Tag: family

TommyLog – Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe

A good friend sent me a short article about a life lesson one CEO taught him. One of the points of the article is that a good CEO at work , like the father of a household, needs to make their employees (kids) feel safe.

The money quote from the article…

“What I loved most about working for your dad for all those years was how safe he made us feel. Even when times were tough, you trusted he would see things through. You knew he would do whatever he needed to – and you knew it would work out because he was in charge. It was a good feeling”.

At work, do you make your employees feel safe? At home, do you make your family feel safe? What’s the difference?

Comment below!

TommyLog – Divorce Just Stinks!

I have been watching the family of a dear friend fall apart and to be honest IT STINKS! The fighting, the yelling, the tears and the lies that are being told –just stunning. The fact of the matter they have a 9 year old and she is being pushed and pulled and torn. Watching this just breaks my heart. It’s just not her fault. She needs love and she needs parents. Divorce is war, plain and simple. it is 100% okay to disagree I get that, but to carry on and to treat your spouse like this..in front of the child to boot. WOW JUST WOW! What grade are you in?

TommyLog – Your Personal Best Thanks to #Thrively

Ok kids, today I want to continue my discussion on the power of the website Thrively.com and what it has done to my relationship with my son Tommy.

Last time I focused on our adventure to the archery range and finding that inner proficiency for that sport. Since that time, a good friend saw my video and gave Tommy a compound bow to use at the range. The power of social media at work and Tommy’s new found passion for archery continues!

2014-05-03 12.49.12Tommy has a love of running. Tommy has always loved to run, but not necessarily the competitiveness of the sport. A few weeks ago I had the chance to see a home track meet at Little Chute High School. Their track team has an “A” and “B” team with the better runners on the “A” team. For that meet, one of the “A” team runners in the 1600 got injured and Tommy got the call to move to the “A” team. Tommy knew that he was out of his league being moved up. Before the race, Tommy told me that his goal for the event was not to get lapped. 4 trips around the track is a long race but Tommy had a goal.

The races started and it was clear very early that Tommy’s opponents were much faster than he and he quickly dropped to last in the field of 12 boys. The crowd cheered and cheered as Tommy ran his laps. Always in last place. I didn’t know how to react. “What was going on in his mind,” I thought to myself? The crowd would cheer him on as he crossed in front of the bleachers. “You can do it Tommy”, “Keep Going,” we all yelled and cheered him on. Tommy ran with never ending determination, never stopping or slowing, keeping his own pace.

One by one the boys started crossing the finish line with Tommy dead last on the track. Tommy kept focused and kept kicking. What seemed like an eternity to a parent, actually maybe 20 or 30 seconds behind the pack, Tommy crossed the finish line. Never lapped, Tommy beat his goal. The crowed cheered him on as good sportsmanship does. I was really worried about Tommy and how he would feel finishing last.

He walked around the grass for a moment, catching his breath after his mile run and then walked over to his coach with the stopwatch. I can see his rosy cheeks turn to me with a smile and say, “Dad I got my personal best!” WOW OH WOW! What a poignant moment for me. It wasn’t about the fact he finished last, or the event itself. To Tommy, it was all about getting his personal best!

Seeing Tommy get his personal best and bringing a father and son together…thanks to our friends at Thrively– was nothing short of amazing!

Thank you Thrively for helping me reconnect to my son in a way I never imagined!

If you want the chance to use this amazing resource and help unlock hidden potential in your son/daughter/niece or nephew –and watch them soar like Tommy, please checkout www.thrively.com and sign up for yourself.

NOTE: This post was written through a partnership with Thrively. The joy in my voice and opinions are all my own!

TommyLog TECH – On my Way to a 5K with the Jawbone UP! #VZWbuzz #AD

Fitness bands seem all the rage these days. There are models from Fitbit, Nike and even Samsung has entered the fray. I have been using one for almost a year and it’s the UP from Jawbone.

The Jawbone UP as well as these other products are much more than just glorified pedometers; it’s a complete fitness accessory. The UP tracks not only my steps; zero set up required, but it tracks my sleep patterns as well. I tell it when I’m sleeping soundly and when I’m not. UP tracks how long it took me to fall asleep and how many times I wake up in the middle of the night. I have a sleep goal of 8 hours and its not that tough to attain.

Jawbone UP Tracks Sleep pattterns
I love that fact that the UP only needs to be charged about once ever 10 days. It’s waterproof for showering and doing the dishes. Not recommended for swimming or being submerged in the tub. The UP syncs to your iPhone or Android device via the 3.5″ headphone jack. I sync it once a day and while plugged in you can play with other settings like Smart Alarm and Idle Alert.

The UP Smart Alarm analyses your sleep patterns and wakes you via a gentle vibration when you are the most refreshed, within a 10-20 min wakeup window you set. The Idle Alert keeps you from sitting your day away. I have mine set to remind me when I have set for more than an hour at a time. A vibration reminds me to get up and take a walk around the plant. Love that feature!

2014-04-26 19.15.40One of my goals as I get more active 13000 steps at my 5Kwas to participate in a 5K. Last month I took part in the Fox Cities Glow Run/Walk. The even was my first sanctioned 5K EVER! I did the event along with my long time buddy John and it was a blast!
Can you believe that I walked well over 13,000 steps for the event, 19,000 overall for that Saturday? A personal all time best!  What an amazing feeling to know that not only did I smash my personal daily goal, but darn near doubled it, WOW!

The Jawbone Up is totally 100% “Tommy Approved”!!

For more information on how to get your very own Jawbone UP from Verizon, Here’s a link http://www.verizonwireless.com/accessories/sports-and-fitness/jawbone/
[DISCLAIMER — I’m one of the cool kids who has been asked to play with and test technology for Verizon. They asked me test and share my thoughts. All my words are original and my own.]Panorama of the Event

VZWBUZZ Badge

TommyLog – When You Have Fun, You’ll Succeed

Took my son Tommy to see Million Dollar Arm this weekend and like most movies, there a life lesson to be gleaned,

When you are all business and take things too seriously, can you really make things happen? Certainly, but are you having fun… NO!

The moral of the story here is that when the ball players had fun, they got signed and then they were too serious, the pressure got to them and they failed.