I have to admit, I have been a bit schizophrenic about this year’s World Series.  On the one hand, I’m a Cubs fan and I’m not supposed to root for the Cardinals…ever.  That may even be a county ordinance in several of the counties around Chicago.   I’m not sure.

The thing is, I used to live in St. Louis.  I know how that city responds to its baseball team.  There is a bond there that is unlike the relationship I’ve ever experienced anywhere else between a city and its team.  Although it pains me to say it, it is a beautiful thing.  I still have a lot of friends in the St. Louis area, so for them, I’d like to see the Cardinals win the World Series.

On the other hand, a friend of mine that I went to high school and college with is the executive vice-president of the Rangers.  He has worked his way up from an intern selling season ticket packages to become one of the top dogs in the organization.  I used to play baseball with him and I know how much he loves the game.  He worked in low-level jobs in backwater towns just to be a part of the sport he loves.  Everything he has worked for has led him to this moment; game seven of the World Series.  Part of me wants to see the Rangers win tonight’s game.

Of course, my emotions toward tonight’s game don’t mean a thing.  They will have no bearing on the outcome of the game.  Even so, someone I know is going to be ecstatic after tonight’s game and someone is going to be devastated.  That’s just the way it has to be.

It’s almost time.  Bring on game seven!

Note: For a great look back at game six written by one of my favorite sports writers, check this out.

If you are a regular visitor to this blog then you may have noticed that I have been absent for a couple of weeks.  Since the beginning of the month I have been travelling like crazy…and I unfortunately have not been on vacation.  During my travel, I have had the best of intentions to write.  Then when it became clear that I didn’t have time to write a proper post, I thought about letting you know that I was busy, but would be back.  Of course, until this post, that hasn’t happened.

Thankfully, my time on the road is winding down.  I still have another week or so away from home, but I should be settling into a more familar routine soon.  When that happens, I’ll be back to writing my twice weekly posts.

See you soon…

I’ve been driving all over creation for the past two weeks, and I’ll be doing it for another two or three weeks.  Since I haven’t had time to sit down and write a proper blog post, I thought I would share a few quotes. Enjoy!

• The days are long, but the years are short.  ~ Gretchen Rubin, www.happiness-project.com
• Life is short, God’s way of encouraging a bit of focus.  ~Robert Brault, www.robertbrault.com
• Don’t be fooled by the calendar.  There are only as many days in the year as you make use of.  ~Charles Richards
• Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite.  Or waiting around for Friday night or waiting perhaps for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil or a better break or a string of pearls or a pair of pants or a wig with curls or another chance.  Everyone is just waiting.  ~Dr. Seuss
• Enjoy yourself.  It’s later than you think.  ~Chinese Proverb
• Live every day as if it were your last and then some day you’ll be right.  ~H.H. “Breaker” Morant
• Go for it now.  The future is promised to no one.  ~Wayne Dyer
• I have died so little today, friend, forgive me.  ~Thomas Lux
• Every man dies.  Not every man really lives.  ~Braveheart
• Do not take life too seriously.  You will never get out of it alive.  ~Elbert Hubbard

A lot has been written about Steve Jobs since his death earlier this week. It’s amazing to me how many people were impacted by his death. Many people praised Jobs, calling him brilliant, an inspiration, a genius.  To them, Jobs was a mentor and an inspiration.

I do not count myself among this group.  I don’t mean any disrespect when I say that.  I was aware of Jobs and enjoyed some of the quotes attributed to him, but I just didn’t know much about the man.  From time to time I heard the praise that others heaped on him, but I just didn’t follow him all that closely.

That’s why it’s amazing to me that so many people have had so many good things to say about Steve Jobs following his death.  After all, he was just the founder and CEO of a computer company.  How many CEO’s have such a large following?  Obviously, Jobs was different.

As I said, I didn’t know a whole lot about Jobs, but I was aware of the following video.  When you watch it, it becomes easier to understand why so many people  thought so highly of Steve Jobs.

“I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did.  You’ve got to find what you love, and that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers.  Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you think is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.  If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking and don’t settle.”  — Steve Jobs

* * * * *

“For the past 33 years I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself, if today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today.  And whenever the answer has been ‘no’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.  Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to make the big choices in life.  Because almost everything, all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure, these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.  Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking that you have something to lose.  You are already naked.  There is no reason not to follow your heart.”  — Steve Jobs

* * * * *

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.  Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.  Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice.  And most important, have the courage to follow your own heart and intuition.  They some how already know what you truly want to become.  Everything else is secondary.  — Steve Jobs

Earlier this year, I set several goals for myself that I want to accomplish before the year is out.  Previously, I would routinely set goals and then hope to accomplish them.  Sometimes I did and sometimes I didn’t.  But what I didn’t do is follow up periodically to see if I was making any progress.  That changes this year.

