Getting Back on the Horse

Everyone knows that if you fall off a horse you have to get right back on. This can be a hard thing to do, especially if it is a scary fall. Your confidence is shaken, you might feel embarrassed, you might just be scared to get back on, but if you don't you will regret it. In life we sometimes "fall". Sometimes you fail an assignment, you don't make cuts on a team, you get turned down for a date. All of these events shake your confidence, make you feel embarrassed, and can be scary to overcome. But you have to or you'll regret it. If you stop trying and stop moving forward you are going to miss out on so many opportunities and successes. But if you stand up, dust yourself off, and keep moving forward you can accomplish more than you know. 

This week at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas one of the top barrel racers, Christy Loflin, fell off her horse. Barrel racers race around the arena at top speeds and have to be very athletic to stay on. Just as in any sport, any athlete can have a bad day. But she stood up, dusted herself off, moved on, and competed again the next night. The following comment is from her Facebook page. 

"As everyone probably knows by now I had an involuntary dismount on the first barrel.... I FELL OFF! Movin turned out from underneath me. As you can imagine I'm embarrassed, disappointed and frustrated! It's the worst thing that could happen to you at the NFR. Anything can happen when you climb up in the saddle. That's part of our sport. So I will dust my crazy pink pants off, get up and get ready to try it again in round six. I worked hard to get here and and hitting the ground at the Thomas & Mack SUCKS but I can promise you it's gonna make me tougher :)"

So when things don't go your way and you fall off, stand up, dust yourself off and remember that it will only make you stronger. 

Technology and Meetings

This week is the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. It is like the super bowl for rodeo and it is held in Las Vegas. 10 nights of the best cowboys and cowgirls competing with the best livestock for over 6 million dollars in prize money and world titles. Last year I was able to be  there in person but this year I have to watch from honey. It is times like this when i realize how amazing our modern technology is. I can be home, hours away from Vegas and see the NFR live! Its pretty great.

I was also able to experience the wonders of technology over Thanksgiving break when my group and I had to work on a project. Even though we were in different cities and even states we were able to communicate through gmail and email threads to make progress on our project. Even though group projects are not as exciting as the NFR the many uses we have for modern technology in business, education and agriculture are amazing  and something I will always be grateful for.

I Love Wa Wa

This past weekend I had the great opportunity to be a leader at a FFA leadership conference. FFA members from all over the state came to learn more about themselves and how they could be a better leader. The keynote speaker was Kent Julian. He was great! His teaching style was about letting people learn by figuring things out themselves, and not just lecturing or teaching. For his keynote address he shared a story about a young man that he taught in a swimming class. This young man was four years old and all he would say was his name, that he was four year old, and that he hated wa wa. For two months this child was in his swimming classes and he wouldn't get in the water. He hated wa wa and was very clear about letting Kent know. Until one day he finally jumped in the pool. Then he shouted that he loved wa wa and from there he became a great competitive swimmer.

The moral I like to take from this story is that sometimes we get in our own way. Each one of us is full of unlimited potential and the only thing holding us back from reaching that potential is ourselves. When we are finally able to step out of our comfort zones and rise above ourselves we can do amazing things. And, like Kent says, we can say "I love wa wa!"