It has been a long while since I have posted on MitchTheFielder. Most of why I have not posted is because of my new career path and I have not had much time to write. Most of my free time I used to spend with my wife. So I will begin to post again, but I will probably take a break from writing again sometime in May of 2011.

This year has been quite an adventure to say the least. My wife and I took the biggest risk that we have taken during our five years of marriage. It has been rewarding and very challenging at times. We have had times where we have learned hard lessons to trust the plan of the One who has brought us this far. We are still learning those lessons. It may even sound cheesy given the industry that I am in, but this year has been a “roller coaster” ride with many up and downs.

Yesterday got me thinking about all that we have been through, all that I have seen. I thought about where I have been, where I am now, and where I am going. There is a problem with the way that I think when I am in the middle of a situation, as there is a problem with the way you think in the middle of a situation.


That’s the problem with the way we think. Fear is a motivating factor and we let fear control us. “For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jer 29:11 NLT).

I have seen many people get on roller coasters for their first time. They start up that lift and are scared to death. When they come back they want to do it again. Why? Because they enjoyed the journey, they enjoyed the ups and downs. They learned that the long climb to the top was a part of the journey that they must take.

Enjoy the journey, enjoy the miracle of the moment. Know that where you are now is not permanent. Keep on keepin’ on.

It’s Thanksgiving again. However I think it has become a day to feast and watch football. So I am going to do my best in this post to talk about what I am most thankful for. No, I am not going to get all sentimental and cheesy. Stay with me and you may like this post.

What I am most thankful for in my life is my marriage. My marriage means so much and teaches me truths I would not have known unless I was married.

What I love most about my marriage is how simple it is. Stay with me and I will explain.

So Mitch, how is marriage simple?

Saying how simple my marriage is sounds strange and may even be kind of an oxymoron. Our marriage did not start simple and it has never lacked complexity. However we get better at marriage every year that we are together. We have simply realized that we only have so much time and energy in each day. We have only been trusted with a certain amount of money as well. It is important to us how we budget and spend the resources that God has trusted us with. That was a simple reality that has changed the way we live our lives together and in the real world.

But life is so hectic sometimes and it’s hard to find balance.

Life can be hectic and can quickly find its way out of balance. You have to work to get things back into balance. During our first year or so of marriage we worked hard and did not have as much time together as we would have liked. My wife and I work outside of the home and both of our jobs can sometimes cause us to work longer hours than normal. However we’ve learned to make it a point to spend time together and put it on our calendars.

We also have different personalities, but a lot of the same interests which make spending time together so enjoyable. We both love cooking together, music, travel, sports, great food, and we love talking about things that matter to each of us. Our values also align, which is so important, and we still make each other laugh and smile.

What’s so important about marriage that your are writing a whole post on it?

What is important about a marriage is it is the only relationship in the world that can show the love between God and His bride. We all can look at marriages and learn. We have the ability to explore the mysteries of God in marriage.

One thing that I have learned in marriage, that I hope other people can learn, is that marriage is not always equal (you give 50%, I give 50%). Sometimes one partner will be carrying a heavier load than the other. Sometime you will carry a heavier load. The point is to be a support for your spouse and to sometimes make sacrifices for your spouse. Sometimes you will have to give 90% of yourself. But you know what? You bring out the best in each other, and your support and giving  love is the way to do that.

If you are giving of yourself and your spouse is giving of themselves, you will begin to model a “how-to” do this thing called marriage and not a “how-not-to” to your kids and grandkids.

All that to say this:

As we enter the Holiday Season, be thankful for your loved ones and your marriages. Even if you are not in a marriage, every relationship gives you chance to be thankful and a chance to give of yourself to them.

It’s important to realize that your life does not belong to you. It belongs to the one who gave the ultimate sacrifice, and you are here to give of yourself and leave your mark. You were given gifts and talents to give of yourself.

It is important to give of yourself. It is important to have relationships and to give selflessly to those relationships. It is not possible to have a fulfilling life without having open arms to give to others. If you close up and decide not to give of yourself (which is pretty selfish), and you decide to go it alone, you will find anything that you get from life will be meaningless.

You and I were made for relationships. We were made for God and for each other. We need each other. So remember what you should be truly thankful for this Holiday Season, the relationships with your husband/wife, your children, your family, your friends.

All this because when you give, you will have so much more to be thankful for. That’s how simple it really is!

The '”fear of the unknown.” You have probably heard that phrase your whole life, and odds are you have used that phrase as an excuse not to do something. As children we explored and were curious about the unknown, but now as adults we are afraid to take the risk for “fear of the unknown.” To get right down to it, many of us do not have the courage to take the risks that were put in this life’s design.

