Last Sunday was a 100km ride from Wistow to Murray Bridge with lots of hills.  I’ve previously competed in B Grade races but this day I was competing in E Grade.  In my defence I thought it was quite acceptable to go down a grade or two seeing as I haven’t ridden for so long but to go down to E Grade was a bit of a shock.  It didn’t stop me and I got in amongst it all.

The first third of the race I was very comfortable and picturing myself finishing the race towards the front of the group if not ‘right at the front’.  Unfortunately that’s where it all went astray .  I started to struggle on a hill and got quickly dropped from the pack.  Anyone who knows anything about riding will know that once you get dropped from the pack it’s almost impossible to get back on the pack again.  Once you are dropped from the pack you just get slower and slower as you do all the work for yourself and the pack continues to pull away.

I watched them disappear into the difference and then crossed the finish line 28 minutes after the winner of my grade and I was … stone cold motherless LAST !  It has got to be the worst result I’ve ever had in my riding career … and I enjoyed every minute of it.

I’m not one who likes to lose but I totally hate being a spectator on the side lines when I could be in the mix and out there having some fun.  It’s not all about winning sometimes it just about being out there and having a go.

Two additional great things that came out of it …
1.    Two more organisations have booked me to speak at their conferences next year
2.   My list of bonus takeaways was massive:
golf balls, golf umbrella, golf towel, 4 x golf caps, 6 x Grant Burge Shiraz, 6 x Cab Sav,
6 x some other wine and slab of Coopers Ale

what more could a guy ask for

RWTA is made of some really great people and all seem to work together quite well to keep their industry moving forward … well done guys.

I was talking to a friend just the other day … Matthew Hill … and he reminded me that I will feel better about myself by not stooping to the low morale ground of my enemies.  We were talking about organisations and people that had disappointed or frustrated us and they had frustrated us to the extreme for no good reason.  I started to talk about one particular fella who has frustrated me (from time to time) for literally decades and even though we haven’t spoken for several years I still hear reports of how he continually tries to undermine me.  Most of the time it doesn’t concern me too much.  I’m comfortable with who I am but I do worry about how other people might view me after listening to him.

However, I do know of this one ‘incident’ this person was involved in that if I brought the subject up it would absolutely infuriate him and he would get massively angry with me. I know this wasn’t his fault, I know he wasn’t to blame but it is still something that other people have ‘accused’ him of and he is extremely sensitive about the mention of it.  It’s one of those issues that would possibly make him need to go back to therapy … it is that sensitive.  I have never and would never bring it up to him because it just wouldn’t be nice and it wouldn’t be fair.  However …. I was speaking to Hilly about it and made the following statement … Hilly’s response brought me back to earth and back to who ‘I really want to be’.

I said … ” xxx really infuriates me, he’s always telling people how stupid I am, always telling people about everything that I’ve stuffed up.  He frustrates me so much that I sometimes feel like bringing up xxxxx and just see how he likes it when we discuss it.  I know that he did nothing wrong, I know it wasn’t his fault but I also know that it I bring it up it’s sensitive enough issue that he will just go right off … he’d get so angry.  Just see how he likes it when people say things that aren’t true! I sometimes feeling like I would like to do it just to get a little pay back for all the bad things he says about me.”

Hilly’s response was instant, off the cuff and absolute GOLD … “Take the high morale ground”.  He didn’t need to say anything more, that was enough.  It reminded me of the things I like about myself and of the things I like about the friends I choose.  I shouldn’t compromise my standards for anyone, no matter what they are doing to me.  There are plenty of other things this guy and I could debate without having to stoop to ‘the low morale ground’.

I also feel comfortable that no matter what this guy says … people who really matter will want to get to know me before making any true judgements.  It’s good to have friends who remind us of who we really want to be and help us to be that person.

I find it fascinating that so many people, can blame so many things, for so much going wrong.
Why didn’t you get an answer? Well…I called and they didn’t call me back.
Why is this project behind schedule? We had a problem with our supplier, and then we had some weather delays, and….
Why didn’t you get me that report I asked for? I haven’t had time.
Where’s the data you promised me? Oh, I’m sorry. My computer wasn’t cooperating.

Simply step up and say “I did it so I’ll take responsibility for making it right.” or “I’ll take responsibility for the actions and the consequences.”  99% of the time you will find leaders prefer to be told and ‘should’ assist to correct things quickly.  People get more upset when you try to deny it, blame others, cover it up, pretend it didn’t happen or just leave it and let it get worse and worse.

I don’t often talk politics but this is an a-political observation.  Unfortunately, the leaders of our country are not great examples of the Step UP philosophy and this sets a trend for those who observe and follow them.  We have a current but certainly no isolated situation where, it appears on the face of it at the moment, one of our politicians has been caught out spending money in the wrong places with the corporate credit card.  He’s making excuses, he’s blaming others even suggesting his card was ‘swapped’ and his signature copied.  He’s only making things worse.  If he was to Step Up, he would have to deal with the consequences but then the drama would only be half as bad as what it is now.

