6:50 a.m. First alarm goes off. Screw it, I showered last night and I shaved yesterday. Hit the snooze button.
7:20 a.m. Second alarm goes off. Do I want to get up and cook breakfast or do I want to savor this glorious moment in my bed? Hit the snooze button.
7:50 a.m. Third alarm goes off. I have to leave for work within 40 minutes. Plenty of time to get ready. Hit the snooze button.
8:20 a.m. Fourth alarm goes off. I have to be ready for work in 10 minutes, but this isn't my first rodeo. I brush my teeth while applying deodorant, quick face wash, splash on some Burberry cologne and out of the door by 8:30 a.m.
I have tried numerous times to become a morning person but failed. Ironically, I feel at my best when I wake up early, workout, cook breakfast and actually put an effort into what I'll wear for the day. I've read, "How to Make Yourself A Morning Person," and "Why Morning People Rule the World," and "What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast," and on, and on, and on. But I still hit that snooze button.
But this week, I've discovered two important workings. First is Marcus Aurelius' The Emperor's Handbook. This book is a new translation of Aurelius' Meditations. By far the best book I have ever read and that's a profound statement. I plan to apply this book not only in my personal life, but also in my career, and without a doubt, I will become a better person. Second, I discovered Two Weeks in Hell, a Discovery series that documents the grueling process to become a U.S. Army Green Beret. Never again will I complain about a workout.
So as I'm nonchalantly drinking a nightcap bourbon drink, I come across Two Weeks in Hell on Netflix. Intrigued, I started the series and was immediately captivated. Forget Marshawn Lynch, these dudes are true beast modes. Within an hour of arriving at camp, the candidates are taken to a sand pit. Anyone who has ever conditioned for a sport knows anytime someone mentions "sand pit," your stomach begins to turn. Precisely why one of the instructors outwardly demanded, "No one throws up in the sandpit! Understood?" Within the hour, candidates were voluntarily withdrawing from the program, throwing up, and becoming so delirious one candidate was asked by a medic, "Do you know where you are?" and the candidate dazedly responded, "Hash browns." Yes, he was that deranged.
Anyways, back to my comfy couch where my legs are propped up, drinking my delicious bourbon drink, while watching these brave men pour their hearts and souls into a program that has an over 60 percent failure rate. I'm watching these men suffer in order to be a part of a cause he truly believed in. These men put everything on the line to become part of an elite group of soldiers that are (to put bluntly) paid crap and are constantly fighting in enemy territory so that I can casually sip my bourbon and watch on as if I am Commodus himself. Indeed, I was abashedly entertained.
Then yesterday I read this quote from The Emperor's Handbook. "In the morning, when you can't get out of bed, tell yourself: "I'm getting up to do the work only a man can do. How can I possibly hesitate or complain when I'm about to accomplish the task for which I was born? Was I made for lying warm in bed under a pile of blankets?
But I enjoy it here.
Was it for enjoyment you were born? Are you designed to act or to be acted upon? Look at the plants, sparrows, ants, spiders and bees, all busy at their work, the work of welding the world. Why should you hesitate to do your part, the part of a man, by obeying the law of your own nature?"
It should be reiterated again and again that we are here for a purpose. We were not placed on this earth to be lethargic. Yes, of course, relaxation is needed. In fact, it is just as important as working diligently. However, as Marcus Aurelius said, "Like eating and drinking, rest has it's natural limits." I was not born to lie in a bed. It's time to get up.
Last week I had to make an important decision. I had to decide between one of two options. First, I could walk down to the local Walgreens and purchase four cartridges for roughly $21. Or, I could join Dollar Shave Club and subscribe monthly for $6 and receive four cartridges each month. The better option to choose may appear conspicuous and facile, but my ability to make a decision was much more involved.
See, if I apply the Diffusion of Innovation Theory, I am majority of the time associated between an Early Adopter and a Early Majority. I am never the Innovator. For example, I would never be able to convince myself to stand in line for six hours for a smart phone. So when I noticed the Dollar Shave Club ads on my Facebook news feed, I was hesitant to try it out. Sure I liked the company's name, which is quick, concise, tells a story on its own, but I had to do some more research.
So I visited the company's site where I enjoyed the opening video. Very unique and funny. I was also drawn to the simplicity of it's website. The navigation to find answers and learn about the business is easy, which correlates well with the overall brand because this is not a complicated business so describing how it works should not be either.
