ripple effects it might have on our future. Perhaps we need to surround ourselves with a wiser circle of influence, one that won't lead us down these dangerous roads.

If you're well past your 20s, as I am, perhaps you need to find some young adults in your life and invest in them. These young men and women desperately need strong influences to help guide them to places they won't regret 20 years later. It's our job, collectively, to help this generation avoid so many of the crippling mistakes we made. We might not be able to go back in time to help our younger selves, but in a poetic way, perhaps serving this next generation well is our DeLorean.

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Forced Reset

It’s the middle of the night. I’m still awake, writing this post on my phone, in a different state, sandwiched between two little sleeping boys in a much-too-small bed in a hotel room that I unexpectedly booked 10 minutes before checking in, just moments ago. If that doesn’t summarize my life, I’m not sure what does.

I’ve had a week. Some of the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows. I’ve served people, and I’ve been served. I’ve been on the giving end of generosity, and the receiving end. I’ve made some people really, really happy…..and others whatever the opposite of happy is.

My tank is simultaneously full and empty. I have a million ideas to write about, but also none. The mind feels crowded, but also empty.

I have so many stories to share, ideas to present, and encouragement to foster. Yet, I don’t have the mental or emotional capacity to adequately share them with the vigor and thoughtfulness they deserve.

So, today, I think the idea on the table is about getting a reset. Despite my best efforts to prove otherwise, we can’t go 100mph for weeks on end and expect a healthy outcome.

I’m hoping to find a reset somewhere in my weekend…..hopefully today. I hope you do, too. I also hope you’re better at this than me. If not, I’m so sorry. Let’s try to improve on this together.

A forced reset is still a reset, so reset I will. Have a wonderful day, and I can’t wait to share more with you tomorrow…..when I’m not delirious.

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Pushing Through the Pain

My son Pax ran his first 5K this weekend. He carried himself with a combination of excitement and anxiousness in the days leading up to the race. More than anything, he just didn't know what to expect. But as we were mere moments from beginning the race, he was beyond excited.

I told him I would stay by his side every minute of the race. He would set the pace, and I'd stick with him. The opening moments were fantastic.....which lasted all of a half mile. Then, things turned south quickly. I'm not sure he had ever ran more than a half mile in his life, so I was expecting 3.1 miles to break him......and break him it did! His legs hurt. His foot hurt. His lungs hurt. He was facing physical, mental, and emotional demons. He wanted to quit. It was too hard. He wasn't good enough. He wasn't strong enough. He didn't belong there. The self-talk was crushing. There was crying. There was yelling. There was the innocent 8-year-old kid's version of swearing.

My goal was to push him hard enough to step up to the challenge, but not so hard that he'd snap. I would pick out a landmark in the distance and say, "Alright, man, we're going to jog from here to that yellow sign, then we'll walk again. Let's push through the pain." He'd say no a few times, then relent. Then, we'd repeat that cycle all over again.

As we turned the final corner and approached the last tenth of a mile, we could see the finish line. "Pax, I want you to sprint to the finish line with everything you got. Don't leave any gas left in the tank. Just go for it!" And he did! He took off and gave it everything he had. He collapsed to the ground as soon as he crossed the finish line. I couldn't tell if he was happy, sad, angry, or some other emotion. Ultimately, I realized he was just really dang proud of himself. He did something he didn't think was possible. He pushed through the pain, and that was a grander award than any medal he could have received.

Pushing through the pain is one of life's greatest lessons. Success isn't accomplished in the absence of pain. Rather, it's something that happens amidst, in, and through the pain. Pain is inevitable, but it's what we do with the pain that dictates our fate.

This applies to 5Ks, money, work, entrepreneurship, relationships.....everything! Please don't avoid pain. Don't run away from it. Don't hide from it. Pain isn't something to be avoided. It's something to be confronted head-on. When we do, we grow. We win. We prove to ourselves that we can (and should) do things that matter.