In every stage in life there are unknown variables.

Life is full of choice. All risks are not as big as they seem. A risk may be deciding that one parent is going to stay home with the kids, they down size to have more family time. A risk is deciding to start living below your means so you can begin to live a debt free life one day and take away money stresses. A risk is when a person finds their “calling” working a normal job so they can spend more time with their family and do the activities together that they really enjoy.

My Dad took a risk as an entrepreneur and started his on business and was able to do more for our family and spend more time with us. It is taking a job that may pay less and gives you more free time, but you don’t have to work 50-60 hours a week where your free time is spent sleeping, eating and exercising.

Life comes down to risks and the choices that you make. We have freedom to maker our choices and to pursue happiness. “You are now free to move about the country.” It doesn’t mean that you have to make high dollar amounts and live a life of luxury to be the envy of your friends. It is about being able to live the life that you choose.

One resounding truth that I have heard over and over is that if you do not like something in you life, make a plan to change it. Life is too short to be doing something that you hate or don’t like. The consequence of doing something that you hate drains the life out of you and your family gets the leftovers.

One thing is critical though, do not make a decision based on the fact that it will make you happy. Happiness is elusive, it is an emotion. We are not promised happiness. In the Declaration of Independence we are promised the “pursuit of happiness.” No where in the Bible are we promised happiness, and anywhere you read it is more concerned with your character (Prov 22:1).

The reason you do not do something based on a “happy” feeling is because what we like and dislike change so much. A simple illustration is Top 40 music. We here a song and we say it’s the best song, but a month down the road we turn the station when we hear that song.

So what do you base your decisions on?

A few years ago I was at a leadership dinner at Belmont University and the speaker said that you need to do what you are ENTHUSIASTIC about, what EXCITES you. He explained that enthusiasm comes from the Greek word ENTHEOS which means God in you, God breathed God inspired.

So spend sometime figuring out what sparks your enthusiasm, what excites you. Write down interests. What would you do if money wasn’t an object? Where would you live if you could? What trips would you take? What charities touch your heart? The more you uncover, the more you will learn about what God has inspired within you and what He has breathed into you.

So slow down, discover yourself and discover your passions. Figure out where you are before you begin to move forward. Get your life GPS out.

Also, figure out your values. Write down your values, write a mission statement for yourself, this will be your compass/GPS. Is what you are doing right lining up with your values and mission statement? Does the decision that you are about to make line up with your values and mission statement.

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”- Walt Disney

Recently I decided to put my running shoes back on and begin training to run 5K’s. I used to run everyday and I used to be on the Cross Country team in high school, but since my 3rd year and college running really to a back seat. Hard to believe, but 6 years ago I moved to Nashville, and running was not that important to me and now it shows. I thought by stop running I was saying goodbye to hill runs, intervals, hard distance runs forever, but that was false.

Now that I have began to run and train again I have learned that being on that Cross Country team taught me a lot of life lessons. As I am running that hill, I can hear Coach Wood pushing me on saying that I have it in me. As I am doing that interval run I look at the next lamp post in my neighborhood and I know if I take a few more steps, I’ll be there. As I was running the other day I remembered the life lessons Cross Country taught me and here they are:

When you think you can’t, you can. If you listen to runners or athletes you will hear about something called a second wind. We all hit this point when we are running when we get to the point where you just want to stop. That’s the point when you push through. If you can get through that quitting point, you will make it to the end of your run. It’s in that moment that you take that pivotal next step and then you will learn that you can go a lot further that you thought you could. So when you feel like giving up in the moment that you are in, just say, “It think I can, I think I can, I think I can.”

Resting is just as important as your hard work. When you run or workout you interchange hard days with lighter days. When I ran Cross Country we would have a “hard” day and then an “easy” day. The easy days give our muscles and bodies a chance to rebuild. In life you can have hard days, but some days you need rest. Sometimes you need a vacation. If you continue day after day going at it really hard you will burn out.

Think short term and you will go long. The key to distance running is breaking the distance up. While training I think about running to the next lamp post, before I know it I have made it through my run. It is like that in many facets of life. Say for instance you are budgeting. You think in the month, for the month. Yes you have long term goals, but you deal with your budget in the month for the month. Before you know it you have saved a nest egg and are living like nobody else. Even if you’re backed in a corner, see if you can make that next step and before you know it you will go further than you ever thought was possible.