Finally, it came down to reviews. I do not know anyone else that participates with Dollar Shave Club so this was the more important factor for me. I had questions like, "Do the blades suck?" or "How long does it take to receive the blades?" Both of these answers were easy to find.
Well, today I received my first Dollar Shave Club package and the shave I had today was great. Very smooth with no irritation. Shaving has an idiosyncratic art to it. It is much more than using Barbasol and a Bic Razor. The way a man takes care of his face correlates with discipline and class. This is one reason why the military requires cadets to shave daily. So do yourself a favor and take shaving a little more seriously. Find your own unique method and while doing so save yourself money by joining Dollar Shave Club. I've included my own arrangement below if you need some recommendations. Happy Shaving!
Shaving on a Budget
I love Art of Shaving, but unfortunately it's prices are a little high for me at the moment. So for those on a budget like myself, these options are relatively inexpensive.
Pre-Shave: I like to use Neutrogena Deep Clean Gentle Scrub. The microbeads exfoliate the skin to help remove dead skin and it also helps raise your facial hair. For those that live in dry environments, I would definitely recommend also purchasing face lotion since the micro scrub tends to dry out your face.
Blade: As stated prior, at Dollar Shave Club I purchase the $6 option. The blade works great and is also adjustable so it works well with shaving around the neck and jaw-line.
Shaving Cream: Throw out your Barbasol or at least keep it so you can shave the back of your neck inbetween haircuts. Regardless, do not use it on your face because you are missing out on some better products. Dollar Shave Club offers shaving butter, which I plan to try next month, but currently I am using Cremo Cream and this stuff works great. Highly recommend it!
Post Shave: I apply two applications after I shave. First, I apply Neutrogena Men Razor Defense Post Shave Lotion. Incredibly long name for such a simple product. Basically it fights razor burn and ingrown hairs. Smells nice too. Next, I apply Neutrogena Men Sensitive Skin Moisturizer. Unfortunately my father was diagnosed with skin cancer, but one blessing in disguise from his diagnosis is I've learned the importance of taking care of your skin. This moisturizer has SPF 30.
At only 5'9, the legendary actor, Steve McQueen, presented himself as if he stood as a giant among men. He often played tough, seductive, and determined characters. His portrayal as Frank Bullitt in the self-titled film, Bullitt, is heralded as one of the best action films of all time with a 97 percent rating from the film critic site, Rotten Tomatoes.
One of my personal favorite Steve McQueen films is The Thomas Crown Affair. The Pierce Brosnan 1999 version is an embarrassment compared to McQueen's classic film. A guy cannot finish the film without wanting to be McQueen. The Schweizer SGS sailplane, Polo playing, Persol sunglasses, and the awesome dune buggy McQueen drove while smoking a cigar made him out to be the most iconic gentleman.
In today's common society, it can be argued the craft of being a gentleman has been lost and only the true gentleman can be found at the high ranks of society. But this is untrue and an unfortunate contention. You do not have to be wealthy to be a gentleman. Honestly, the etiquette of being a gentleman is fairly easy to master. The website, AskMen, provides easy steps to practicing the true marks of a gentleman.
Another great website is The Art of Manliness . What appears to be a parody site happens to provide some insightful tips for the every-day gentleman. In a entertaining delivery, the site provides tips on how to trim a mustache, how to correctly shine your shoes, tie a tie, and even how to shave like your grandpa.
It should also be noted there is a fine line between being a metro-sexual and a gentleman. Nothing against those that prefer to tweeze their eyebrows, frequent the tanning salon, and shop at Express, but this is not the common practice of a gentleman. Sure a gentleman takes care of his skin by exfoliating before a shave and keeps his nails trimmed, but there is nothing attractive about man being prettier than his girlfriend.
I'm far from perfecting the gentleman style, but I at least practice the craft. I recommend other male readers do the same. Follow some of the tips below and be like McQueen.
I'm currently reading Dale Carnegie's fantastic book, How to Win Friends & Influence People. For over 75 years this book has been heralded as a one of the best books to lead people in any industry to success. I completely agree. The foresight provided by the stories are incalculable. So, in this post I decided to share one of my favorite stories. If you enjoy the story, purchase the book. You will not be disappointed.
It was Thanksgiving Day and Martin Ginsberg was a 10-year old in a welfare ward of a city hospital. He was scheduled to undergo major orthopedic surgery the next day. He knew he could only look forward to months of confinement, convalescence and pain. His father was dead; his mother and himself lived alone in a small apartment and were on welfare. His mother was unable to visit Martin that day in the hospital.