If you are a leader you need to lead by example.  If you would like your subordinates to tell you immediately when things go wrong … you need to show them that you do that too.  The other thing that’s essential is that when something does go wrong, you as the leader, need to assist your subordinate in finding the solution rather than shouting at them, going off your trolley at them or worse still assisting them to try to cover it up.  It only makes things worse. Help them to rectify not cover up.

If you are a leader and wonder how you respond when things go home you need look no further than your own family/children.  How they deal with you will more than likely be the same way your staff will deal with you too.

As communication devices such as the iPhone and Blackberry continue to advance, work/ life balance becomes blurred. There is more demand on people to respond quickly to the boss or client at 8 pm on a Friday night or 4 pm on a Sunday afternoon.  Unfortunately more people are accepting that this is the ‘norm’. In the struggle to get ahead we go against our instinct as we believe we have to capitulate with the demands of being more readily accessible via the ever growing technology.

However, “I sense a disturbance in The Force” (a quote for STAR WARS fans) … there is a shift in our attitudes. People are starting to resent the intrusion of one arena into the other at inappropriate moments.

Some people I met recently don’t have a mobile phone.  They say that anything they need to do with their business can wait till they get to their work phone or answering machine.  One guy has a mobile but refuses to give the number out to randoms … he has it just for family or ‘very select’ business interactions such as his business manager. He says it’s quite funny when people at a hotel check him in and ask for his mobile number and he replies with … ‘I don’t give out my mobile number”.  He says the responses range from dumb struck silence to straight out argument.

Through my speaking I am fortunate to meet lots of different people from all around Australia.  Some quite eccentric and some quite practical.  The bonus of it all is that I do get to see and hear of lots of different approaches, attitudes and opinions.  There is a disturbance in the force … people are starting to question that seemingly accepted pressure to conform to what everyone else is doing.  The rebellion army that is willing to stand up against what everyone else is just accepting because it’s too hard to fight.

There are no two ways about it … family life and work life and social life will always be integrated to some degree.  When you catch up with friends or go to a party we talk about work.  When we are at work it would be rare to go through a day without discussing your family or social life to some extent.  Family/work/social life will always be integrated but do we have to be connected to everything all the time … I think not.

I think when we first got our first mobile phones we were excited about having this new connectivity.  We wanted to be able to show how well it worked and good it was for business.  But that initial excitement was 30 years ago.  The new excitement is now around being selective as to when to use the technology.  the new excitement should be focussed on getting our control back of our time and our lives.

There are already a few people taking a stand and saying “I have the technology and TODAY I choose not to use it”.  They are showing commitment through actions too.

It is time for us all to make a conscious choice … where do you stand on the issue?
Do you think it’s right to be so connected to business all the time?
Do you think it’s right to be so accessible by family while at work?

Where do you stand?

This has lead me to look at the concept of sleep, how to improve it and it’s role in recovery of injuries.  This in turn lead me to considering how necessary sleep is for maintenance of our day to day lifestyles and productivity at work.

The Encyclopedia Britannica defines sleep as “the natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored”. The all-important word in this definition is restored. Yes – that is the purpose of sleep to allow your body to recharge what you have worn down during the day.

I reflect on this definition because like many other people I sometimes push myself well into the night to try and get more work done.  I sometimes do this for several days in a row in the hope that I can get enough work to make the rest of my time easier.  However, having done the reading I have, I’ve realised that continually working late into the night is actually counter productive.

When I work so long into the night I obviously reduce the number of hours I sleep.  When I don’t get enough sleep I’m tired the next day.  When I’m tired I don’t work as hard and I get distracted a lot easier.  Therefore my productivity is reduced.  This then leads to me ‘having’ to stay up late again the next night to complete work that wasn’t completed during the day. This all equal counter productivity.

My aim now is to focus on getting into a regular sleeping pattern for two reasons:
1.     So that my mind and body get the right amount of rest and recovery so I can be more focussed, productive and effective during my working hours.
2.     So that my body can have the down time it needs to restore itself, heal it’s injuries and get me back on the bike sooner.

Are you sleeping well enough … to be as effective as you can be?

Congratulations deservedly go to Cadel for his amazing achievement.  As a semi-serious bike rider myself I have sat up watching in amazement as he and his team punish their bodies at the same time as enjoying their success.  However wonderful the success of winning is, that’s not the reason for this post.

Cadel is one of the few true gentlemen whilst in glory.  He readily and continually acknowledges the efforts of his team.  Without them he wouldn’t be where he is now.  However, many of us are in the same boat as Cadels’ team. Many of us have been supporters for those people who have gone on to gain the ‘public’ glory of outstanding achievement.

I’m in that boat of having some public acknowledgement for my achievements and I too like to acknowledge that I wouldn’t be where I am today without the assistance of many, many people who I could consider ‘my team’.

What have you had notoriety for that you can be extremely proud of your achievement and proudly acknowledge the efforts and support of the team that has rallied around you to ensure your success?  No matter how good, rich, powerful or popular you become in life … don’t ever forget the people who helped you get to where you are.

