Take a Breather, Then Get Back In the Game!

Last night, our family returned from our annual lake trip. Lots of pool time, too many good eats, and countless memories filled our time together. While I always look forward to this trip, I'm equally excited to return.

While I absolutely love these family trips, I think context is important. For many, vacations are an opportunity to temporarily escape the rigors of life. Considering 70% of Americans either dislike or hate their job, I suspect more people than not can relate to this concept. Vacations and time off allow us to receive temporary relief from a day-to-day, week-to-week grind that simply wears us down. I can relate to this feeling, though it's getting further in my rearview mirror.

These days, my family vacations feel entirely different. I'm not escaping anything, because I love my day-to-day, week-to-week life. Instead, my family vacations offer me the opportunity to take a breather. It's a time to catch my breath, get my bearings straight, and regain my focus, so I can jump back into the game with fresh legs. I look forward to the break, but I'm just as excited to get back on the court as I was to get some rest.

I couldn't be more excited to get back to work next week. Lots of good things are in store. People to serve, impact to make, content to create, concepts to launch. But the breaks are important. If we're not able to catch our breath, we aren't able to give our good work everything it deserves. While I don't feel fully rested (traveling with two six-year-olds....), I have a renewed focus and excitement for what's about to happen.

Can you relate? If so, that's so amazing. If not, just know that reality does exist. You don't have to pursue it, but just know it's out there. A life where we look forward to returning to everyday life as much as we look forward to our vacations. It's beautiful.

Lessons From the Alpine Inn

Last week while in the Black Hills of South Dakota, my family decided to spend our last night dining at a local establishment. My sister-in-law received a tip from a tour guide about a restaurant all the locals frequent. It's called the Alpine Inn, and is nestled on a fun little main street drag in Hill City, population 922. From the moment we walked into this old German restaurant, I knew something different was happening. Then, in the coming hours (yes, hours), I would learn that "different" doesn't even begin to explain it.

First, we walked in at 5:20 and were immediately told there was a 2-hour wait. What!?!? We had a feeling it was worth the wait, so we decided to keep ourselves busy for the next 120 minutes. The wives took the kids to some nearby shops, while my brother-in-law and I held the fort down (tough job, I know). I did what felt natural: I walked up to the bar to order an Old Fashioned. Except they didn't have a liquor license.....beer and wine only. No problem, I think to myself. It's a German place, so I'll enjoy a nice German beer. Cash only. Cash only!?!? The bartender pointed to an ATM 10 feet away (beside the ornate phone booth). I grabbed some cash for drinks and dinner, then quickly hurried back to the bar to retrieve my beer.

While we were waiting, I asked the bartender for a food menu. He referred me to a little sign in the doorway between the bar and restaurant, indicating that was the menu. I saw the sign when we walked in, but it only had two items....I assumed those were the specials. "Yes, we only have two items on the menu. Both are very good." Ah, got it! Of course there are only two items. Why not!?!? This excited me greatly, as any restaurant in a town of 922 people with a 2-hour wait at 5:20 PM and only two items on the menu HAS to be good! Spoiler alert: it was excellent! We had a wonderful time, and my kids enjoyed their first-ever "fancy" meal. To top it off, the prices were ridiculously reasonable. All in all, it was a fun, memorable, disorienting experience. I'm grateful for the Alpine Inn and the wonderful work they're doing.

Here's the point of my restaurant rant. The Alpine Inn breaks all the rules and simply follows their path.....and they do it to great success. They know who they are, who they serve, and how they serve them. They aren't trying to be everyone else. They aren't trying to be all things to all people. They aren't trying to chase the latest test trend. They are simply trying to be the Alpine Inn.....and they're doing a wonderful job at being the Alpine Inn.

There are a lot of lessons to be learned from the Alpine Inn......

The Psychology of Mountain Coasters

The other day, I took my kids to a place called Rush Mountain Adventure Park. It’s a great little place tucked just outside of Keystone, SD. It features a handful of attractions, but none greater than the mountain coaster. It’s less of a coaster and more of a toboggan ride…..but it’s wonderful!

I’m a sucker for behavioral science, especially when it has to do with money and work. Rush Mountain also apparently loves behavioral science as well, as they greatly use it to their advantage. When we arrived, the goal was to take the kids down the coaster once, plus maybe throw in a giant zip line ride. The mountain coaster was $20/ride, and I believe the zip line was $15/ride. In that moment, I decided to buy one ticket for each…..so $35 per person. Certainly not cheap, but it looked like a fun experience to share with my kids. This is when the behavioral science part kicked in. The woman at the counter pointed out that we could get a 24-hour, unlimited ride pass for $62 each. I didn’t plan on spending $62/person for this experience, but $62 for unlimited rides sounded a lot better than $35 for two rides. Rush Mountain won! They doubled the amount they got from me. I won, too! Finn and I ended up going down the mountain coaster five times together, plus the zip line once, and the interactive 4-D shooter game twice. What they did wasn’t a scam or taking advantage of me, but rather using behavioral science to create an opportunity where both parties benefited. They could double the revenue generated from my family, and in turn, we enhanced our experience there. I didn’t have to take that option, but I chose it…..and I’m glad I did! We had a wonderful time and created a ton of memories.