I don't know if Pax will ever run a 5K again, but I'm 100% certain he just learned a valuable lesson that will carry with him for decades to come. Push through the pain!

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A Streak of One

Someone recently asked how many days in a row I've published a blog. "Almost 900." "Wow, that's amazing! How in the world do you write 900 days in a row?"

This post isn't about my blog, but the blog provides a tangible example of a very simple and powerful concept. Here was my response to my friend: "It's simple. A 900-day streak is really just 900 one-day streaks. Just take care of today. Tomorrow can wait until tomorrow."

If I think about writing 900 days in a row, it seems unreasonable and unreachable. However, when I think about just writing one post today, that feels workable. Then tomorrow, I'll do the same again.

It reminds me of when I started intermittent fasting (no calories between dinner and noon the following day). My goal was to fast for a week. One day at a time, I achieved my goal. Day 1, then day 2, then day 3.....each day, focusing solely on that day's goal. What started as a goal to fast for one week has become a lifestyle. I don't even think about fasting anymore because it's just part of me. It's now been a fundamental part of my life for over two years, and it's radically changed my life. The same goes for writing, a teeth brushing, and tucking my kids in at night, and going to bed.

Using an obviously silly example, I never set out to brush my teeth for 15,000 consecutive days. Rather, I just took care of business one day, then did it again the next. After enough repetition, it becomes part of our daily rituals.

Here's my good news today: Anything can become a habit, a ritual, a streak. Some of you have ridiculously large dreams, but continuously fall short. Perhaps today is the day to start a streak of one. One repetition. Just one. Then, tomorrow, maybe you'll do it again. Oh wow, two days in a row! How about just one more day? If you're not careful, it will become engrained into the fabric of your life, fully solidified as a piece of you.

I'm not asking you to start a 1,000-day streak. Instead, today, I encourage you to start a streak of one.

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Biting Off More Than You Can Chew

Have you ever said "yes" to something that was far bigger than what you were capable of? Something you had no business saying yes to? Something that almost makes you feel like an idiot for even considering? I've had my share:

• As a 19-year-old, running a college program responsible for bringing celebrities to campus to speak and perform (which usually included dinner and airport drives with said celebrities).

• Adopting twin baby boys.

• Managing billions of dollars of real estate portfolios for some of the largest investors in the world.

• Building a coffee company.

• Launching a podcast when I knew absolutely nothing about podcasting.

• Committing to writing, editing, and publishing one blog post per day for the next twenty years.

To be honest, I shouldn't have said yes to a single one of these. I wasn't qualified for any of them. There was definitely a possibility I would fail. There were absolutely more qualified people for the job.

But saying yes to these types of things is how we grow. It's how we expand our capabilities. It's how we make an impact. Anyone can coast, do the easy things, and simply get by. The art of pushing oneself is also the art of moving the proverbial needle.

I recently said yes to something new. I'm terrified. I'm in way over my head. I might fail. There are most certainly more qualified people than me. But here we are. This new endeavor will soon take me to a faraway land, a completely unfamiliar place. I will be pushed and challenged in ways I've never known. It sounds terrible.....it sounds amazing!

I can't say much about it yet, but rest assured, you will hear plenty about it in due time. Some of you, if interested, will also receive an invitation to get involved. It will be exciting. In the meantime, I'll just be over here in the fetal position, repeatedly asking myself why I just signed up for one of the most intimidating things I've ever been part of.

I hope you bite off more than you can chew today. I hope you say yes to something ridiculous and scary. Not so that you can fail (though you might), but so you can make an impact. You will no doubt grow along the way as well.

Conquer the day!

