The Cloudier The Purpose, The Bigger The Vision

Clearing Up Cloudy Purpose...

Two more weeks of planning to be one of the sponsors of the Ray Lewis Family Foundation and anything taking more than two emails to resolve has officially become a problem.  And the problems keep coming for some reason.  Maybe this is what people mean by "biting off more than you can chew".  The challenges are stacking up and 12 mile runs every morning and hill runs on the weekends are not exactly clearing my mind to help me focus on getting through them for this philanthropic effort.

A good measure gift for the Celebrity Bowling tournament was supposed to be giving out my newly released book, Get A Clue - 10 Steps to an Executive IQ.  After all, if the attendees are paying over a $100 to bowl or spectate, they clearly are either executives, leaders, entrepreneurs, or descendants of some great business owners.  These people want to make a difference so why not throw in a book.  Well I tell you why not?  My assistant calls the book distributor and they tell her that it will cost over $900.00 to ship the books to Baltimore.  That's ludicrous. That's 4 more iPad minis that I can give to some more young people.  Time to come up with Plan B.

Plan B consists of ordering promotional items for the tablet/laptop screen cleaners.  All good although disappointing because the book would be more of a gift.  Now I have to wait for the proofs of both the screen cleaners and the drawstring bags that will be given to the participants at the Fitness Clinic.  I opened the email from the promotional company with the two proofs that require my signature and the proofs are not what I ordered and it is for another company.

The NYC group I am sponsoring is now continuing to try to get chaperones on the field at the Fitness Clinic and the Miami D Camp.  Don't they read rules and regulations from the organizers.  In fact, these are the same people that believe I should pay for 3 grown men to be chaperones for the 11 kids I am flying down to participate in the camp.  By the way, the kids will be in camp from 8am - 5pm.  What exactly would the chaperones be doing the rest of the day?  Typical New York mentality to try and get over...adults acting up instead of the kids.

After three emails to the promotional item company, they finally send only one correct item changed on the approval form.  Now we are off and running but the new shipping date is next Monday.  Hold on, this needs to be in Baltimore by Wednesday and it was originally ordered four weeks ago.  Oh but now I can't get anyone on the phone to resolve this matter and ensure shipping delivers on time.

I circle back to the book distributor and interacted with a nice man on their chat application who indicated the books would not require a $900 shipping charge because Baltimore was considered local.  This means the book could be in Baltimore by Monday for a shipping charge of $63.00.  Back in business by His grace.

Now 10 nights straight of no sleep because I need to make sure one of my current projects is intact before I leave for this Baltimore trip.  I leave my client's office, which is about 35 miles from the real part of Los Angeles.  Of course there is always a need to pass slow individuals and to get out of the traffic so I step on the gas and the ENGINE MALFUNCTION light comes on with a message that ENGINE POWER HAS REDUCED.  I get to my neck of the woods (familiar area) off the highway of which we all were speeding and the vehicle stops with no warning in the middle of an intersection.  Seriously?

I call Roadside Assistance and they tell me 70 minutes before they will show up.  Good thing I didn't cancel my AAA membership because they were there in less than 10 minutes and the dispatcher stayed on the phone with me to make sure I was safe.  Good job AAA!  After three tow trucks (because you can't tow the vehicle if it won't go into Neutral), it was towed to the after hours parking lot.  Now another issue and this one much more major; this could have been my life.

Why is all this happening a week before the event?  What happened to the joyous feeling you are supposed to feel because you are doing something for others?  If I had just dumbed down my vision, I might not have had all these problems.  Maybe I should have just given the money and not been so involved.  If I have to go through all of these challenges a week before the event, maybe this is a sign that it was not meant to be and I should just bail out.  

All of a sudden, I think about how blessed I am.  First and foremost, the vehicle did not stop in the middle of the highway where people were going over 80 miles/hour.  My life and probably some other lives were spared.  But God!  Just that thought alone gives me the extra push to not stop because the fact that I am still here means there is a vision even greater than me to not only reach but extend myself to help the next generation.  And so I have to Run Life's Course.

