Better Will Hunting - A Different Kind of Thanksgiving Message

The post title is obviously plagiarized from the movie "Good Will Hunting" that portrays Matt Damon as a young man with an unpromising past but a bright future as a result of his incredible math genius talent discovery by a Teacher that becomes Mentor played by Robin Williams.

In a nutshell, Robin Williams convinces Matt Damon to leave his bar busting, fighting, dead end life and seek and fulfill his true potential as a Math Prodigy and Future Genius.

In essence, Matt Damon becomes a better version of himself as a result of subjecting himself to and accepting the recognition, environment and encouragement of someone who, despite his rough exterior and questionable past, supports and believes in him.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Will_Hunting

I have found this similar association, seeking and finding to have had and continue to have a tremendous and continuing positive effect and direction for advancement in my life.

Here are a few examples of this phenomenon.

A few years ago, I began to realize that my life required some changes for the better and I began focusing on the physical side of myself and part of that revolution and evolution was my association with CrossFit or CrossFit style workouts, philosophy and programming.

When I left Lake Jackson TX and moved to Santa Fe NM, I needed to find a new "Box" to work out in and I found Zia CrossFit which later became Praxis.  There were other options and other approaches and other Coaches and Staff, but after test driving a few, I settled on Praxis.

thepraxislab.com

And I look back at that decision and where it has brought me to this point in my Life and I ask why - why did I make that selection?

The short and obvious and more surface answer is - I wanted to get better - physically. At least, that's what I thought my reasoning was.

But as I spent Time and Effort with BJ Monger, the Praxis Owner, and his Staff - which encompasses a horizon to horizon diversity in personality and presentation but with the Common Purpose set forth by its Leader, I found a different purpose....

Increase Strength and Physical Performance through a Family Environment that learns, recognizes and highlights the Individual through Caring and Customized Programming to - 

Make a Better You!

Not Change You, Not Convince You, Not Coerce You but.....

Challenge You, Understand You, Appreciate You, Enhance You, Encourage You....

To Be a Better You!

It never ceases to amaze me when I invite friends to witness or participate in a workout or gathering or event at Praxis - the first thing they say is - 

"Wow! I was expecting to see a bunch of really muscular and ripped athletes - but everybody here just looks like ordinary people.  And they have their wives and husbands with them and they are working out together and they have their kids with them and it's like a big family reunion".

To which I respond - 

"Yep. That's how Praxis is.  It's a Family of Ordinary People doing Extraordinary Things!"

Recently, I participated in a Partner in-house Competition at Praxis.  My partner and I reviewed the 3 Workouts for the competition and I kinda let my Ego get the best of me and I convinced my partner to do the Men's Rx Competition.  After reviewing our competition, we set our resolve to Win....

By not coming in Last!

Yep - Winning for Us would be to Not Finish Last!

In summary, we didn't Win, and for me, it wasn't exactly Fun, but the Effort and Result represented My Desire to Challenge Myself and My Partner to Participation and Performance that was frankly beyond our Muscle and Means.

In the course of the 3 Workout Competition, both me and my Partner experienced physical setbacks but the desire to Finish and not let each other down, kept us going.

And in the end analysis, looking back on it - I wouldn't have changed a thing.

Because the Experience, which is a kind of Culmination and Summary of my experience with the whole Praxis Family approach to Physical Fitness, changed Me....

For the Better.

2nd Case in Point -

I've been doing Independent Contracting for this One Company and One Guy for almost 10 years now.

It's a Mid-Level Industrial Specialty Service Company that is run on the smallest staff I have ever seen for a company of its international and domestic footprint and revenue.

The Owner and Chief Architect of this Corporate Structure is a Man of Unwavering and Consistent Personal High Expectations and Performance.  He expects, practices and demonstrates that daily performance for himself and encourages and exacts that same performance from his Family of Employees.

And I use the word "Family" exactly as it connotates except that in this case - he did pick his Family.

He reviews, records and recruits the Best of the Best into his Family Enterprise.

And the Components of his Corporate Construction serve as Iron sharpening Iron.

Design and Project Teams come together and borrow off of each other's Expertise and Experience to put together better Proposals and Project Packages and then Execute the Plans in the Field with continuing support from the Project Team Members.

Turnaround Time is Fast.  Plans and Schedules are detailed with Contingency Plans and Cost Estimates to include the inevitable Discovery Items. Follow-up and Follow-through on Client and Customer Concerns is built into the Work Process and the Team Dynamic.

This Guy has built a Better Mousetrap and Corporate Environment by selecting Better Individuals and making them Better...

With other Better Individuals.

And this Experience and Association has made me....

A Better Will.

Finally - I have met several individuals in Santa Fe that have inspired, encouraged and actively involved themselves in helping me become a better version of myself.

I guess I'd have to say that when I came to Santa Fe nearly 3 years ago, I was kinda beat up from Life or maybe I had beat myself up in Life or I had got the beating I deserved from Life.

I guess I had shut down.  My Zest for Life was actualized through my Intense Workouts and the Resulting Physicality that Presented...

But my Mental, Emotional and Spiritual Being was kinda Dead or at least Dormant.

I don't know and I guess it really doesn't matter where I was 3 years ago - in physical location or Life Path.

I'm pretty selective with Who I spend Time With because Frankly and Sadly, most of the World's Life Participants don't Inspire Me and have little or no impact on my Life or Well Being.

But every once in a While, someone comes along that piques my Interest and my Inspiration.

And that's kinda what has happened this year and it's really pretty unexpected and hard to explain.

I think it began with a realization that I was pretty out of balance - I was emphasizing and prioritizing the Physical too much at the Expense of the Rest of Me and a Pretty Hefty Payment in Pain which precluded me from exposing myself to the World and the People in it.

So I guess around the August - September time frame I resolved myself to an Experimental Period of coming out of my literal and figurative Cave and emerging into the Light of Life and the World and the People in it.

And an extraordinary thing happened.

I found special people and they found me.

And those experiences began a Renaissance of a Renaissance Man.

Where Balance was restored and....

The Physical fed the Mental and

The Mental fed the Physical

And Both fed the Emotional

And the Spirit was fed by All.

The Right Brain of Creativity raced with the Left Brain of Cognitive Reasoning and they both excelled way beyond what I thought capable at 55 years of age resulting in Better Work Results, Better Relationships and Better Recording of Thoughts, Emotions and Experiences.

Sometimes it's a Struggle to put aside the Emotion and Spirit of my Right Brain and focus on the Logic, Organizing and Parallel and Series thinking of my Left Brain but what I have found is that it is essential to let both have their way for one enhances the other.

My Creative Writing is better because of the Structure and Discipline of my Work Process thinking.

And my Work Process thinking is afforded "Outside the Envelope" latitude and problem solution and my results and presentation are influenced and enhanced by the Creative Process of telling the Technical Story with a Creative Twist.

In short and in summary....

Because of the Special People and Circumstances I select for my Life and the Experiences I have with them -

I am the Best I have ever been but....

I'm still not Good Enough.

I am thankful for being a better Person than I used to be.

And I am most Thankful for the People who have helped me attain this Higher Plane of Existence on the Road to....

Discovery.

I am always and will always be seeking the Better Person I can be while I am....

Better Will Hunting.