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When the Experts Aren’t Experting

Yesterday's post landed well and resulted in much dialogue. I've received countless questions, responses, and personal testimonies. Then, I received an unexpected message from a close friend. This friend denounced my insights and said he will trust social media influencer xyz, who says we should sell all of our assets and wait out the storm. I looked up xyz influencer and immediately noticed a few things:

• He has a ton of followers

• He's super young

• He's only been investing for a few years

• He has a twisted and underwhelming understanding of finance

Why did my friend choose to follow the advice of this far less experienced and less knowledgeable person? Because this person has 100x more social media followers than I do. Translation: This guy is an expert.

It reminds me of a story I think about often. When Sarah and I first became parents, I was worried about my kids developing food allergies. It never sat well with me that more people than ever have allergies, and I desperately wanted my kids to avoid it. With this concern in mind, I sought the best expert I could find.

At the time, I was on a non-profit board of directors with a man who founded one of the world's largest food allergy testing labs. He was a pioneer in the field. He had zero social media followers. He's not famous. His face isn't plastered all over the internet. His video clips haven't gone viral. He's a good, humble, honest, and wise man.

I approached him with my concern. Was there anything I could do as a parent to help prevent food allergies from being an issue with my children? He gave me an overwhelming "yes" response and shared his wisdom on preventing food allergies. In short, his advice flew in the face of all the so-called "experts" spouting off their opinions. It was simple. It was profound. Fast forward eight years, and we don't have a single food allergy. Is that because of my friend's advice? Is it because my kids simply had a genetic disposition against food allergies? We may never know, but I trusted a true expert.

A few years later, this conversation came up with a trusted friend about to have her first child. She, too, had the same allergy concern as I did. I shared the wise advice of my allergy expert friend, and she thanked me.

Fast forward a year, I asked her if she followed my friend's advice. No, she didn't. Ultimately, she trusted the advice of a few famous social media moms who had opinions on the subject. The advice was the opposite of my friend's advice. The result? Every one of her kids has food allergies.....bad food allergies. Was it because of her approach? Was it because her kids simply had a genetic disposition toward food allergies? We may never know, but she trusted a famous person with an opinion.

We need to discern our sources carefully. It's so easy to get swept up by the loudest and sexiest voices. There is so much bad information floating around out there. Be careful. Be vigilant. Be discerning.

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The Big 3

My head is spinning. Too many ideas. Too many projects. Too many tasks. Too many next-steps. Too many follow-ups. Too many everythings. It feels like too much. Can you relate? I feel like this often, but this particular idea was hitting especially hard for me last night. I hope someday, someone will teach me the secret to all of this. Until then, I will do what I always try to do: The Big 3.

The Big 3 is a simple idea I heard several years ago. No matter how many things are on the to-do list today, designate the three most important things. The three things that, if accomplished, it doesn't matter what else I got done. The three things that, no matter what else happens today, the day is still considered a win. The three things that, despite the noise and chaos, WILL get accomplished.

I feel like a failure often.....daily. However, the Big 3 help me find the right wins to celebrate and the grace to forgive myself once again. In this very moment, I'm trying to figure out what mine are for today. The bad news is I'm definitely going to fail today. The good news is I absolutely 100% will achieve my big 3. I hope you do, too!

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On the Other Side of Fear

I spent part of yesterday meeting with an awesome couple experiencing some pretty crazy life changes. To my surprise, the wife said I once told her something that has continuously stuck with her. I don't remember saying it, but it sounds like something I would say. "There's nothing in life worth doing that doesn't involve fear."

We humans tend to treat fear as a warning sign that we shouldn't do something, but I think it's quite the opposite. Fear is a tell that we SHOULD do it. Often, what we want most is directly on the other side of fear. Based on some recent major decisions, this couple is certainly living out this principle. It's exciting - and encouraging - to see.

Coincidentally, I'm about to face one of my biggest fears in a few hours.

14 years ago, I suffered a crippling foot injury. After nearly two months on crutches and countless specialist consultations, it was recommended that I have the nerves cut out of the bottom of my right foot. Thankfully, one surgeon stepped in and pointed me in a better path. Turns out, I had torn a tendon and fractured a joint on the bottom of my foot, causing nerve-damage-like symptoms. That set the table for more than a year of physical therapy, which concluded with a warning that I may never be able to independently walk without wearing a splint. Fast forward about four years, and not only was I walking without a splint, but I had full athletic ability with that foot. I was so grateful!

