Go With Your Gut!

I spent last Friday at the Rockey Mountain Dental Conference. Which in years past has been a complete waste of time- this one turned out to be no different! But because I respect my bosses and I want to set a good example to those that I manage- I braved the traffic and headed for down town Denver to the RMDC!


I take being a manager very serious, I really believe that God has put me in this unique position and I have a responsibility to be the best I can be and to lead with purpose and integrity! So off I go to "The Lioness in You" seminar. I've heard this speaker before but nothing really stands out about her. I've been to many seminars and conferences that are meant to inspire and motivate- and they've done just that! I've read amazing books- one recently called, Leadership and Self- Deception! It's put out by the Arbinger Institute and I would highly recommend it to anyone- even if you're not a manager! This book and many of the seminars I've been to have been so enlightening. But the Lioness in you had me very irritated and left me with pages of doodling and notes that said things like- Seriously, you're getting paid for this, my bosses paid money for me to sit here!!! More and more doodling.....Then I saw an old friend in the audience and wrote her a note--- Finally, break time and I get to go talk to my old friend! I was checked out, present till the end- but mentally checked out!

I'd like to give you a picture of what I sat through- in a nutshell-
The premise- you're truth is your truth and whatever works for you is what's right.
Go with your gut- Your head will lead you down a path of long conversation and debate, but the gut is usually right and it's always a very short conversation, it says "do it" "don't do it" "delay" (This was the only part of her talk that I did agreed with)

But then she moved on to her recent divorce, she began to spin her "truth"- and then used her theory that if she had just listen to her "gut" that she would have been divorced a lot sooner. She'd been married for 30 years and the last 10 years she knew that she should not be married. Long story short, her point was that now that she's divorced she just "SO HAPPY", and her and the x are friends, and the kids just wished they'd done it sooner- WHAT! Are you serious- How is this inspiring leadership?

First of all, she was totally out of line to even speak of her personal live in this forum, but the spin was what really annoyed me. You don't want to work on a 30 year marriage- fine, but don't lead a bunch of women to believe that if they aren't happy they should just listen to their gut and get a divorce, because after all, it's their truth, and then life will be all they thought it would be, perfect!

I'll be emailing the conference facilitators tomorrow!

"It is in the darkness of their eyes that men get lost" - Buck Elk

Running

I ran track when I was in middle school and then in the 9th grade, I loved it, and I was actually pretty good! I did the 880 relay and ran hurdles, I had long legs and that was about the only time I appreciated those long legs. I think with more encouragement I would have been really good those track events. I remember my mom always said that I was faster than both my brothers- I don't ever remember anyone ever saying that I was good at anything, except running.


This last spring I started running again and now I wonder why I ever stopped- oh, ya- 2 knee surgeries....- Which made my knees as good as new! PTL!

There is a peace I experience when I'm running that I cannot find anywhere else. It's a time when I escape the stress of work and the thoughts of the day that can often consume me. It's a time when God encourages my family and me to be the best I can be, for me.... Through each step He somehow soothes all the things that concern me that day. I finish feeling like I've done what I needed for the day. It's a restoration of sorts. I've somehow convinced myself that I can only run every other day - I'm re-thinking that-

I admit that some days I struggle to get my running shoes on- but 15 minutes into my run I'm speaking positive sentence to myself, like "Kim, you are making your heart and body strong. You can do this, you've done this hill many times, just get to the stop sign and it's down hill.....until.... that next hill. You can do it! And I do. The right music is imperative- It's mostly classic rock; I wish I could get into some Christian rock, I just can't, or maybe I just don't know the right songs.

My niece just ran a 1/2 marathon under 3 hrs, I'm so proud of her- Honestly, I have my doubts as to if I can actually complete a 1/2 marathon.... my goal is to do at least 2 5K races and then a 10K before I do a 1/2 marathon. I'll keep you posted-

Pink Ribbon/ Red Ribbon

"If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you to go on in spite of all. And so today I still have a dream."
Dr. Martin Luther King

Isn't that beautiful? What an amazing man- wish I could have a conversation with Dr. King!

Have you noticed that everywhere you look you see pink ribbons? You know, to bring awareness to breast cancer! I think that's great- really, I do. Mammograms are a wonderful tool and I'm thankful for them. Even though is seems almost inhumane when you're having one!

You can show your support through a variety of ways, from running a race to buying chicken noodle soup! There has been a lot of money put into bringing "awareness" to breast cancer. Having said that, I do think it's pretty obvious that our society is obsessed with breasts- and so is Hollywood. The implant business is booming- even in this economy- I know a lot of women that have spent their hard earned money on implants-

A recent study shows that for every one woman who dies of breast cancer, 10 die to Heart disease. When I heard that I have to tell you that I was really angry, seems to me that everyone is concerned with our breast and not our heart. Maybe if our heart were deemed as important as our breast those statistics would be a lot lower!

Celebrity Wisdom - Oxy Moron for sure!

I'm wondering why celebrities have so much influence over our society, why do Americans hang on every word of a celebrity? I'm thinking it's just because they are visible, they're on tv, and somehow we assume they must know what they are talking about, right? NOT, please be careful who you listen to- evaluate who they are and how they live their lives before you decide to agree with them. I am curious what others think on this subject- so please weigh in if you have time.


I'm still unsure why we would assume that they have a sound perspective on politics or religion- their lives tend to be full of excess, self-centeredness and greed. These people are as out of touch as most of our politicians.

I see very few that actually make any sense when they speak on either subject. I do have to admit that there are a few who I think do a good work around the world and yet somehow keep their personal views out of what they are doing. I appreciate that. I bet you know who they are...

On a lighter note- we went to see the new movie with Denzel Washington this weekend, The Book of Eli- the best part of the movie was the popcorn with way too much butter and m&m's...my husband would recommend it, I would not. It's just too sad! The entire movie is in shades of gray- it gave me anxiety and there were parts that I just couldn't watch. But if you're curious you should go!

My big excitement in life will start again this week- my daughter goes back to school and we get to watch our precious granddaughter, Layla! Thanks Jenn:)

I do realize that this isn't the most interesting post- hopefully they'll get better the more I do it..

Until next time I leave you with a quote I heard today:

I’ve noticed that everybody that is for abortion has already been born.
RONALD REAGAN, 1980

A blogger, me? We'll see~

I have two nieces that write the most amazing blogs- I check in every few days to see if they've posted. They are smart, funny, thoughtful and most of all, silly, oh, and both are absolutely beautiful. Somehow they have inspired me. But let me warn you now, I'm not like them!!

So, it's a new year~ 2010, not sure if I’m going to say 010 or twenty ten! What say you?

Every year I consider making a new years resolution...I've been thinking about all those years I made new years resolutions! They usually involved two areas...exercise and God time! Not one year did I ever feel successful in my "resolution". So, needless to say I'm not a fan of the new years resolution. In fact, it is probably one of the most ridiculous ideas ever created. I don't think I know one person who made a resolution and followed through with it. It's a formula for failure! I think I'm finally able to let myself off the hook and do the best I can everyday.

I have a few life philosophies that I have lived by since the birth of our daughter 23 years ago. One of them is that I want to live each day in such a way that I won't have regrets when I'm old. That's not to say that I don't have any regrets, I do~  but what I do have is the peace that I did the best I could do each day, and God's grace is sufficient to cover all those areas that I messed up.