Monday PM

Well, I'm back at my post. I should have made the time to get to a computer on Saturday and Sunday, but I just didn't get the job done. Sorry.

My trip to KC was good, but I was glad to get back Saturday evening in time to get in a short ride before dark. And I did a 36+ miler on Sunday to get a good start on the week. A little BBQ/FFF in Century Heights last night. Roy's car was a treat to drive. XM radio. GPS tracking. Slick.

The closing speaker at the conference on Saturday was Pat Williams, owner of the Orlando Magic. He basically gave a motivational presentation in a speech that centered on the Florida vision of Walt Disney that led to the creation of Disney World in Orlando. I checked out Williams' website and he is in the business of guest speaking. It looks as though he may be a little on the religious right of things. And he is an athlete, even at age 66. He's run several marathons, including Boston a number of times. His bio includes a stint as baseball coach many years ago at Wake Forest.

The thing that most impressed me about his talk was his style of delivery. Very polished and well rehearsed. I'm sure that he has made the same talk before many groups. No stuttering or grasping for thoughts: he always knew what he was going to say next. Interestingly, he also mentioned Coach John Wooden in the speech a number of times. I was at a high school awards program in South Bend in 1969 or 1970 where Coach Wooden was the guest speaker. I was so impressed by his speech and by his fluid delivery. He never looked at notes, and he quoted various sources from literature. (Of course, he was an English teacher when he was a young coach.)

In the mid-"80's, I wrote Coach Wooden and asked for a copy of his book on "the pyramid of success", which had been the topic of his speech in South Bend. Yes, I included a check! He actually sent me two books, autographed to boot. I think all of those elements in Coach Wooden's pyramid are still relevant today. You should check it out.

One of the thoughts that came to me in the car on the drive back from KC was to incorporate the 4000 Days concept into my financial planning business. Everyone has a certain number of days that may be relevant to themselves for some longer term planning. A 25 year old has 15000 days to age 66. A 50 year old has around 5000 days to age 65. I am going to give it some thought and see if I can't create a story that will have appeal to people across the spectrum. I think I want to include it in a canned presentation that can be delivered to employee groups in the polished style discussed above. Its an idea.

Hope 1 is enjoying "the Cape". And that 3 is making the most of her last week in Ctown. 2 is replacing the Tracer this week. May the Tracer RIP.

Best wishes to 4 on her "Moving into Theta Day" today in IC. I was glad to see her recent entry on her blog.

Be careful out there.