Here is a list of the goals I have set for myself along with notes on the progress, if any, I made on the goal during September.  The majority of the goals were detailed in my Making Plans for 2011 post from earlier this year.  I’ve added a few goals to the list since then as well.

You can find updates from previous months here:

• January 2011
• February 2011
• March 2011
• April 2011
• May 2011
• June 2011
• July 2011
• August 2011

Today’s post is a reminder…mostly to myself. One month ago today, I posted an article about how I’m trying to do too much. In it, I quoted Leo Babauta’s thoughts about how we are all so worried about what we are missing that we end up missing what we already have. Here’s one of the quotes I included from Babauta:

I know a lot of people who get up each day with a plan to work toward achieving their life goals. Everyone’s goals are different. The thing they have in common is that they see a future for themselves that is better than what they have now. Whatever it is that they want, they believe that through time and effort, they will get the life they desire. But what if it doesn’t happen? What if things never change?

Think about all of the people you have known in your life. As they’ve grown older, have their lives significantly changed? Sure, some have, but what about the majority of them? Have their lives changed for the better or have they stayed pretty much on the same path?

I don’t mean for this line of thinking to be depressing. The truth is that you are probably different from most of the people you know. You have goals, dreams, desires, and you are willing to work toward them every day of your life. I wish you nothing but the best in your endeavors.  But the question remains, what if things never change?

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The video above is a film that was made in Hawaii by singer-songwriter Jack Johnson. Except he wasn’t singer-songwriter Jack Johnson at the time. He was college freshman Jack Johnson and the film was made for an art class.

The idea for the film came about when Johnson asked himself, Why do people do what they do? Why do so many people choose to put on a shirt and tie and trudge off to a job they hate; one that tears at their very soul? That’s pretty advanced stuff for a college freshman.

Starring in the film is Kelly Slater. At the time, the 21-year old was a professional surfer and the hottest property on the pro tour. Large companies conducted bidding wars to sponsor him. A year earlier, he had become the youngest surfer in history to win the World Surfing Championship. He was living the dream and getting rich doing it.

In the film, Kelly surfs on a door. Filmmaker Johnson wanted to make the point that everyone is standing outside that door. You are standing outside that door. What you want for yourself is on the other side. All you have to do is open it and walk through.

The film makes a good point. Your life is in your hands. You can do whatever you want to do, just like Kelly Slater. He was the perfect person to have in the film because he was living the type of life that anyone would have chosen. He was young, good-looking, wealthy, and he was traveling to the most beautiful places on earth — places like Hawaii, Fiji, Bali, Australia — to do his job. He had the best job in the world, right? Right?

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I recently wrote a series of posts talking about the U.S. tax code and how it ultimately discourages U.S. businesses from incorporating in the U.S. and creating jobs here. Here are links to the three posts:

• Is It Unpatriotic To Move Your Business Out of the Country?
• More About The Tax Code and Overseas Corporations
• A Final Thought on Taxes and Job Growth

Throughout these three posts, I presupposed that job growth was a necessary and righteous goal. After all, we need jobs to earn money to pay for the goods and services we buy, right? It just seemed to make sense. However, I might not have been correct in my thinking.

In a recent op-ed piece on CNN.com, Douglas Rushkoff, an author and media theorist,  questions the logic behind our desire for low unemployment and more jobs. Before I get into the meat of his argument, let me say that I do not necessarily agree with it. I find Rushkoff’s argument intriguing and I’m currently rolling it around in my mind, but it is so far outside the normal reasoning on the subject that I’m not sure I completely understand it, let alone agree with it.

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Let me brag for a second. I’m really good at coming up with ideas for businesses. During the course of just about every day, I come up with several business ideas. I see the potential for a business in almost everything I see and do. Problem is, coming up with ideas isn’t the hard part of starting a business. Taking action is. And when it comes to taking action, I’m not so good.

To be fair, I have started more than my share of businesses, but taking the first few steps have always been difficult for me. I like concentrating on the idea phase. That’s in my wheelhouse. That’s where I’m comfortable. Taking action, at least to me, is more intimidating. Decisions have to be made. Dirt has to be moved (That’s a metaphor. Most business ideas don’t involve moving dirt). I don’t like that part as much.

With that in mind, you can imagine how drawn I was to a recent article by Jenn Houser, co-founder of UpStart Bootcamp, on Inc.com. Jenn started her article like this:

As a serial entrepreneur, I’ve had my share of new business ideas and (nerd alert!) I find it fun to think about them. Many don’t last longer than it takes me to say, “Hey, it would be cool to (insert idea du jour).” But occasionally an idea sticks with me. I find myself dreaming about turning it into a business. But actually taking the first steps can feel intimidating, even when I’ve done it before.

I swear, Jenn could have been writing those words about me. Like her, I am an idea nerd. And she’s right, coming up with ideas for businesses is fun. The vast majority don’t see the light of day, but they are great to think about.

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