Then, not long after that, I experienced a crushing back injury. I again spent more than a year in physical therapy, trying to regain a sense of normal again. While I've definitely regained normal day-to-day function, my basketball career ended 10 years ago when that injury occurred. I haven't played one bit of competitive full-court basketball since.

Here's where the fear comes in. Today, I'll be participating in an alumni basketball tournament with some of my old high school teammates. It's been 25 years since I've seen some of them. We're playing in my old high school gym. We'll be playing against teams 20 years younger than us. We'll have at least three games. I'm terrified. This will either be the most fun day of my year, or an unmitigated disaster. You best believe you'll find out which way this goes.

There's something profoundly beautiful about going head-first through our fears. Sure, we could play life safe, taking the easy path at every opportunity. That would certainly save us a lot of failure, embarrassment, and pain. But it would also rob us of meaning and fulfillment.

I really don't want to do what I'm about to do, but I'll be so glad I did it. I hope you have your own version of that in your life soon. Please don't shy away from the fear. Lean into it. Go through it!

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Yes, Too Simple

I ran into a friend at a coffee shop yesterday. It was good to see him, but he had a bone to pick with me. He wasn't actually mad at me, but he did have a problem with yesterday's post. "The thing that bothers me about your content is that you oversimplify things." That was the best compliment I received all week! It made my day!

Here's my beef. Personal finance is typically treated like some sort of above-people's-heads, MBA-level rocket science. In fact, the entire financial industry is constructed that way to convince people they need to hire outside help (you know, the experts!). They are masters at taking simple things and making them complicated. On the flip side, my entire mission is to bring it back the other way and simplify the things that have been artificially made to seem complicated.

Would you believe the buddy I mentioned above is in the financial industry? What a coincidence! Meanwhile, I received a bunch of messages from current and former clients who affirmed the simplicity of implementing yesterday's idea. They said it felt weird at first, but once they recalibrated their life around this new mode of operation, it finally made their finances easy to navigate. Boom!

Simplify, simplify, simplify. If it doesn't seem too simple, it means it's not simple enough yet. I don't know about you, but I have far more important and meaningful things to do in my life than spend my time, energy, and worry on complex finances.

If you're interested in simplifying your finances and need some ideas on where to start, we just published a seven-part series on our Meaning Over Money Podcast called 101 (episodes 405-411). In it, we tackle some of the most foundational topics in personal finance and get back to the basics. Topics include:

• Budgeting

• Navigating lumpy expenses through the use of sinking funds

• Personal spending in marriage

• Managing inconsistent or volatile income

• The power of non-retirement taxable investing

• Life Insurance

• Taxes

If any of these sound interesting to you, check them out. They are 100% free and can be found on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. If you know someone in your life who could benefit from them, please consider sharing.

I hope you have a meaningful and SIMPLE day. Always remember, you have far more important things to do than spend all your time and energy dealing with your finances. Simplify!

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Learning vs. Doing

I love learning! Reading books, watching YouTube videos, asking experts.....all of it. For me, there's nothing more beautiful than transitioning from ignorance to competence, from weakness to strength.

However, I'm witnessing a problem develop in our current culture. With unlimited resources at our disposal - often for low or no cost - we're becoming so fixated on learning that we're not actually doing.

We learn how to do something, then learn more about how to do it, then maybe learn a little bit more about how to do it better......and never actually do it. I watch people read six books on a subject, but never put into practice the ideas or concepts they learned.

At some point, it needs to move from our brains to our hands and feet. Knowledge does no good if it's not put into practice. Ignorant action is always more productive than expert inaction.

This is why all the talking heads bother me so much. It's easy to spout off about how people should do this or do that, but where is the fruit? Are they walking the walk, or just talking the talk?