Whether we’re on the business side or the consumer side, we need to be aware of these behavioral science tricks. These are the same principles at play when we can up the size of our fries or drink, or when there are add-on options when we go to the salon or spa, or how different products offer an assortment of progressively fancier versions (hello, iPhone!). Again, none of these are immoral or wrong. If we’re keen on what companies are doing and how they are utilizing behavioral science in their pricing and offering, we can use it to our advantage instead of being swept up in the moment. That self-awareness can be the difference between making a decision we’ll later regret or making a decision that adds value to our journey. I’m sure I’ve been bitten by this before, but this particular decision added a ton of value to our family.

What’s one version of behavioral science being used at one of the businesses you frequent? I’d love to hear your examples!

Even the Best Laid Plans

I had something specific to write about today, but that all went out the window as I’m meandering through a string of failures. We’re on an annual family camping trip, which is starting off strong. I thought I had all the pieces in place to successfully publish this blog each day.

1. My laptop

2. Access to a power source to charge said laptop

3. Campground WiFi

4. Hotspot capabilities as a backup to the campground’s Wifi

Yet, here I am, well after midnight, unable to get this bad boy published. The campground’s Wifi isn’t working at all, and my cell phone has zero signal. It’s not how I thought my day would end, late at night, aimlessly driving around the campground trying to get either a cell phone signal or a working WiFI connection. I had everything planned out, including contingencies, yet I failed.

Money can be a lot like that as well. Even the best-laid plans can yield negative results. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce in our favor. It doesn’t mean it was a bad idea, or we screwed up, or we’re not good enough. Sometimes it just means we got a lousy outcome. I’ve had several of those over the years, including a few in the last 18 months. We can either feel defeated by these losses, or we can strike them up for what they really are: unfortunate outcomes. If we keep doing the right thing for the right reasons, we’ll win far more of these battles than we lose. They key is getting back up on that horse and knowing you aren’t the failure. It’s not always easy, but it does get somewhat easier after enough repetitions. This is something I strongly encourage with my younger clients who don’t yet have the experience to prove what I’m saying is true. We just gotta keep moving forward, win or lose. And if we did the best we can and executed well, but still lost, oh well. We’ll get it next time!

Anyway, sorry for the late post today! Have a wonderful day!

Five Margaritas Deep

My friend Kelsey sent me a meme the other day. Given our dozens of conversations about work and meaning, she knew I would get a kick out of it. Here's what it said: "I don't have a dream job because I don't dream about working. I dream about being 5 margaritas deep on a Caribbean island." 

It definitely gave me a good laugh! Someone probably made it to be tongue-in-cheek, but the best jokes are rooted in truth. First, let's get something straight. I love being five margaritas deep on a Caribbean island as much as the next person.

Work gets a bad rap in our culture. It's a means to an end, a necessary evil, something we do because we have to do it. From the time we are kids, work gets stigmatized. 

• We're made to work as punishment.

• Our earliest jobs are usually pretty crappy (two of mine were raking sand traps at 6AM in the summer and working in the cheese factory at 4AM on Sundays).

• If 70% of Americans dislike or hate their jobs, there's a high likelihood we watch at least one of our parents have a negative relationship with their work.

• We usually launch into adulthood with a bunch of debt, meaning we feel immediate pressure to find work to pay for the loan payments.

Every step of the way, we're learning and feeling that work sucks. With that context in mind, I get it! It makes sense why we would collectively view and treat work like a necessary evil.

Here's a different perspective of work I'd encourage you to think about. Work isn't something we have to do, but rather something we get to do. Not everyone is physically and mentally healthy enough to be productive.....it's a gift to have that ability. Work isn't just trading our time for money. It's an opportunity to use our skills, creativity, passions, experience, and influence to serve people. Serving customers, colleagues, and bosses. When we work, we add value to other people's lives:

• My kids get to enjoy an afternoon at the pool because the lifeguards are using their skills to keep watch and order. Without them, there is no pool.

• I shared a meal with a friend last night. Without the waiter and cooks, none of that would have happened. 

• My bike chain recently broke, and I took it to the shop. Without the team at my local bike shop, I wouldn't have a working bike to enjoy.

