Some Goals for 2016

At the end of 2015, I had the privilege of sitting through the funeral of a friend. In my line of work, funerals are a part of the package, but this was for a friend who was not on our hospice. His wife was one of my co-workers for almost ten years, so I got to know Don through that. However, I came to realize that I really didn't know Don at all. About ten years before I met him, he had a stroke that forever altered who he was. The Don that I knew was only a shadow of the man that was remembered that day.

That remembrance got me thinking. (All funerals should be an opportunity for reflection, after all.) Don had his stroke at age 60. For me, that's only 19 years down the road. If something were to happen to me in 20 years (or less), what would I look back and remember of my life? Lots of time at the office? Lots of saying "no" to my kids in order to work for that elusive financial security? Lots of late nights worrying and long days working?

As I have grown older, New Year's Day has become my favorite holiday. As I continue to work out my faith, I become more and more convinced that my "dominant image" of Jesus is the Redeemer, the one who makes all things new. A new year is a natural time for new things to happen and for old things to pass away. And rather than make resolutions, I choose to make goals -- tangible, measurable, achievable goals. (One goal for 2016 is to blog weekly. So far, so good.) This year includes some REALLY seismic goals, so I've been told that the best way to achieve them is to proclaim them and then allow your community to hold you to them. Over the coming weeks in this blog, I will lay out some of those goals. This first one is a biggie, so I thought I would devote my first blog of 2016 to it.

I woke up a few weeks ago and realized that I have four more years with my oldest daughter under my roof. Six years left with the 12-year-old. And the family dynamics of four children in a blended family have proven challenging, especially since I have four active kids in four different schools. So a change is in the works.

Before I lay those out, please know that I love the company I work for, Accolade Hospice, I love the people I work with and for, I love hospice work. I hope to continue my partnership with Accolade long into the future. I have learned so much about life by being around people with terminal diagnoses and the people that care for them. When I left the "church system" four years ago (THAT will be a topic for another blog), I wasn't sure that I could provide for my family outside of that system. The last four years have proven that I absolutely can.

They've also shown me that, when it comes to vocation, I am a little ADD. I have done the hospice thing and the t-shirt thing. I've done some book buying and selling. I've done some worship leading and some preaching. And I have enjoyed aspects of everything that I have done. But the one piece that I'm not really wired for is a 9-to-5, M-F office job. I can make it work when I have to, but it is not my preference. (I'm also not a big fan of business casual, but that's not a surprise to anyone reading this.)

So, there are some changes coming down the pike. Accolade is a very generous company and I am glad to be a part of that team. But I am looking at hopefully transitioning to a different role, which will require that I replace some income somehow. One of the arms of this plan has to do with my t-shirt job with Yahwear (www.facebook.com/yahwear). My hope is that, by pouring more time into marketing and customer relations, I can bring in a good chunk more business for that company. If you need custom t-shirts, polo shirts, promo items, etc., shoot me an email (dave@yahwear.net) and I'll take care of you!

The second arm of the plan is a network marketing gig. I sat down with an old friend to talk about the pros and cons of network marketing, and she convinced me that I could be successful at it. And she signed me up to work with her. I am officially a distributor for It Works! Now, I am still learning the company and the products, but I am excited about the possibilities! More than anything, I am hoping that this frees Wendy and me up to spend more quality time with our (soon-to-be-grown) kids and to spend more quality time together.

Over the course of the next few months (and beyond) you'll see a lot of posts (FB, Instagram, Twitter) from me trying to grow that business. I'll be looking for two types of people -- people that want to try some new products and give me some testimonies to be able to tell (Wendy and I can't use ALL the products) and people who want to jump on board with me and achieve some dreams and goals that go along with a successful It Works! business. My aforementioned friend moved from owning a brick-and-mortar business to just doing It Works! within a year of starting, so it can be done. It's going to require a lot of effort, but I think we can get there. My goal is to transition at Accolade by May of this year, so I have to get after it.

I never would have imagined this path for myself -- network marketing, It Works!, hospice -- none of it. But I am excited about what the future holds. If you are at all interested in what I'm up to, drop me an email (dave@raintreepm.org or dave@yahwear.org). If you're curious about It Works! and interested in knowing more, check out our product line at my website: http://davedrake.myitworks.com/ If you're up for a cup of coffee to catch up, I'm down with that, too. You can call or text me at 806-773-8413.

2016 is shaping up to be a fun year. I'll tell you more about it next time!

Goals

“Time sure flies when you don’t know where you are on the map.”

Derek Webb, “Eye of the Hurricane”

As 2013 flipped to 2014, I had many conversations with friends about resolutions and goals.  I shared some devotional thoughts at our company staff meeting about the horrible follow-through percentages when it comes to resolutions.  And I challenged our employees to set goals instead of making resolutions.  Resolutions make for good January conversation fodder; goals are more concrete and come with a plan, ideally.

I take our 1-1/2 year old son to school most every morning.  Our ritual includes listening to Derek Webb’s CD “I Was Wrong, I’m Sorry, and I Love You.”  (Please withhold your judgment regarding what I am doing theologically to my son.  I’m hoping to nurture a thinking child.)  We do tracks 5 & 6, then go back to track 2.  Webb is a master of the thought-provoking line (“If you’re the only one who runs a race, it might be to get away” and “On that day, we’ll run out of time for death and tears” come immediately to mind.) and one that hits me every time I hear it is the quote above – “Time sure flies when you don’t know where you are on the map.”

I am NOT a planner.  I am a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants-and-hope-it-works kind of guy.  Usually that leads to a lot of activity and very little productivity.  So I am trying to change – at least a little bit.  My wife (who IS a planner/preparer) and I are trying some new things to get things done – a weekly staff meeting, an allocated spending plan, a monthly menu, etc.  So far, it’s proving helpful.  But it’s still January.

I have broken our 2014 goals down into six categories: personal, financial, family, 8^th Day Collective (our church), reading, and work (Accolade & Yahwear).  Each month I am writing out specific things that I hope to accomplish in that month, as well as stretch goals and “on the horizon” goals.  In January, I accomplished about 50% of my goals, and 11% of my stretch goals.  While that’s not anything earth-shattering, it sure is better than having no idea where I am on the map.

One of the goals that I didn’t accomplish in January was to blog weekly.  (I DID, however, blog weakly.)  So this is the first attempt to make that goal happen in February.  I have a plan for blogging as well, so look for thoughts on hospice and friends, train rides and books. 

Two questions as I wrap this up: 

1) What are YOUR goals for 2014 and what kind of plan to you have to make that happen?

2) What topics would you love to have me start a discussion about here on the blog?