Lou Holtz: College Football Hall of Fame

“There is a difference of opinion as to whether Man’s best friend is his wife or his dog. Why don’t you lock both of them in your truck for a few hours and come back and see which one still loves you.”

Lou Holtz was by far my favorite speaker. I feel like he had the most wisdom, advice and information to impart, and did so in the most skilled and relatable manner. I also felt like he had great power and credibility, and that as a man who had successfully lived his beliefs, he was a source to be listened to. I guess he was the most ‘general authority-esque’ of them all.

• The most important person you need to believe in you is yourself. After that, it’s your spouse.
• Ask your spouse for advice and listen to it. No one knows you better, loves you more, wants more passionately for you to succeed, and will have the courage to be completely honest with you.
• Be EXCITED about your job. Whatever you are doing do it with passion. People love to be around those who are excited, positive, happy, and enjoying their life.
• If you CANNOT live with failure, you will make the sacrifices necessary to be successful.
• Don’t go through life as a spectator, be a participant.
• You never reach a plateau in life. You cannot settle for maintaining the status quo. You are either growing, or your dying.
• When faced with an important decision that must be made on how to prioritize your time and resources, always focus on W.I.N. What’s Important Now. Evaluate the past , focus on the future, and it will tell you what to do in the present.
• You’re obligation is not to be popular, it is to make others the very best they can be.

Four Essential Ingredients to Success

1. You must have a passion to win
2. You must control your attitude
3. Don’t overcomplicate: You need to satisfy the customer, and you need to make a profit. The end.
4. You must be a Dreamer. You must have a vision of what you want your life to be. Everyone must have something to do, someone to love, something to hope for, and Someone to believe in.

When he was explaining the process he went through to determine what he wanted in life, the vision he had for his life, he said he sat down and made 5 columns on a piece of paper, and then just listed underneath each what he wanted to achieve in that area of his life. The columns he used were: Husband/Father, Religiously, Financially, Professionally, Excitement/Action. (I found it especially insightful the order in which he listed these columns, how he chose to prioritize his life.) Also very cool-on the list of 170 things he wanted to do before he died, he has now completed 102.

Rudy Giuliani: Mayor of New York City (1994-2001)

“The greatness of this country is the individual opinions of its people. Imagination and creativity are America’s greatest resource.”

I did not know very much about Mr. Giuliani prior to hearing him speak, but afterwards I am a fan, finding his accomplishments quite remarkable, and his viewpoint refreshingly practical. He shared really interesting statistics about his time as Mayor of New York. When he took office as Mayor, there were 2,000 murders a year in New York? Which was a higher casualty rate than Vietnam! His campaign slogan was simply “We can’t do worse!” The primary way in which the murder rate was so dramatically reduced during his tenure was by creating a data-gathering resource, and using computers to collate the information to reveal meaningful trends that held police departments accountable for increased crime in their areas of responsibility, and provided incentives for decreased crime.

He also instituted a ‘Broken Windows’ campaign to fix all the broken windows in the city of New York, on the (turns out correct) theory that the appearance of abandonment and neglect promotes further crime. In addition to reducing the crime rate, when Giuliani took office his predecessor told him they expected 300,000 more on welfare in the next year, and he would need to hire more workers for the welfare department. Instead, Giuliani dramatically decreased the number of welfare recipients, in part by offering the unemployment department workers financial incentives and bonuses every time they actually placed someone in a job successfully.

He concluded with giving his four keys to success in business and in life.

1. READ. Read books, all that you can. Alternate books that challenge you with books that you enjoy, novels etc. When you are trying to get kids to read, or read more frequently, introduce them to books about the subjects they are passionate about first. After they learn to love reading, and become skilled readers, then is the time to introduce more challenging material.

2. ASK advice from successful people in your line of work. If you want to be a successful husband and father, ask a man who is. A successful leader, business owner, manager, the same principle applies. Practice intentional studying and copying of successful behaviors. Learn to use a Churchill-esque mix of defiance + optimism.

3. WRITE down what you want to achieve. Keep it in a journal that you review frequently. Know what your goals are and evaluate your progress to them. Don’t get side-tracked by behaviors or paths that will not lead to where you want to go.

4. THINK, slow life down and all time to reflect. Whether you use prayer, or meditation, or exercise…find a quiet thinking time in your life daily. Refuse to let life just happen to you, think about it as it occurs.

Motivational Seminar Report!