I'm all about educating ourselves and committing to learning new skills and ideas, but my bigger focus is action. Oh yeah, and sometimes failure through doing is the best lesson we can receive. The real world is the ultimate classroom.

My encouragement today is to do. Yes, educate yourself. Digest material, listen to experts, and seek out development......but do! Whatever that thing is in your world today, take action. Even if you're not ready, fully educated, or well-equipped, just do. Put one foot in front of the other and give it your best shot. Trial by fire is a wonderful teacher.

As for me, I have two projects on my plate today that I'm absolutely not equipped to tackle. I'm nervous. I'll probably fail. I'm most certainly going to get frustrated with myself. I'll definitely be seeking research and education on a few nuances along the way. But I'll be doing. One way or another, I'm moving forward. And no matter what happens, I'll be better for it.

I wish you the same today! Have an awesome day!

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Too Too Much of a Good Thing

Yesterday was a fun day. We had the opportunity to spend some time in the sun at a phenomenal little resort right along the ocean. It was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, it ended up being too much of a good thing….or maybe too too much. With some combination of sun sickness and food poisoning, I spent the last 18 hours with some of the worst sicknesses imaginable. I'll save you the gory details, but my favorite part was the horrid hallucinations.

That's why you're receiving this post later than usual, as I have been at death's doorstep until this very moment.

Yesterday was a very harsh reminder that too much of a good thing is never a good thing. The sun was amazing, but seven hours of constant sunlight while hanging right next to the Equator is not a good thing. I got punished for my overzealousness.

The same goes for nearly every area of life: Money, stuff, status, relationships, food, vacation. For each of these, there's enough. The amount that will add value to your life, retain a healthy balance, and live a quality life. Then, there's too much of a good thing. Once we cross that line into too much territory, these things no longer benefit us, but start deteriorating us.

The trouble is it's sometimes difficult to recognize when we've crossed that line. The worst thing we can do is anchor ourselves to what other people are doing, as I did yesterday. When we use others as the point of comparison, we're likely to inadvertently jump off the cliff because we followed them right off. Just because others were getting seven hours of straight Equator-level sunshine, it doesn't mean I should be. Similarly, just because your peers are buying monster houses, fancy new cars, and funding a lifestyle that should only be reserved for a multi-millionaire, it doesn't mean you have to. Don't anchor yourself to others.

Instead, we need to decide what's enough. What's enough sun? What's enough house? What's enough car? What's enough lifestyle? If we make this conscious decision, we can live a healthier and more fulfilling life.

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Oh, I Have Landmines!

Yesterday's post landed hard with many, but one particular response triggered today's piece. "Travis, how did you manage to avoid all the landmines?" It never occurred to me that some people think I speak from a position of having lived a stellar and unblemished financial life. It reminds me that I need to share my early adulthood story again soon. There are so many new readers who don't yet know about my brutal failings. 

Today, I want to share the story of one of my landmines. Surprise, it involves a car! Heading into college, I drove a 13-year-old Honda Civic (with old-school flip-up headlights). I paid $2,000 for that car, and it was shockingly reliable. It wasn't pretty, but it was mine and got the job done (it had a pretty sweet stereo, too!). 

However, before my second year of college, my parents suggested I upgrade my car to more reliably manage my 4-hour drives between home and college. I don't remember disagreeing with this idea, as I think a modest breeze would have pushed me over the edge to purchase a cooler car. Thus, the car shopping began. 

Almost any car would have been better than my existing car. At that point, it was probably worth $500-$1,000 and had a ton of miles on it. My options were unlimited! Wanna know what I landed on? I purchased a 2-year-old Acura Integra. Black with black leather, stick shift, fully loaded. It was so awesome! Oh yeah, and it cost $19,000. I don't think thatnumber does my stupidity justice. Adjusting for inflation, that's the equivalent of an 19-year-old buying a $40,000 car today. Wow, just wow. I, of course, didn't have the money for this purchase…..I was a broke college kid with little cash. That's the moment the destructive debt cycle started to churn in my life. In making that purchase, I signed up for years of monthly payments that I needed to make via an on-campus job. I was going to work anyway, but in hindsight, there were lots of things I would rather have spent that money on. 

