Experience the pellet gun.

You can’t really know something unless you have firsthand experience with it. I’ve had this conversation with people hundreds of times.


Can you know much about anything without firsthand experience?

I’m not sure I’ve been convinced one way or the other by any of the arguments I’ve heard.

On the one hand, I recently listened to a man go on and on about how horrible it would be to live in New York City. He admitted that he had never even visited New York City, yet he was sure that it would be a horrible place to live. I knew that his point of view was invalid, no matter how he had obtained his information. He couldn’t know much about New York if he hadn’t been there.

On the other hand, I’ve never been to Spain, but I feel I know it’s a wonderful place, because I want to go there, and I’ve studied and learned as much about Spain as I can.

One of the best illustrations of this argument came many years ago from a particularly dim witted young man who worked in the warehouse of the company where I was employed. This young man believed without question that we cannot know anything with absolute certainty without firsthand experience. He was ready to defend this position to the death. There was no way he could be persuaded to consider the possibility that there might be another point of view on the matter.

The argument in the warehouse became heated. Some of the guys there felt that someone could have a pretty good opinion about something without firsthand experience. But the dim witted young man was unmoved. You can’t know ANYTHING without firsthand, actual knowledge.

The following Monday, as we all returned to work. I noticed that the angry young man who had argued so passionately about experience, was walking with a limp. I had to know his story.

“I was at a get-together with my family over the weekend. One of my nephews was playing with a pellet gun. He asked me how much it hurt to be shot with a pellet gun. I was going to tell him that it really hurts a lot, when it occurred to me that I really didn’t know. I didn’t have any firsthand experience with being shot by a pellet gun. So I pumped up the gun and shot myself in the thigh.”

Now, I guess I have to say that I don’t really know what it feels like to shoot myself in the leg with a pellet gun. I don’t have that firsthand experience. But I’m pretty sure that it hurts a lot, and that it would probably leave a nasty mark and cause me to limp for a few days. And now I can say that my knowledge has been increased by seeing someone else experience a pellet gun shot to the thigh.

Maybe that’s the key. We share our experiences with others, and learn from the experiences of others. In this way we develop a shared knowledge, even if it isn’t firsthand, pellet gun knowledge. But sometimes that kind of knowledge isn’t really necessary.

When we struggle.

This past year has been a tough one for me. I’ll admit it.


Most of the hard things that have happened to me would probably seem like good things to other people.

My daughter got married. My son is studying abroad.

I know these are wonderful events, and I am truly grateful for them. But it was still hard to see my kids leave home and begin new lives.

Some of the hard things that have happened have just been bad.

I’ve been worried about losing my job. I was told that the position would be eliminated. It was off and on again several times. There have been some really horrible days when I wondered if I would be able to provide for my family much longer.

Mixed in with all this, my house was severely damaged in a wind storm in December. We’ve been struggling with our Insurance provided to agree upon proper repairs.

So there have been great moments of happiness, and horrible moments of worry and despair.

I’ve been amazed each time I’ve been lifted from my despair by someone I least expected to be thinking of me. Something as simple as telling me that they know that I’ve been struggling and that they are thinking of me. Sometimes someone has actually reached out with a useable idea, or even come to my house to physically help me work on a problem. I now know that I’ve misjudged many people in my life.

Forgiveness brings about personal progress. When we convince ourselves that we are alone, and that everyone else is against us, we stifle our own progress. None of us can truly be happy alone. We reach our happiest peaks, and our most delicious successes, through and with the cooperation of others.

Surviving hard times makes happy and successful times that much better. Hard times also help us see the way toward success more clearly. But this clarity is only available to us if we are honest about the reasons for our suffering, and if we’re willing to let them go.

That’s why we talk about all this, that’s why we share.

A new way to promote my speaking programs.

I've created a facebook page that will cover all my speaking programs:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1365704310

Please visit my new facebook page,
But remember,
I will ALWAYS be updating my blog here, and the posts here have more information and more depth.

I encourage you to discuss the issues brought up here and on facebook,

As always, HAVE FUN!!

New project! TUBBY YOU! Follow my new fitness experience.

I'm not a fitness guy at all.
But the last year has led me down a new and amazing path.
Stress caused me to seek out a physical outlet, and I found FREE WEIGHTS!
What I have learned has been absolutely life changing.
Everything about my life is different.
I am learning and exploring and evolving.
Lifting weights has altered my diet, my mood and my philosophies.
Follow me here:
http://tubbyyou.blogspot.com/

Great visit with SkillsUSA!

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to attend the SkillsUSA regional conference here in Salt Lake City. I was so inspired that I had chills the whole time.
What a fantastic organization!

I've always bristled at the idea that there is only ONE path for our youth, and that the world is a "sink or swim" proposition. There are always new talents that can be discovered and developed. There are always new paths of interest that can change our lives.
SkillsUSA is REALLY WORKING AND SUCCEEDING with our youth!
I saw and met some of the most dynamic and positive young people in the whole world. This is really something you should investigate.
I saw people changing their lives, and making a difference in the lives of others.
What a wonderful day.
I want to thank my good friend Craig Moore for making my visit possible.

Big story telling night in Utah!

This is still in the idea stage, but I'm moving quickly.
This will take place in Utah, initially.
I can easily get a venue.
I need help with advertising and sponsorship.
I need storytellers.
And!
I need input and ideas.
I plan to tape the whole event.

I'm now listed on Speaker Match.

I've joined Speaker Match.

http://www.speakermatch.com/

 I really like their services. I hope this new endeavor will help me expand my speaking experience.

I also will be doing promoting of my own speaking engagements, so we'll soon have more to talk about here.

Apart from my speaking career, I've been dealing with the marriage of my sweet daughter, Xochil.

It's a joy to see her start a new life with her dear husband, Tyson, but it's really hard to let her go.

I wish her every success in life, and all the love in the world!