The motivational conference was very interesting, not just from the perspective of what was said and shared by the guest speakers, but from the reaction of the people around me, about what they were hearing and learning. It was fascinating to people-watch, and study the people who had paid significantly in order to be present that day, to ‘get motivated.’ I could not help but compare the entire day to the two days of General Conference that the LDS church broadcasts on a bi-annual basis. One of the tenets of the Mormon faith is our belief that God has called a prophet and 12 apostles again in this day and age, beginning with the restoration of his church through the first modern-day prophet, Joseph Smith, in 1820. Because I truly believe that God actually speaks to and inspires these men, I eagerly await the bi-annual conferences in which the 12 apostles present 15 minutes talks about any subject they feel inspired to share about. These talks are broadcast live in the bi-annual General Conference, and are inspiring and life-changing instructions on how to live a happy, beautiful, and Godly life.

A common theme of the speakers at this secular motivational conference was the importance of a religious faith or creed in their life, and I was struck by how the best speakers often touched on a truth or a theme that I had recently heard shared at General Conference of my Church. I was also fascinated by the comments of people around me “That is so smart!” “Wow, I never saw it like that” “What an incredible take on life.” Etc etc. And I could not help but think that should any of those present at this seminar take the time to view an hour or two of General Conference, they would be blown away by the wisdom of the advice dispensed there by Christ’s servants, for free, regardless of their personal religious beliefs, or relationship with Christ.

I think the best way to share highlights from the motivational conference will be as a series of posts, which I will share in the order the presenters spoke, not necessarily in the order of my preference. Some of them I’m just skipping completely because they were simply a waste of my time altogether, failing to say anything profound, or even interesting. If I am sharing a direct quote, I will attempt to put it into quotes. However, realize that these notes are a conglomeration of my personal thoughts and what was actually spoken, and at this point are impossible to separate, so you will probably get a mix of Letty-isms throughout. Some of the speakers might be amazed to discover what they ‘said’ to me that day.

Thank You Mr. F!

So I was sitting in the athletic office of a high school I substitute teach at this past week, when a quiet, unassuming man at the next desk mentioned he was attending a massive motivational speaking conference being held in St. Louis next week. Naturally my ears perked up, as I had been hearing about this for months, and, of course, was DYING to go! The speaker line-up included: Rudy Giuliani, Dr. Robert Schuller, Kurt Warner, Steve Forbes, Laura Bush, Krish Dhanam, Howard Putnam, Lou Holtz and General Colin Powell. Yeah. A-MAZING! And also $225 dollars a ticket. Needless to say when I heard a high school athletic teacher was attending the first thing out of my mouth was “Awesome!” Closely followed by, “Whoa Dang! Aren’t those tickets, like, $200!?”

He smiled self-deprecatingly and said, “Well, I know people.” We talked for a bit more, and it turns out he worked as one of Kurt Warner’s athletic trainers (as well as several other big name professional athletes.) Whoa! Towards the end of the conversation as I’m getting ready to go sub health class, he says,

“Well, do you want a ticket? I can get you one.” I was floored!

“Yes! Sure! Trade my first-born child? Where do I sign?!” (Actually I think my jaw dropped and I said…”really?”)

He said, “Yeah, one or two?”

“Umm…two? If that’s ok? If you don’t need them?”

And he REACHES INTO HIS DESK DRAWER and hands me TWO $225 TICKETS!! Aaaaaahhhhhh!!!! Unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable! Turns out Kurt Warner called him up and offered him ten comp tickets. Talk about right place, right time! Thank heaven it was ME sitting in that swivel chair eating my broccoli! Whoa Nelly! What a fabulous guy! What a fabulous day! What a fabulous world!

F-4 Tornado Hits Saint Louis!

Hey All! This is just a special thanks and shout out to those of you who have expressed love and concern over our welfare in the past couple days. Although the tornado struck a little more than half a mile from our home (0.6 miles to the north, 2.0 miles to the west, and 1.0 mile southwest of us) it just missed us. We ourselves were actually in Chicago, but my in-laws were staying at our house, so we had a few worried hours, as we have no basement. However, our home, our yard and the goldfish in our pond are all okay! We lost power for about 12 hours, but that was it. Barely a blip, while devastation hit neighborhoods all around us, including many within our ward boundaries, which kept me busy on the phone Friday night checking on my girls.