That single decision set the table for what would eventually be dozens of terrible decisions....more landmines. After all, stepping on one landmine makes us more susceptible to stepping on another. 

The question to answer today is how to reverse the landmine cycle. Here's what I did:

• First, realize you stepped on one. We can't fix what don't know is broken. It took me years to realize I screwed up…..but better late than never. 

• Second, commit to avoiding these types of future landmines at all costs. For me, that meant deciding I would NEVER use debt to buy a car again....ever.

• Third, we must pay the price to actually heal the damage. In my case, that meant paying off the car and subsequently saving up cash to eventually buy a different vehicle. Further, I needed to humble myself and eventually downgrade cars. The following car I bought was a $10,000 Honda Accord….with cash. 

That entire mess took 8 years to clean up, but it's a landmine I will never step on again. It's ok if you've screwed up, but it's time to clean up the mess and move on. Trust me, it's beautiful on the other side.

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Stepping On Landmines

I had a tremendously fun talk in Los Angeles last night. It was a great opportunity to reconnect with old friends and meet some new ones. I had some wonderful chats with people before and after the event, plus some great Q&A immediately following my talk. A common thread was woven into so many of these stories, which is a similar thread I experience in my day-to-day talking with people about money. Every story about financial pain, struggle, or failure starts with a singular moment where the person made a mistake or experienced a misfortune. I call it stepping on landmines.

Here's an example. A buddy shared the story about how he's in a really tough financial situation. He started with his present, then worked his way backward. The story culminates at the beginning, where he steps on his first landmine. He purchased a car he couldn't afford with a monthly payment nobody should afford. That was a landmine. That singular decision set up and set off a chain reaction that spiraled him to where he currently sits.

Story after story after story, each being triggered by the first landmine. The problem with landmines is that once we step on one, it becomes easier and more likely we'll step on another. After all, we don't make the best decisions under duress.

We obviously can't go back and unstep on our own landmines. I have many I wish I could undo. If we can't necessarily unwind our past landmines, what's the point? I have two points on this.

First, simply being aware of this phenomenon will allow us to be vigilant when the NEXT landmine approaches. We don't have to step on it. Instead, we can have the spatial awareness that we're nearing a landmine, but this time, sidestep it. Doing so frees us from the potential consequences, including the increased susceptibility of stepping on another. Just a few key decisions like this have the potential to radically shift our lives forever.

Second, we can help others around us avoid their own. In addition to the landmine stories, I shared some beautiful conversations with other people yesterday. These are people I care about deeply. With whatever insight and influence I had to offer, I was able to shine a light on a few upcoming landmines in their lives. It would be so wonderful if they were able to avoid them. If one thing I said helps one person take a different path, it was a monumental day. That's the opportunity each one of us has today. If we can help one person avoid one landmine, we've changed their world....possibly forever.

I hope you find that encouraging today, because I sure do! Have a great day!

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Would You Take Their Advice?

Receiving criticism has become a full-time endeavor for me. I used to hate it, but it's grown on me in the past several years. First, the act of being criticized means you're doing something. It's easy to avoid criticism by simply doing nothing. Second, I've learned that receiving criticism is a natural byproduct of giving opinions, and when you provide opinions publicly (blog, podcast, speaking, etc.), you are sure to receive criticisms publicly.

One of my clients recently started to receive quite a bit of criticism.....I mean a lot! First, it means he is doing something. He's trying to move the needle in an area he strongly believes in. Second, since he's doing said work in the public eye, he will inevitably face public criticism.

During a recent meeting, he asked, "How do you do it? Just take all the criticism that comes your way? Does it make you want to give up?"

