Michael T. Burns

I saw some photos of myself today.  I really don’t have much hair.  I have always just felt that it was best to not care and lose it gracefully, but was still surprised by the unexpected angle!  I wonder how many other things in my life are not as I think?  There should be some forum for telling others the truth about themselves.  The closest thing I have ever seen is the website “hotornot” but that doesn’t address anything of value.  I suppose a mentor would be the person with this job in a business setting, but how do you find such a person in your personal life?  A spouse doesn’t want to tell you what to change, a child might but only experiences flashes of insight, and a parent is a bit too biased.

I would like to find someone who would tell me things like, “you don’t have much hair” on a regular basis.  They could rank the importance of making a change in their opinion, then I could decide if I cared to fix it or not. 

When you just don’t feel right you need to decide if this is a “push-through” moment or a rest and recover moment.  The repercussions of making an incorrect decision in this case can be extreme.  Many times in my life I have “pushed through” pain and found serious injury on the other side.  I am now trying to avoid such problems and learn to listen when my body is complaining. 

I recently developed a pain on the top of my left foot.  I don’t know what caused it, but it hurt and it showed up as a bruise.  GRAPHIC PHOTO BELOW!  SCROLL FAST IF YOUR STOMACH IS WEAK!

Foot Bruise

OK it is really just a link, I wanted to keep this family friendly.  Yes, I do have a couple of webbed toes but that is a subject for another day.

What I love about triathlon training is that biking and swimming didn’t bother me so I could flex my training and keep right on going!  I just biked and swam for a week or so and it felt better.  I really don’t know what the problem was, and I don’t care too much because my goals are still intact and I feel better now.

I am hoping to apply this principle in every area of my life.  Maybe if I focus on my goals more and relax about how to acheive them, I can hit them with more regularity.  I hope you can too.

Over the last few weeks I have met a few unnamed heroes in my training who I can’t help but give credit.  The first was an “Older gentleman” (mid sixties?)who killed me in a bicycle training ride.  I asked him how long it takes to get good at bicycling.  His answer was instructive…”After about 4 years of consistent riding, you’ll know if it will work out for you.”  Once I picked up my jaw, I clarified that he really meant 4 (Four) years, which he did, and decided to not give up.  As I thought about the implications I determined that in most things in life I really haven’t been patient enough.

Obviously, “Long-term” means different things to different people.  If 4 years is a trial period for a sport, how long does it take if you’re going to be serious about something?  In real estate long term is at least 10 years, in biblical terms it is multiple generations, and I guess in fitness it is 4 years.  Maybe the lesson here is to simply move forward every day, and focus more on the direction you are heading than the velocity with which you are traveling.

To be continued…

“Well begun is half done” or something like that.  Starting is the hardest part.  Once you have begun in a significant manner, other people know if you are a quitter or a winnner.  I have chosen to be accountable and to become more than I have been in the past, and since I must pay a lot of money to hire an accountability “coach” or hassle a specific freind.  Instead I will let the whole world be my accountability coach.  Feel free to “Razz” me when I fail, cheer me when I succeed or chastise me if I bore you. 

Perhaps in this manner I can become the person I often wish to become.  This website will address real estate matters in Utah (with a particular focus on North Utah County), fitness and training, personal study, economics, motorcycling, religion, parenting, but most importantly it will be a candid look at a life of a fairly insignificant human being, his name is Mike. (Maybe I shouldn’t do the “Third person thing” until I am a famous athlete, businessman, or circus performer)

The motorcycles are great, but this is about establishing cycles of victory and success on a daily basis.  Sometimes even the smallest victory can begin a cycle that leads to prosperity and even greater success. 

I was fortunate enough today to experience a victory as I stuck to my plan, despite adverse conditions.  I intended to run this morning, but woke up to snow on the roads, and the white stuff still coming down.  I had a few choices:  roll over and sleep in, change plans and go to the gym, or press forward and do it.  I am glad that I chose the last option and enjoyed the fruits of the decision all day.

Here is what it looked like this morning upon returning:

By deciding to run in the cold with slush being splashed at me from passing cars, I created a small victory that spurred me on to greater achievement throughout the day.  Many great things happened today but as the victory cycle went, my greatest success was that I was able to be “up” for my family throughout the day.  It wasn’t perfect, but I was better than I have been before. 

A few ways to get into a victory cycle are:

1.  Get up when your alarm goes off, and decide you feel great

2.  Follow through on a commitment

3.  Serve someone. (start with those closest to you)

4.  Make an excuse for someone who hurts or dismisses you.

5.  “WIN” no matter how small the win.

The important thing is to be careful to continue the cycle of victory even in the face of temporary defeat.  Roll away from the instance and move on.  If you focus on the loss, you will continue to lose even more.  I suppose this is a topic for another day.

Create a “Victory cycle” on your life and move forward.