The St. Louis airport was ripped up pretty bad, with glass blowing out the windows, and vans being tossed around. One plane grounded on the runway filled with passengers spun around 40 degrees on its nose. The spotters in flight control tower are describing their experience as 'harrowing.' Disaster crews got a jump on the major repairs over the weekend, however they seemed to have missed something crucial! On the commute to work this morning I noticed that the freeway going the other direction I was traveling was completely stopped! I turned on the radio and found out that traffic was proceed over the I-70 interstate bridge at the St. Charles Rock Road as usual, when a police officer got on his megaphone and started ordering everyone off the bridge, yelling that it was going to collapse. Yikes! Well, I'm at work, but I bet the people on the freeway are still exactly where they were 2 hours ago.



As bad as the property devastation was, they are calling the tornado an 'Easter Miracle.' Although more than 750 homes were damaged or destroyed, only three people were seriously hurt or injured, and there were no fatalities. Needless to say, we feel incredibly blessed at how God has watched over us and our loved ones.

While the Cat's Away...The Mouse Just Mopes

So Richard is in India this week on the India Trek sponsored by the University of Chicago. He left Saturday after completing his finals for fall term Thursday, so there we were throwing things in a suitcase at 2 am Fri night/Sat morning. I basically haven't seen him for three weeks- as he crammed for finals and got things lined up for the India Trek (he was the co-chair), and it was only after he left that I realized I a) had no idea where he was staying or how to contact him in an emergency b) had not packed any clothing in his carry-on and c) had no idea when he was returning. Whoops. I managed to get ahold of him briefly Monday night online and got a rough itinerary and contact information for the hotel he was staying in. I also found out when he was getting home, and that the airlines had lost his luggage. Lessons learned? Carry-ons were invented for a reason.

So here I am home all week by myself, and you'd think I'd get up to some fantastic adventures, but instead I'm just moping around in my pajamas all day. I realized about 4 pm today that I had actually not spoken yet in the day. THAT was a freaky realization. No wonder talking to yourself is the crazy-person's idiosyncrasy of preference. Going outside is really not that great of an idea, since we got 6 inches of snow the Sunday morning after Richard left. As I was shoveling my way through the drift that held my front door closed with a broom (don' t know where we keep the shovel) and chipping away at the ice on my windshield (didn't know where we keep the scraper) I realized how spoiled I've become since my marriage.

The snowstorm was followed by a lovely little ice-storm three days later, so as you might agree, the incentives to leave the house (when you work from home) have not been that great. I did wind up braving the weather for a belated birthday lunch with friends, and a much proscrastinated trip to the post office to mail Christmas packages. In that same trip I picked up Christmas shipments from the mall and the UPS Customer Center, which was definitely NOT easy to locate in the dark and the beginnings of an ice storm. Let's just say some illegal left turns, illegal parking lot exiting/entrance-ing, illegal u-turns, running of red lights, and driving the wrong way down a divided highway were involved in the retrieval of my mom's Christmas present. Good thing my parents would now know how to reach Richard for funeral arrangements.

I also managed to lose my cell phone-but since I decline to brave the outdoors it's putting a crimp in my search for it. I didn't think I'd miss Richard that much, since I haven't really talked to him for a few weeks now as he's been in the throes of a new job (same company) and some intense classes. However, it's surprising how much bonding can happen while snoring happily away together in the same bed. Since he's left, I've spent the evenings procrastinating going to bed by myself (yes, I know, I am SUCH a baby) by watching the first season of the Big Bang Theory, and laughing myself sick. Or maybe that was the entire box of chocolate cherry cordials I consumed in one setting. Oh dear, Richard better get home quick. Only 52 more hours to go!

Sunset in the Caribbean

So, here is the long-promised account of our Caribbean Cruise! We sailed on the Emerald Princess out of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Although I really dislike the weather in Ft. Lauderdale, there is something to be said for living in a port from which cruise ships regularly depart. We lucked out on the airfare, using a Southwest miles credit and AA frequent flyer miles, but otherwise just GETTING to the departure port could have cost as much as the cruise! But I digress. We thoroughly enjoyed exploring the ship (Richard) and the fine dining (Letty). The fabulous thing about a cruise ship is that if you can't decide on a dinner option, you can just try them all! (Also Letty).