If you are training, you have to have a plan to achieve your goal. If you want to run a marathon or get a good time in a 5K, you have to have a plan to get there. Effective people and athletes put together a plan, set attainable goals, and then the succeed. It takes baby steps to get where you want to go. Sometimes in athletic training you will make big strides of progress and then you will hit a plateau. The same is in life. You have to make a plan and execute with measurable and attainable goals.

Running down hill hurt more than running uphill. As much as that doesn’t make sense in your head it is true. When you make yourself run uphill it is hard, but it will build muscle and endurance. If you run down a steep down hill, it will hurt. You may not feel it right then, but wait until the next day. Next time you run down hill try to see how much stress is being put on your leg muscles. Just as in life, if you want to take the path of least resistance and coast through life, it will hurt you in the long run. You may not feel it at first, but you will feel it tomorrow.

When you have smarts you can make it as far as people with talent, sometime you will make it further. When I ran Cross Country, I was not the best out there. I barley ran a mile under 6 minutes. However I could beat the guys running around me during the race. I would run behind them most of the race and play mind games with them. With the last stretch I would step it up and pass them because I had exhausted them mentally. The same is true in life. Sometimes people have more talent, but you have perseverance and can pass them when they become lazy.

Getting Embarrassed is not a valid reason to give up. There are many obstacles when running Cross Country. One is that you do not run on flat paved surface. You will occasionally hit a rock or root and fall flat on your face. People are watching, you can’t give up because you are embarrassed. Those moments may be embarrassing, but eventually they will be memories that you can laugh at. You begin to learn to have better footing and to watch where you are running. The same is true in life. “Why do we fall, to learn to pick ourselves up.” –Thomas Wayne, Batman Begins.

Time is a precious gift that we are all given. Time actually is a currency. We have 24 hours in our bank account every day. How we spend and budget our time is up to us and no one else. The thing about the 24 hours, is that you have to spend every bit of the hours in your account before the end of the day. Then you get more time deposited at 12am.

Most of us spend at least eight of those hours at work. Another eight hours are spent sleeping or laying in bed, which leaves another eight hours to spend. Some of that time is spend commuting. So what do you do with what’s left over? How do you spend the time?

It got me to thinking what is the motivations behind me spending time working and commuting. What is the motivation behind me hitting the daily grind? Is it to make money? Is it to find purpose and meaning?

In Batman Begins, Rachel Dawes tells Bruce Wayne that, “It’s not who you are underneath, but what you do that defines you.” At first glance, that is how most Americans see themselves. They need a position, a job, power, and that will define them. However, underneath, the quote is much deeper.

Yes you have a job, maybe you have won awards. You may be powerful in the bubble in which you live, but it’s what you do with what you have been given that defines you. It boils down to integrity, what you are doing when no one else is paying attention.

I have realized that my motivations for having a career have changed. Of course I want to do what I enjoy, but where do I draw most of my happiness? It’s in my home life and personal life. I do what I do for my wife, and to have freedoms to do what I enjoy and minister to those around me. I work hard so one day I can live like nobody else and give more of myself to my wife, family, and to give more.

Time is a valuable resource that I have to use. The time will soon be gone, it’s what I do with the time that I have been given that defines me.

Lately we have been seeing a lot of changes in the world around us. Most of the changes that we have been experiencing are completely unexpected. Some of the unexpected changes has left many people jobless.

The unexpected changes that are occurring today are leaving a lot of people feeling like they have “failed.” Are you really a failure? In Batman Begins Thomas Wayne tells young Bruce Wayne, “Why do we fall? To learn to pick ourselves up.” I think that falling down is a necessary evil to get to success. Walt Disney had many “failures” or set-backs before he was successful and became a household name. Hank Aaron struck-out may times on his way to breaking the Babe’s record. Apple had set-backs before iPod, iMac, OS X and its current success. Do we find the perfect career path without set-backs or even firings/layoffs?

We need to change the definition of “failure.” When we fall down or find ourselves in a valley, that does not mean that we are to loose hope. When silver is being refined the temperature is raised at every step during the process until the refiner can see his reflection like a mirror. Can we learn to embrace “failures” and see them as necessary steps in the process towards success? Napoleon Hill once said: “Failure seems to be nature’s plan for preparing us for great responsibilities.”

“Failure is good. It's fertilizer. Everything I've learned about coaching, I've learned from making mistakes.” -- Rick Patino

I think that we all know someone who is jobless or who has lost their job, especially in this economy. Some of those people who have lost their jobs get right back on track while others stay down with their spirits broken. When an individual stays down and goes without a job for a long amount of time there is usually an underlying issue. Yes, even during this difficult time in our economy.