That's when I shared with him a golden piece of advice I once received from a 16-year-old youth group kid several years ago. It was a typical night at youth group, and each of us was sharing one highlight and one lowlight from the week ("Wows and Pows"). One of mine was that something I said on Twitter triggered hundreds of angry and hateful comments. I felt down. I felt defeated.

That's when my young friend jumped in. "Would you take their advice?"

"Who?"

"The people who are saying hateful things to you. Would you take advice from them?"

"No, of course not!"

"Well, if you wouldn't take their advice, you can't take their criticism."

Boom! Just like that, this young woman disarmed all my insecurity. She was right. If I wouldn't take advice from the people levying all that criticism on me, why should I care about their negative comments? That paradigm shift has changed everything for me!

If someone criticizes my personal financial decisions or advice, I ask myself if I'd take financial advice from them. Do I want my finances to look more or less like theirs?

If someone criticizes my business decisions, I ask myself if I'd take business advice from them. Do I want my business to look more or less like theirs? Heck, do they even have a business?

If someone criticizes my parenting, I ask myself if I'd take parenting advice from them. Do I want my kids to be more or less like theirs? Often, it's people that don't even have kids!

Some of you need to hear this today. Others may not need it today, but be sure to stick this one in your back pocket; the criticism is coming! Anything worth doing will result in criticism. Buckle up and enjoy the ride!

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Snowballing Behaviors

As I recently discussed HERE and HERE, I've been a big fan of my new walking pad. Practically overnight, I quadrupled the number of steps I get each day (up to nearly 13,000 per day over the past five weeks). In the paradigm of what gets measured gets done, this endeavor has been a massive success.

There's another phenomenon at play here, too. Behaviors often snowball. When we change one behavior, others typically follow. Here's what that looks like in my little walking pad world:

• After enjoying Sarah's walking pad so much, I purchased a second one for my home office (along with a desk to go with it).

• One of my buddies asked if I use a biometric scale to track my body composition. I didn't, but I immediately purchased the scale he recommended. I now collect daily data.

• Since I know I'm collecting daily data, I feel more accountable for the decisions I make throughout my day (including my diet).

• Since I'm trying to make better decisions, I dusted off my home gym and have now gotten back into regular lifting.

All because Sarah purchased a silly little walking pad, and I decided to hop on for a few minutes. Behaviors snowball, and I'm really glad I started gaining momentum on these particular behaviors.

Money is much the same way. My goal isn't to get my clients to adopt dozens of well-planned behaviors. Instead, my focus is to help them create a healthy rhythm with just one or two, then trust the snowballing will happen. Budgeting is a perfect example. Once someone starts budgeting:

• They realize they spend money on things they really don't care about. Thus, spending behaviors change.

• Once they realize they aren't a victim of their finances and can regain control of what happens with their money, they get emboldened to pay off debt. Thus, they 10x their aggression toward getting debt-free.

• Paying off debt shows them they can do anything they put their mind to, including saving. Thus, saving momentum improves.

• Once they realize they can dial up their saving momentum, they start believing they can attain things they value. Thus, they prioritize and give themselves permission to spend on things that add value to their life.

• As they gain more insight into their money behaviors, they notice they aren't giving nearly as much as they would like. Thus, it creates an intentional bend toward generosity.

• As they gain better control and momentum in their finances, they realize they aren't beholden to their jobs. Thus, they give themselves permission to pursue work that matters (if they aren't already in it).

• Once they've fully come to terms with the fact that there is a better way to handle and perceive money than society taught them, they aspire to help their kids do it differently and avoid the painful mistakes they've made. Thus, the next generation is transformed.

All because they decided to work a few small financial habits into their lives. This stuff is powerful. Let your (good) behaviors snowball. It might just change everything.

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What’s the Worst That Could Happen?