Maybe none of these examples are your dream job, but let's not lose sight of the value of work. It's not a necessary evil. It's an opportunity to make the world a better place. It's a chance for us to improve the lives of others. Yeah, we get to make some money along the way as well. That's awesome. But let's not demean the value of work in our lives. After all, that's what makes those "five margaritas deep on a Caribbean island" days so satisfying. 

It's a Tell

Today is my first day back at work in 11 days. I really enjoyed our trip to SE Asia and the Middle East, but I couldn’t be more excited to get back to work. For me, this strong feeling of excitement is just normal…..I always feel it. But at the same time, I recognize this is an abnormal feeling for most. Statistics show that 70% of Americans dislike or hate their job. With this information in tow, vacations act as an escape from the realities of life. We travel, in part, so we can leave. We get to step away from our responsibilities, work, boss, coworkers, deadlines, and routine. For a short period of time, we get to rewrite our journey. There’s only one problem: the trip will eventually end and we must return home to our life.

There comes a moment on our vacation when we realize it’s coming to an and we start thinking about everything on our plate when we go back home. For many, this often comes on the second-to-last day of a trip. You know the moment! How we feel in this moment is a tell, as I like to say. For some, it provides a feeling of dread. We’re disgusted by the mere idea of going back and doing the things we know we have to do. For others, it feels like a weight added to our shoulders. For countless people, there’s a feeling of numbness, a deadened feeling after so many years of frustration and disappointment. Then for a small group, there’s an overwhelming feeling of excitement. There’s pent-up energy, new ideas, and a sense of possibility of what could come in the days/weeks ahead.

I, and many others, live in the last camp. As I sit here with a fresh work week in front of me, I can’t help but smile about all the potential just waiting to be seized. The trip was amazing, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world, but I’m ready and excited to get back to work. That’s a tell. It’s a clear sign I’m exactly where I need to be. I haven’t always had this feeling, but I do today. One of my missions is to always be living a life I’m excited to return to after an amazing vacation. That’s the tell.

What does your tell say about you and the life you’ve created for yourself? Whatever the answer is, I have good news. You’re just a few decisions away, good or bad, from significantly altering how you feel about this question. Have an awesome week!

Credit Card Myths: Travel Edition

If you know me at any level, whether that be personally or someone who consumes some of our content, you’ll know that I’m anti-credit card. I have several reasons for despising credit cards, spanning the spectrum of principles, ethics, psychology, control, and simplicity, to name a few. I won’t rehash all the reasons in this post. Every time I discuss the topic of credit cards, I know all the arguments people will use against me. The most popular defense of credit cards is the benefit of points, cash back, and miles. If you’re interested, I did a podcast episode about why most people (yes, probably even you) are actually losing money with their points.

Another common pushback I receive about my position on credit cards is the necessity of having one to travel. Flights, hotels, rental cars, and retailers…..all of these require a credit card, right? What kind of idiot travels without a credit card? Well, me. My wife and I just got back from a 10-day trip that included Qatar and multiple cities in Thailand. No credit card. As always, we had cash, our primary debit card, and our travel debit card. That’s it! To be honest, there’s not a lot to argue about. It works great. It worked as well on this trip as the other 30+ countries I’ve been to. It’s a myth. We don’t NEED a credit card to travel.

There are a few nuances. Take hotels, for example. Most hotels require a damage deposit to protect themselves in the event you decide to throw a raver or rip the TV off the wall. Each hotel is different, as evidenced by the three we stayed at. One put a temporary $200 hold on our travel debit card, one required a refundable $100 cash deposit, and the third didn’t require anything. All of our flights go on a debit card. That’s an absolute non-issue. As for rental cars, it’s hit and miss. Any time I need to rent a car, I’ll check with the company beforehand to ensure they don’t require a debit card. Some do, but most don’t. I just choose one that doesn’t.

Life is always simpler without a credit card, and travel life is no different. We have a sum of money in our travel fund to spend on travel. When we use an ATM to take out local currency, it comes out of our account. When we swipe our debit card at retailers, it comes out of our account. When we grab an Uber, it comes out of our account. At any point on the trip, we can see exactly how much we have left to spend. It’s easy, it’s simple, and it’s freeing. We have zero financial stress coming back to America, as we only spent the money we had in our travel checking account. Nothing will haunt us, we won’t be paying for this trip for the next few months (or years), and we don’t have to worry about anything other than trying to catch up with life when we return. I’ve worked with hundreds of families over the years and I can confirm the post-trip stress caused by credit card use can be brutal.

There are so many myths surrounding the topic of credit cards. Hopefully today’s thoughts about one of them will at least give you something to think about. Happy travels!