Leave me a comment about what you have achieved and who was there to support you.

Do you know what projects, goals or dreams you have that you need a mentor for?

I have several mentors in my life … my parents are the obvious, almost default, mentor.  I would hope that most people are able to look up to their parents as mentors but I also know that it doesn’t always work that way.  I’ve been a policeman for some 34 years and I’ve seen some terrible parenting in my time so I do know it doesn’t always work. Fortunately for me, my parents are sensational!

However, there are some things in life that we need specific mentors for.  I have two major projects at the moment and I have different mentors for each.  They are helping to push me along, think differently, they keep me accountable for what I have promised to do.  They also question me when I don’t achieve or at least put in a decent effort to those things.

Yesterday, one of my coaches noted that I had started this blog with intentions of posting note worthy information on a regular basis … but I haven’t maintained the practice!!  Why not?

We had ‘the’ discussion.  I was a short discussion.  He was right and his reminder was all I needed. I don’t mind admitting when I’m wrong or when I’ve stuffed up (sometimes it takes a bit to convince me of it )

So this is my post … to say that we all need mentors, no matter what we want to do, whether it massive or as small as writing a blog on a regular basis.  In my programs I discuss the value of mentors often and have a formula for working out who your mentor could or should be. I don’t think we ever achieve anything on our own so create a team around you to help you and start with a coach.

My coach got me back on track with this post

Who’s your coach and what are they doing for you?

After the shooting, I returned to riding too and from work again but not quite as often or with the same intensity.  About 6 years ago though, a mate asked me to go riding with him.  I had been divorced and lonely for a while and thought this was a good opportunity to connect with people again and took up the offer and the challenge … this guy was ex-STAR Group and definitely better than me.

We started riding 30k’s a time and I thought we were good.  We extended that distance and did 50 k’s a time and I thought we were good. Then we found a group to ride with that extended us to 70 k’s at a time … and … I thought we were good.  That group stayed together for quite a while and we nicknamed ourselves ‘The CORE’.  We enjoyed riding so much that in the end we weren’t happy with our ride together unless we had done 100 k’s or more.

Now I’ve taken on a bigger and better challenge. I’ve found 2 new riding buddies (Vearsy and Paul) who are pushing me harder than before.  Shorter distances but higher intensity.  They encouraged me to join the Adelaide Hills Veterans Cycling Club (AHVCC) with them to pit ourselves against people who are really serious about riding well, fast and hard.  Don’t get me wrong, this is a very social, very welcoming and very friendly club and everyone is there to compete and see how well they go.  However, the higher grades are serious about riding hard and fast.

We started riding in D Grade.  It was very competitive and we did pretty well.  In an inter-club competition Vearsy and Paul ere entered in D Grade again and as a result of some stirring from Vearsy I was pushed up into C Grade.  There was a field of of 18 riders … and came in 6th.  I was stoked !!!  However, a bigger challenge was yet to come.  They elevated me to B Grade for the next AHVCC race.  My two mates I joined the club with were also in B Grade in the same race.

We rode that B Grade ride yesterday and in a field of 9 B Grade riders. Paul came in 2nd and I came in 7th and Vearsy injured his knee.  Let me tell you … I’m proud of Paul for his 2nd place but I couldn’t be prouder of my 3rd last position!!  I’m stoked. I’m riding with B Grade riders and just proud to be up there with those guys and girls.  I’m coming in near last … and I still think I’m pretty good

This is where my challenge now starts! I’ve found where my natural position is in the club.  I’m faster than the C Grade riders and not yet as quick as the majority of the B Graders.  I don’t actually have a lot of time to train on the bike … but making as much time as I can of course.

So my challenge is to find out how I can improve my abilities on the bike.  This is not about proving myself to be as good as someone else … this is purely about finding out how I can enjoy my passion as much as I can.  I love to extend, stretch and test myself.  I love to have a challenge.  This is purely about challenging myself to see how far I can go in the field I’m enjoying at the moment.  Don’t get me wrong, I also love the competition with other people … that’s the whole point of joining the club … to see how I fair against other consistent riders.  But the result is all about how much I can push myself in a field I’m really enjoying.

My challenge to you is … what is your passion and what are you prepared to go to get as good as you can at what ever it is you enjoy?  Please remember this is about enjoyment not about pushing yourself to prove yourself to someone else.  This is purely about YOU.  What are you prepared to do to enjoy your passion … physical, mental, emotional or spiritual?

Some people, like me want to push themselves to keep on improving and getting better.  Some people like to just get out and enjoy themselves at what ever they enjoy … it may be sporting, it may be academic or it may be inner spiritual. It doesn’t really matter what your passion is.

I’d be keen to hear what your thoughts are, what your field of enjoyment is and what you are prepared to do to ensure you enjoy it to the extent you want to!!

Had a clean out operation 2 days ago so now trying to use my recuperation time to get creative and come with some new ideas for new dreams and goals.

Ankle should come good within the next week or so and Ill be back on the bike in no time at all.