What Country Am I In?

I often experience something that, until a recent conversation with my friend Claire, I thought was normal. It happened again this morning. Whenever I wake up in a hotel room, I often don’t know what country I’m in. There’s an immediate moment of confusion before getting my bearings. Is that normal? Since sharing this with Claire, I’ve told several other people about these situations. Turns out I am, in fact, weird.

Whenever this happens, roughly half the mornings I wake up in hotel rooms, I think about how funny life is. I grew up in a small farm town in NW Illinois. For me, going to South Dakota was exotic. And one time we went to Florida! Wow, that might as well have been a different planet. When I left home for college and ventured four hours west to Ames, Iowa, that was a scary and treacherous endeavor.

When I started my real estate career, the idea I would travel to different cities around America was wild. For me, it was exhilarating. My first business trip was to Denver, Colorado, to visit Sterling Point Apartments in Littleton. Sure, Denver isn’t the most exotic city in the world, but it might as well have been Hong Kong or London for me. I loved everything about that experience.

Fast forward a decade, and my clients were primarily in Europe and the Middle East. At the same time, I joined the board of an organization in SE Asia. Between those two endeavors, I traveled abroad many times a year. On one occasion, we visited 8 Middle Eastern countries on an 8-day trip (see where I get my hotel wake-up quirk?). For as weird as that travel initially felt, it soon became normal. When Sarah and I first visited Hong Kong in early 2016, it felt intimidating. Today, Asia feels like a second home. I love everything about it. The people, the food, the culture, the history….all of it.

All this is a testament to how small our world is today. Between the technological advances in communication and travel, it’s never been easier (or cheaper) to connect with people on the other side of the world. We shouldn’t take that opportunity for granted. I was recently on a podcast in Australia. Towards the end of the episode, I made a half-joke (but serious) comment to host Joe Stephan about needing to fly to Australia to meet him for dinner. The fact that it’s even possible is wild. Technology allows me the opportunity to create a relationship with this stranger, and a different kind of technology allows me to visit him if I’m up for the adventure. What a world we live in!!!

Sure, we have some problems in our modern world. But let’s never take for granted all the good that comes with it. We can use our resources and technology for evil, or we can use it to create beautiful relationships, far-reaching impact, and priceless memories. Don’t let this opportunity slip through your fingers.

For Good or For Evil

I’m on the board of directors for an organization in SE Asia, and have been for going on 8 years now. My fellow board members have become a second family to me. As with any group of people scattered around the globe, it’s not often we get to meet face-to-face. We try to do at least two board meetings in-person each year (one in the US and one in Asia), with the rest being via Zoom.

I don’t remember how it happened, but about 18 months ago, one of the board members came up with the idea of doing book studies together. After a bit of planning, we were off and running. Twice per month, we gather via Zoom to catch up, spend time together, and learn. The time doesn’t work great for anyone, as it’s Friday night for us in the Western Hemisphere and early Saturday morning for others in the Eastern Hemisphere. However, it’s always a beautiful time and it fills my bucket immensely.

It always gets me thinking about the power of technology. Because of technology, we’re able to meet as a board, spend time doing a book study, build relationships, and collaborate on new projects. One person even gave a video tour of his new house during last night’s call.

Yes, technology, like all the resources we possess, can be used for evil. Destructive and devastating evil. It’s easy to point our fingers at it and give it our wholesale blame. Like many things, however, technology doesn’t have morals. It’s just a tool. It takes on the values, morals, and behavior of those using it. We can use it for good, or we can use it for evil. Social media, podcasts, YouTube….the list goes on. The crazy part is most of the technological tools at our fingertips are either free or very inexpensive. Billions of people, limited financial hurdles, instant access, and very few barriers to entry. This is the opportunity in front of us. We can either shun technology (or insert any of your other resources here), or we can use it for good. I for one choose to use it for good.

In a world flooded with bad intentions and gross negativity, we each have an opportunity to bend the culture the other way. It often seems like the bad far outweighs the good….enough to make us feel like our contributions don’t even matter. But what if I add something good, you add something good, and the next person does the same? What if we all got intentional about using our resources for good? Could we change the world? There’s only one way to find out.

“Just Keep Going”

Early last week, I accomplished a big win. Well, it wasn’t actually a huge win, but it felt like it to me. There was a singular moment when I realized I was finally caught up and didn’t feel like I was chasing anymore. It was the first time I had experienced this feeling in more than seven weeks. It felt like a massive weight off my shoulders. I even sent Sarah and text informing her of my win. Being all too familiar with my plight, she was equally happy for me. I was beyond excited, ready to embrace my new status of not feeling the overwhelming weight I normally carry with me.

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Just seven hours later, the party stopped. I opened my laptop to see an odd black thing on the screen. When I went to wipe the debris off my screen, I quickly realized the black thing was actually inside my screen. I frantically rebooted my computer to see if that would help, but it only got worse. The screen has been black ever since. From that moment on, I’ve been navigating logistical, technological, and scheduling issues. Needless to say, I’m back to feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.

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We both call each other “kid”……long story.

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I had a moment with Sarah the next day. I was venting to her about how frustrated and tired I was. We’ve been married long enough that Sarah knows nothing she says at that moment will actually help me. Instead, she gave me a big hug and whispered into my ear, “just keep going.” Oddly enough, it did help. She’s right, I had no other choice. I just need to keep going.

Today’s post may not seem inspirational or encouraging on the surface, but maybe it is. Just keep going! You may be facing something that has two options: 1) give up and quit, or 2) just keep going. I’m encouraging you to keep going. Not despite the fact it’s hard, but especially because it’s hard. When things get difficult, that’s the moment we need to accelerate through it, not let off the gas and putter our way to the other side.

Someone is having a worse week than me. For that, I’m sorry. You deserve better and your better is coming. Just keep going, though. You’ll be on the other side of it soon enough!