As the day went on, he became overwhelmed with the feeling of loneliness, despair and fear. He knew his mother was home alone worrying about Martin. She did not have anyone to be with nor anyone to eat with. She also did not have enough money to afford a Thanksgiving Day dinner.
The tears welled up in Martin's eyes and he stuck his head under a pillow and pulled the covers over it. He cried silently so much that his body racked with pain. But then a young student nurse heard Martin crying and went over to visit him. She took the covers off Martin's face and started wiping his tears. She told Martin how lonely she was, having to work that day and not being able to be with her family. She asked Martin whether he would have dinner with her. She then brought two trays of food: sliced turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and ice cream for dessert. She talked to him and tried to calm his fears. Even though she was scheduled to go off duty at 4 p.m., she stayed on her own time until almost 11 p.m. She played games with Martin, she talked to him and stayed with him until he finally fell asleep.
Many Thanksgivings have come and gone since Martin was ten, but he never forgets that particular one and his feelings of frustration, fear, loneliness and the warmth of a stranger that somehow made it all bearable. So, as stated by Dale Carnegie, "If you want others to like you, if you want to develop real friendships, if you want to help others at the same time as you help yourself, keep this principle in mind: Become genuinely interested in other people.
Since the 2013 Super Bowl, 31 NFL players have been arrested. One NFL player is awaiting trial for a murder charge. Recently, Major League Baseball has accused 20 players of using performance-enhancing drugs. In the National Basketball Association, there is reportedly an increasing amount of drug use and substance abuse. Particularly the NBA players are drinking lean, which is a mix of Sprite and Codeine cough syrup, and is commonly used throughout the NBA season.
Sports Illustrated recently launched "The Dirty Game," which is a comprehensive look at Oklahoma State University's football program. It is now a big-time program that made a rapid ascent from 11 losing seasons out of 12 years to 10 consecutive winning seasons, including a Big-12 title and a BCS bowl game. Among other things, it is reported that drugs, sex, and academic misconduct were used to re-build the program.
It is no secret and veritably known corruption exist in sports at all levels. Humans are morally imperfect, and so are their institutions. This point was argued by the great German philosopher, Immanuel Kant. Kant once wrote, "out of timber so crooked as that from which man is made, nothing entirely straight can be carved." Meaning, everyone is not honest. Indeed, we are morally imperfect.
So, with a vast amount of corruption surrounding the sports world, why do we still love to watch the games? Do we give a blind eye to the corruption? I believe the answer is no. There is way more to sports than meets the eye. A rare, albeit brief moment, sports provide inspiration. In fact, it was even last night that reminded me why I love watching the NFL. The standing ovation for Peyton Manning was incredible. But there is a more remarkable story most people may not have heard. It is a story of courage, unity, tenaciousness, and love. It is the reason I love sports.
Summerville, South Carolina is about 30 minutes outside of Charleston, South Carolina. It is where my mother and her family grew up. I already have fond memories of this small town, so this story of the 2007-08 Summerville High School basketball team is even more inspiring to tell.
In June 2007, an enormous fire broke out at a sofa store in Charleston and ultimately killed nine firefighters, which one of them was Louis Mulkey, the head basketball coach for Summerville High School. The team used Mulkey's death as an inspiration. The team went on to a 24-3 season and ultimately winning the 4A State Championship. The team was led by the future NFL star and University of Georgia standout, A.J. Green. But my brief description of the heartening story does not bring justice to the actual events. Outside the Lines provided outstanding coverage of the story and I highly recommend watching it.
So in a world where corruption exist at every level of every institution, it is important to remind ourselves of stories such as the Summerville High School basketball team. Stories such as this remind us that even if humans are imperfect, we show glimpses of inspiration and enchantment. It is not impossible to bring change. As Tommy Lasorda, the National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, once said, "The difference between impossible and possible lies in a person's determination." With this determination, the sports world can bring good and remind us fans why we love to watch the game.
He was a quite kid. He stayed home a lot and read comic books. He often played with his dog and kept to himself. His mother could never tell what her son was thinking. But inside this quite introvert was a novice, but tenacious, athlete waiting for his moment to defeat all odds.
His ambitiousness was demonstrated on the rarest of occasions. For example, before every school day, he would walk with his siblings to the bus stop, but after the school bus pulled up and all the kids got on, he would stay behind. Dumbfounded, all the other kids would beckon him to get onto the bus, but he refused.