That underlying issue is our spirit or attitude. Our spirit and attitude make a huge difference in our relationships, careers and life. We have to be careful in watching all the areas in our lives when a painful event knocks us off course. If we pay too much attention to that one area all of the areas of our lives begin to suffer.
I know from personal experience that when a door closes in your career another one opens. When you fall down you have to learn to pick yourself up.

Here are some tips that may help if you find yourself jobless and with a broken spirit:

- Now is a good time for you to start a workout routine. Go for a long walk or run. Ollie Johnston, one of Walt Disney’s top animators, used to walk to spark creativity. This will help you also get anger out and increase your creativity. Take time to enjoy the simple things.

- Volunteer your time. You will be making a positive impact and you will making a difference. It will do wonders for your attitude.

- Stop watching the TV and don’t spend so much time on the computer. Begin reading inspirational material for an hour or more each day. Too much TV and internet will do nothing but depress you and keep you from getting out of your slump.

- Invest in your personal relationships. If there is ever a time you need the support of those around you it is now. You never know who may be looking for a great employee like you.

- Get a job. It may not be your dream job or the next big step in your career, but it will get you moving in a positive direction while you are searching. Today I looked on a career site and they listed 1,643 jobs in the Nashville area. So if the statistic is true that only 12% of what’s available is listed, that means there is about 13,600 jobs in the Nashville area.

- Use the tools that you have. Use MPI’s job bank, use your MPI Network. There are so many opportunities out there. Do not limit yourself.

Only you are ultimately responsible for your life. Charles Swindoll said it best, “I believe the single most significant decision I can make on a day-to-day basis is my choice of attitude. It is more important than my past, my education, my bankroll, my successes or failures, fame or pain, what other people think of me or say about me, my circumstances, or my position. Attitude keeps me going or cripples my progress. It alone fuels my fire or assaults my hope. When my attitudes are right, there is no barrier too high, no valley too deep, no dream too extreme, no challenge too great for me.”

I love this story, I heard it about a year ago and I thought I would share.

Once upon a time in the long, long ago the Eagle and the Turkey were very good friends. Everywhere they went these friends went together. It was not uncommon for people to look up and see the Eagle and the Turkey flying side by side through the air.

One day while flying, the Turkey said to the Eagle: “Let’s drop down and get a bite to eat. My stomach is growling.” “Sounds like a good idea to me,” replied the Eagle. So the two birds glided down to earth, saw several animals eating, and decided to join them. They landed next to the Cow. The Cow was busy eating corn, but noticed that the Eagle and the Turkey were soon sitting on the ground next to her. “Welcome,” said the Cow. “Help yourself to the corn.”

This took the two birds by surprise. They were not accustomed to having other animals share their food quite so readily. “Why are you willing to share your corn with us?” asked the Eagle. “Oh, we have plenty to eat here. Mr. Farmer gives us all we want,” replied the Cow. With that invitation, the Eagle and The Turkey jumped in and ate their fill. When they finished, the Turkey asked more about Mr. Farmer. “Well,” said the Cow, “he grows all our food. We don’t have to work for the food at all.”

“You mean,” said the Turkey, “that Mr. Farmer simply gives you all you want to eat?” “That’s right,” said the Cow. “Not only that, but he gives us a place to live.” The Turkey and the Eagle were shocked! They had never heard of such a thing. They had always had to search for food and work for shelter.

When it came time to leave, the Turkey and the Eagle began to discuss the situation. “Maybe we should just stay here,” said the Turkey. “We can have all the food we want without working. And that barn over there sure beats those nests we have been building. Besides, I’m getting tired of always having to work for a living.”

“I don’t know about all this,” said the Eagle. “It sounds too good to be true. I find it hard to believe that one can get something for nothing. Besides, I kind of like flying high and free through the air. And providing for food and shelter isn’t so bad. In fact, I find it quite challenging.”

Well, the Turkey thought it over and decided to stay where there was free food and shelter. But the Eagle decided that he loved his freedom too much to give it up, and enjoyed the consistent challenge of making his own living. So, after saying good-bye to his old friend the Turkey, the Eagle set sail for the unknown adventure.

Everything went fine for the Turkey. He ate all he wanted. He never worked. He grew fat and lazy. But then one day he heard the farmer’s wife mention that Thanksgiving was coming in the next few days and it would be nice to have roast turkey for dinner. Hearing that, the Turkey decided it was time to check out and rejoin his good friend Mr. Eagle. But when he attempted to fly he found that he had grown too fat and lazy. Instead of being able to fly, he could only flutter. So on Thanksgiving Day the farmer’s family sat down to roast Turkey.

When you give up the challenges of life in pursuit of “security,” you may give up your freedom.