Goals

Well, we're home from the hospital. Wiley is doing better. We are all tired and very glad to be home. As we say, this is our new "normal" life. I'm not sure we will ever get use to this.

This week the goal was to get home. The first aspect of a goal is is must be meaningful. For us, "Home" was meaningful. We would do anything it took to make it home. From Tuesday mid day till Friday afternoon, i stayed at the hospital. Except for a few hours at the office. I was by his bed watching all the meds, the fluid inputs and outputs. It was long and grueling. But it's a job only my wife and I feel we can do. We have lots for family that have volunteered to help and are just as concerned about Wiley as we are. But, we just can't leave. Stacy went home at night to take care of our younger son, Hunter. Who, by the way, has been a real trooper as well through all this. He has had to grow up way to fast. But he has done so with a great attitude.

"Home" was the goal. We went without sleep. We talked to the doctors and nurses about what we have seen work best for Wiley. We did everything we were asked to do. We documented everything the doctors requested. We had to practice "tough love" every 6 hours by making him give a blood sample. And the list goes on. But we had our eyes on the prize of going home. All the work was worth it.

For a goal to be successful, that prize has to be bigger than the price. Otherwise, it's too easy to give up.

Kickin Off the New Year (Late)

Welcome,

Well it's a new year. Time for a new beginning. It may be a little late for a "new years resolution" on the BLOG but hey, I'm just running 10 days behind on getting it to the web. I have them written in my journal.

It's been a wild start to '08. I am finishing up '07 at a SkyGolf - and I had a great year. The family is finishing Christmas - spending the gift cards and cash. My band ,Off61, is getting ready for '08. It's been hectic but fun.

As I start this BLOG, I find myself do my typing in the Batson Children's Hospital ICU sitting by my son's bed. He is battling a Craniopharyngioma. It's a rare brain tumor. But, you will probably learn more about that in later BLOGs. This is about the new year.

I love how we have created the idea of "new year's resolutions." It gives us a chance to start over. But, how do you kick off a new year and succeed at those resolutions? It's easy. It starts with goals, then those are developed into a plan, and ends with action and accountability. It's that easy.

Goals are specific. They are measurable. They are attainable and believable. Over the next few entries, I will be breaking these down, explaining them in more detail and laying mine for the world to see. That's pressure!

Plans are your map. Goals should be set in stone. Plans - set them in sand. When "Plan A" does not work, be flexible enough to move to "Plan B", "Plan C", till you find the "Plan" that works.

The third component to success is two fold - action and accountability. This is where many people fail. It's where I most often fail. It's hard to to get started and then to place yourself into a position of accountability. You have to find someone who you respect. Someone who will hold you to you commitments. And they must be honest with you when you are failing. Let's face it, if you fail, you are not failing them. You are failing yourself. Here is a prime example from my life. I have set the goal to loose 52 pounds in a year - pound a week. How hard can that be? Then all of a sudden I find myself in May thinking, "OK, just 2 pounds a week for the rest of the year." Then all of a sudden October hits and I am thinking, "If I only eat one meal every other day, run two marathons a week, and shave my head, face, and legs, I can still make the 52." You get the picture.

For the next few days, We will break these down. And I will open myself up to you.

Happy New Year

Stephen