To Whom Much is Given

THE ULTIMATE GIFT FOR GIVERS

No matter the education, athleticism, fame, fortune, or political presence, you have not made it until you reach back and give to others.  Unfortunately a hint of success makes some entrepreneurs, executive leaders, entertainers, politicians, and athletes forget that reaching one person makes for a better community.   Eventually they recognize that money, power, and respect will ebb and flow based on economics, popularity, athletic prowess, and presence but the gratitude of those that are helped is lasting.  

If you are among the fortunate that has built a brand and stayed the course of creating an excellent present and exciting future, it is your job to give back to those less fortunate.  Whether it is for an area of expertise or a cause that has very strong personal purpose, it is better to give than to take.  After all, you have taken deals, contracts, favors, and opportunities to be where you are so why not create a level playing field or give someone else an edge to overcome a challenge?

This is one of the reasons I decided my company, The RLC Group, would be a Hosting Sponsor of the Ray Lewis Family Foundation.   Clearly my twitter (@temekoruns) pictures show that this NYer is a Ravens fan.  More importantly, Ray Lewis' focus on the health and fitness of the youth is aligned with the motivational arm, Run Life's Course, which encourages fitness (specifically running) as a means to change the mindset that a challenge can be overcome.

It started out as sponsorship for kids from New York City to attend the Baltimore Youth Fitness Clinic and awarding a host of technology prizes to the best participants in terms of effort and athleticism.  Two weeks later, it propelled into a conversation with the organizers of the Ray's Summer Days events which turned into gifting the Ray's Kids of Character with high technology prizes.  And justifiably so!  The Kids of Character definitely embody everything the youth should strive to be - involved in the community, excelling academically, leading community and spiritual efforts, and having a true spiritual relationship.  

How much will the laptops help the entering college students that graduated from the Kids of Character?  What educational technology gifts can help give more leverage to some of the other kids?  What will these children look like 10 years from now in their community, church, school, or employment? I don't know the immediate answers.  So the sponsorship package grew tremendously but hopefully it makes an even greater impact than the dollars for some well-deserving youth.

Ready In Their Own Time Not Ours

As a runner that has been fortunate enough to only experience an ITB issue, there was the physical pain but worst the mental anguish of not knowing when it was going to disappear, get better, vanish, something.  Additionally there was the mental exhaustion of having it worsen during two marathons with no idea how I could sustain it to make it to the finish line.  Quitting was not an option but running marathons for me is a hobby in my lifestyle - it's not my passion nor my job.  

Injuries have plagued the key go-to players for several NBA teams this season with the result of losses that diminished the hopes of very promising teams entering the finals.  The Lakers, without Kobe Bryant, really had no chance.  The Thunder and the Bulls put up a fabulous fight in their respective Conference semifinals without Russell Westbrook and Derrick Rose. In fact, Kevin Durant just looked lonely without Westbrook. The Celtics just kept looking short-handed without Rajon Rondo.  And even though David Lee decided to come into one game to help his team, the Warriors are most definitely missing his presence. So what do they feel mentally?

Sitting on a bench or at home tweeting the game away with no real way to physically help the team.  Missing the camaraderie that comes with professional sports because of surgery and doctor restrictions.  Making the same quick moves before on the court and all of a sudden, this injury creeps up out of nowhere. And the return must be even scary or challenging?  These are high performers and they must be at least as good as before or better.  If not, the critics will nail them.

Clearly I can never measure up to their athleticism, but once I took the first step to run the next marathon I believed I could conquer it and I did - my best PR.  So while everyone was pressuring Derrick Rose to make a move and suit up in the playoffs, he and all the others will do that in their own time - when they are ready mentally and physically.  We, as fans, should just look forward to see how they overcome the challenge and maintain their greatness with some incredible comebacks.  For whatever reason, it is part of their course.