Princess Cays

This cruise-line owned island and beach was our first port of call. It had good swimming beaches, and abundant free food. Best of all, it actually had the best snorkeling available the whole trip (without a paid excursion). Canny Richard packed two snorkeling masks and his snorkel, so we were able to just float around on our own, as the reefs were really close to shore. Letty was THRILLED to find that not knowing how to swim was NO PROBLEM in snorkeling. Some combination of very salty water, an air-filled snorkel mask and VERY salty water kept her afloat just fine! The deep depths of the ocean were sufficiently lovely to convince her to take swimming lessons soon! Sweet Richard let her use the snorkel most of the time, while he floated on the inflatable raft clever Letty had packed and looked over the side of it. Richard can hold his breath for a surprisingly long time.

*It's a good thing the next day was at sea. Richard and Letty were both sunburned very, very painfully. They spent the next 12-14 hours in their cabin, companions in misery. 24 hours later Letty had a great tan! And Richard was...just as red as ever. In fact, Letty had never, ever seen someone in more sunburn pain. When the itching started she began to fear some sort of restraints were in order.

St. Maarten
Richard slathered on a huge layer of sunscreen (as he had at the first port, SPF 50, and brought it with to reapply (the error which caused the sunburn). He also wore pants, socks, tennies and a thick shirt. We gingerly hiked the 1.5 miles into town, eschewing the overpriced taxis, and found nothing but an ugly beach that smelled of sewage, and a tawdry line of overpriced souvenir shops on one crowded street. Lessons Learned: Stay on boat OR purchase a snorkeling/diving/tour of some sort that takes place off-island.

St. Thomas

This stop was our favorite, as Richard was mostly out of the pain-woods with his sunburn, although he still dressed in the male version of the burka.

Two Hands For Luck

There we saw the world's largest Amber Waterfall, which is supposed to bring you good luck if you touch it!

We first toured Blackbeard's Castle, a variety of 19th century homes, and the Amber Museum. (Richard's pick).










One of the best parts about Blackbeard's castle were the statues of famous pirates everywhere!

Myself and Captain Jack Sparrow (or his twin)

St. Thomas is famous for it's beauty and the red roofs on the buildings. After the historical part of the day, we took an island tour, where our guide stopped at some of the famous overlook places so we could take pictures. You can even see our cruise ship anchored in the bay! At one of the stops there was a man with a goat there so we could take pictures with it!? I don't know how many crazy Americans he is used to, but Letty and that goat got no where near one another.

The island tour ended at Magen's Beach, one of the top ten beaches in the world (Letty's Pick). It is a beautiful heart-shaped beach at the edge of National Reserve forest land, so it is completely undeveloped. It was quiet and peaceful, with the most gorgeous powdery white sand, all the way out to the very deep! Richard even got in the water at the beach for a little bit with Letty, as she is very cute when she begs. Considering that he kept all his clothes on for fear of the sun's wrath, he looked pretty funny! Lessons Learned: Do not purchase excursions from the cruise ship, as we did all of this on our own for literally half the price. Also, St. Thomas is worth a re-visit, as the nearby island of St. John is supposed to be equally amazing.

Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos
Our final port was this was a charming little island that seemed to consist of nothing but beaches! Again, don't pay the cruise ship unless you want to dive. We just walked out to the pier and paid a taxi to take us to a beach with good snorkeling. We had a blast snorkeling away, and the beaches were gorgeous white sand. This was probably the prettiest port that we visited, and the least commercially built up, it reminded me a lot of the northern beaches at Cozumel. Lessons Learned: Purchase a scuba or other excursion here if you want to do more than snorkel a bit and swim a bit. Also, if you are paying for a snorkel expedition, the most boring part is the long boat ride there. The best tip we got was from a fellow passenger, who always books independently of the cruise-line to snorkel, and they always book Jet-Ski Snorkel tours! For the same price as a cruise-line snorkel excursion, you can jet-ski to and from your snorkel location!! DEFINITELY doing this next time!

Overall Cruise Lessons Learned.

• September is way, way to hot to cruise the Caribbean. It was pretty much miserable outdoors at all times not submerged in water. We couldn't really enjoy any on-deck activities, as the heat and humidity sapped the fun out them right quick. Next cruise? Nov-Feb.
• Make sure Richard reapplies his 50 SPF every 45 minutes. Bring Aloe Vera and anti-itch cream.
• Dinner is lots more fun when you have time to sit with people, so telling the Maitre d' that you are willing to be seated with others is usually a good bet!
• We are not smart enough to win any trivia games on our own. Team up with intelligent looking seniors to take the prize
• It IS possible to eat yourself sick. Practice moderation.
• Never purchase excursions from the cruise ship (except for St. Maarten).
• Bring your own Dramamine.