Teamwork (In Respect to March Madness)

In the heat of March Madness, there is an over abundance of analysis of who has enough talent and skills to win the tournament. The question we have to ask is not who will win, but which TEAM will win. The best players do not win championships, the best teams win championships. That is why in playoffs, underdog teams win because the team works together.
United we stand. Divided we fall.

Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.

To be successful you have to be selfish, or else you never achieve. And once you get to your highest level, then you have to be unselfish. Stay reachable. Stay in touch. Don't isolate.

-Michael Jordan

Time Saving Tips

I have been listening this audiobook by Timothy Ferris. There are a lot of good time saving tips, work and not work related.

1. Don't read the newspaper and don't watch the news on TV. Same old junk stories, just a different day, all of the time.

2. Don't multi task. You think you are getting more done at once. But the truth is, you are only doing a lot at once and getting nothing accomplished.

3. Don't mirco manage. You will nickle and dime yourself for a nickle and a dime. Organization is necessary, but you could be more effective with your time than mirco managing.

4. Don't follow politics, but still vote. Let someone else you trust do the research.

5. Check email twice a day. 11:00AM & 4:00PM. If you constantly check your email, your clients will automatically think they can email you whenever and get a response immediately. Truth is, you will spend more time emailing back and forth than resolving any important issue over the phone.

6. Focus is key. Did you ever notice your best work has come from doing it at the last minute? That is because you are focused! Doesn't matter if your assignment was given to you two days ago or a month ago, you will be more focused at the last minute because the assignment is on your mind and you have to get it done now.

Nighthawks at the Diner.

I love diners. They are my favorite kind of restaurant. You see all of the local flavor. When I go to a new city, the first restaurant I go eat at is a hole in the wall diner. Diners are one of the few places you can go by yourself, and not be alone. Tonight, I went to The Pantry, in downtown LA. That is my favorite restaurant in Southern California.

While I was there, I got thinking.

Diners are a staple to the American culture. I was looking around and watching everyone come into The Pantry after the Laker game, and I saw how diners define Americans.

My other thought was, if a restaurant is open 24 hours, you should visit that restaurant at all hours. How about french toast 3AM?

Maybe I was tired, but I couldn't think of anything to talk to the server about. Any rowdy crowds? Naw, lakers play across the street... Economy? Naw, too boring... Does he eat after work? He probably never gets off work...

So I just sat in peace and quiet and ate my toast, hashbrowns, eggs over easy, & pancakes.
Shouldn't have ordered the pancakes...

And I saw the Nighthawks painting in Chicago a few years ago at their awesome world class museum.

Joshua Tree

My trusty boots. They have saved me more times than I can count.
On a vertical wall, by the way...



Joshua Tree is like visiting Mars.



Sunrise Safari World Adventure, in the middle of nowhere.


Brett is on his own safari.

Fear is an Emotion

I went to Joshua Tree National Park over the weekend with my cousins and my brother to go camping. When we got there, the sign said campgrounds were full. I have seen signs like that before, and they have never stopped me. But for my cousins and brother, they have never slept on rocks on in the middle of nowhere before. I kept telling them to not worry about finding a "campsite" because we can camp anywhere. They were a bit worried about the fact that I was not worried, and didn't really care about finding a campsite. So I found a spot near a back country hiking trail to camp. It turned out better because we could be as loud as we wanted and we still made smores.




Sunday, we went bouldering. You can climb any of the rock formations you want. I have been to Joshua Tree so many times, I just find a big pile of rocks and climb as high as I can go. Sometimes you just gotta push yourself and either stretch your body or take a jump across the gap.



Looking back at this weekend, there were some scary times. For some reason, I was never afraid. Maybe I am used to being out in the wild. I remember some of the first times I camped the night out alone on a motorcycle trip, I was scared then. But I over came my fear. And climbing those boulders, there are some deep drops and the rocks get pretty high, but you just keep moving and don't think about 'what if you fall.' Fear is only an emotion, and it must be conquered.

Other photos on their way.

Reading

"Reading deverts the mind too much of creative persuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls in lazy habits of thinking."

Albert Einstein, Visionary.

Limitations

"The only limitations on life are the ones you put on yourself."
Dexter, the one armed kick boxer