Instead, as the bus pulled away, he would tighten up his shoe laces and run directly behind the bus. It did not matter if it was raining or snowing, he practiced this routine every school day. All the other kids thought he was nuts, but he did it because he did not want to be like the other kids. He did it to be different. He did it to defy the norm. So when people told Sugar Ray Leonard he could not be world-champion boxer, that he was nuts for thinking he could be the best, he laced up his boxing gloves and defied the odds again. The kid that was a quite introvert became a thundering six-time world-boxing champion.
New York Times journalist, Thomas L. Friedman, once said, "Pessimists are usually right and optimists are usually wrong but all the great changes have been accomplished by optimists." Coinciding with my previous blog post, majority of people meet hardships in his or her life, but our outlook on how to overcome these obstacles and oppositions determine our character. Now pessimists may be right 99.9% of the time, but could you imagine if the great leaders of the world quit once he or she had a tough break? We wouldn't have the Sugar Ray Leonards of the world that continued to be optimistic after reaching these hardships. There must be a sense of optimism in the established goals. So in a sense, courage plus optimism leads to success. And if you're not convinced, here are a few more examples:
- Marilyn Monroe's first contract with Columbia Pictures expired because it told her she was not pretty or talented enough to be an actress.
- R.H. Macy had a history of failing businesses, including a flopped Macy’s in NYC. But Macy kept up the hard work and ended up with the biggest department store in the world.
- Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he “lacked imagination and had no good ideas.” Several more of his businesses failed before the premiere of his movie Snow White.
- Albert Einstein did not speak until age four and did not read until age seven. His teachers labeled him “slow” and “mentally handicapped.” But Einstein just had a different way of thinking.
- Dr. Seuss' first book was rejected by 27 different publishers. He’s now the most popular children’s book author ever.
- Henry Ford's first auto company went out of business. He abandoned a second because of a fight and a third went downhill because of declining sales.
Finally, for all the Harry Potter fans....
- J.K. Rowling was unemployed, divorced and raising a daughter on Social Security while writing the first Harry Potter novel.
"When he was sever-years old, his family was forced out of their home and off their farm. Like other boys his age, he was expected to work to help support the family.
When he was nine, his mother died. At the age off 22, the company he worked for went bankrupt and he lost his job.
At 23, he ran for state legislature in a field of 13 candidates. He came in eighth.
At 24, he borrowed money to start a business with a friend. By the end of the year, the business failed. The local sheriff seized his possessions to pay off his debt. His partner soon died, penniless, and he assumed his partner's share of debt as well. He spent the next several years of his life paying it off.
At 25, he ran for state legislature again. This time he won.
At 26, he was engaged to be married. But his fiancee died before the wedding. The next year he plunged into a depression and suffered a nervous breakdown.
At 29, he sought to become the speaker of the state legislature. He was defeated.
At 34, he campaigned for a U.S. congressional seat, representing his district. He lost.
At 35, he ran for Congress again. This time he won. He went to Washington and did a good job.
At 39, when his term ended, he was out of a job again. There was a one-term limit rule in his party.
At 40, he tried to get a job as commissioner of the General Land Office. He was rejected.
At 45, he was one of the contenders for the vice-presidential nomination at his party's national convention. He lost.
At 49, he ran for the same U.S. Senate seat a second time. And for the second time, he lost.
Two years later, at the age of 51, after a lifetime of failure, disappointment and loss (and still relatively unknown outside of his home state of Illinois), Abraham Lincoln was elected the sixteenth president of the United States."
I discovered this story in Lead with a Story by Paul Smith. It is an incredible book. Over a 100 stories are shared in the book to help business men and women alike learn to craft business narratives that captivate, convince, and inspire action. This particular story about Abraham Lincoln jumped out at me in an inspirative fashion. Here's why.
For me personally, it has been a troubling few months. I am working as an intern and at a local grocery store to pay the bills while also studying for the GRE. Hopefully after this next week, I will receive a good score and start business school in the spring. Some may say I was on a wrong track after leaving law school. In fact, I personally thought the same thing at first. I found myself scrubbing dishes on Friday and Saturday nights to get cash to buy food.
If it wasn't for my gracious parents, I would have been in an even worse situation. But I am resilient. As told in the story of Lincoln, our entire lives we will battle obstacles. So even if I do not pass the GRE, I will get right back up and try again.
I know my goals, which remind me of something the prolific speaker, Sir Winston Churchill, once said, "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." So, because I cannot control outside forces that deliver obstacles, but only my attitude towards how these obstacles will affect me, my true test is the courage to continue. And this test seems much more cardinal than any standardized test.