One of my friends has a unique business idea. Another friend is interested in starting a non-profit. A third friend wants to write a book. A fourth desires to publish music. All four are stuck, paralyzed with fear. Fear of what? Failure. All four are scared of falling flat on their face, getting embarrassed, or feeling like losers. Thus, there's a very real chance they perpetually hold onto their ideas and eventually take them to their graves.

Here's a question I posed to each of them: "What's the worst that could happen?" You know, the absolute worst-case, total destruction, end-of-the-world scenario. Dream big, but in the form of nightmares. Visualize how terrible and life-ending these what-if situations could be.

All four disappointed me. When pressed to provide the most atrocious endings possible, all they could muster was some version of "My pride would be hurt, and I'd have to do something different."

In actuality, there's no real long-lasting consequence for failure other than ego, pride, and self-esteem. If that's true, why not just go for it? Why carry the regret of not doing something if there's so little downside? Why throw away the possibility of something great simply because there's a chance for something marginally bad to happen?

I come from the world of risk and reward. Understanding what could happen if things go right or when things go wrong, then making the best go/no-go decision with the information available. When it comes to our dreams, we're so quick to throw away the proverbial million-dollar reward because we're scared of the hundred-dollar risk.

So what if my friend's business fails. At least he'll know he gave it his best shot.

So what if my friend's non-profit doesn't survive. At least he'll have made an impact on people's lives.

So what if my friend's book sucks. At least she'll have worked through the process, possibly preparing her for the next opportunity.

So what if nobody listens to my friend's music. At least he will know he created something nobody can ever take away.

The upside in each of these is so high, but the downside so limited.

I know I'm going to fail at many things this year, some of them publicly. It will be embarrassing. It will bruise my ego. It will damage my pride. It might even cost me some money. But at least I'll know. At least I'll go to bed at night knowing I gave it my best shot. The worst-case scenarios are pretty lame. But the upside? Oh, the upside is so freaking cool!

If you're ever in doubt, play out the worst-case scenario. Dream big, but in nightmares. Challenge yourself to pinpoint just how bad it could get. My guess is it's not nearly as bad as you think, and if so, why not just go for it?

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Today is the Youngest Day of Your Life

I had the privilege of speaking to a youth group last night, and not just any youth group. It's the same youth group I participated in as a leader for ten years. I was invited to speak on the topic of integrating our faith with our finances. Overall, it went fantastic. The kids were engaged, interactive, showed me lots of love, and even laughed at my dumb jokes (pity laughs still count!).

We call this the “Junkyard pose.”

We covered topics including the behavioral science of money and happiness, the importance of being a good steward, avoiding debt, and finding a healthy balance between spending, saving, and giving. I hope it moved the needle. I hope someone's life was impacted by my talk. I hope a trajectory will be altered in some way. I hope my heart and insight landed well. I may never know for sure, but I'll trust....and have faith.

One of the adult leaders approached me afterward and said the magical line I hear more than any other: "I wish someone would have taught me this when I was 16. It would have saved me a lot of mistakes and regrets." Oh, so true! I wish I had that as well!

I have a bit of a bad news, good news situation. If you're 45 years old, I can't dump you into a DeLorean, speed up to 88 MPH, and take you back to your teenage years. It's too late. I can't go back, and you can't go back. We are where we are. Our past is our past, our mistakes are our mistakes, and our regrets are our regrets.

Now, it's time for the good news. Today is the youngest day of your life. You'll never be this young again. It's the youngest you'll ever be. Therefore, perhaps today is the day you make some changes. Pay off debt. Get on a budget. Start giving generously. Transition to the work you're called to. Start investing. Build an emergency fund. Save for that dream trip.

Here's what I don't want for you. I don't want the 85-year-old version of you to say, "I wish I would have done ____ when I was 45. I was so young then."

No, you might not be 16 anymore. Or 25. Or 30. But you are where you are, and it's the youngest you'll ever be. If that's true, you might as well get started now.

Happy youngest day of your life. Let's get started!

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