Dale Carnegie told the story of two men who were chopping wood. One man worked hard all day, took no breaks, and stopped only briefly for lunch. The other chopper took several breaks during the day and a short nap at lunch. At the end of the day, the woodsman who had taken no breaks was quite disturbed to see that the other woodsman had cut more wood than he. He said, “I don’t understand. Every time I looked around, you were sitting down, yet you cut more wood than I did.” His associate said, “Did you notice that while I was sitting down, I was sharpening my ax?”

A lot of things that we do outside the realm of our productive work can be seen as “sharpening our axes”. Boating, bicycling, golfing, breathing our wonderful east coast salt air, and just turning the mind off for awhile are the ways that I like to sharpen my ax.

I’ve also found that when we’re working long days and weekends, the work expands to fill the space available. When I know I’m going to be at work till 7 or 8 every night, I’m sure that I slow down my pace or find time to comment on blogs, etc. But, if we’re scheduled to leave at 5pm for some reason, I keep up a higher pace during the day to get everything done because we’re “leaving early”.

So, essentially, we’re getting more work done by keeping shorter hours, and we have more hours for fun things that actually do “sharpen the ax”. Knowing that is one thing – mastering it is something we’re still working on!

I must be one of the most fortunate people alive today because I have a great business, a great place to work and live. I live on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. I have a steady flow of work, a customer base that is thriving in these troubled times, and I have my health. How good is that?

It is so good to be able to close the shop on a nice sunny day and go hiking, bicycling, or ride my motorcycle. I know the work will be there when I get back. I also don’t mind working in the evening or a rainy weekend because my time is my own. No GUILT involved. When I signed on to this lifetime,
I figured out early that I was in charge of me. I could do anything I wanted to do, as long as it harmed no one or no thing. I have kept to that idea and made my life my own. I answer only to myself…..and I am very forgiving. I know that whatever I need to survive in these times, I will create. No need to sit around and worry…that is a complete waste of time. Just understand that on a higher level…you are your own creator.

I can truly say that I am happy and content and I am comfortable in my skin. I never lack for anything…I have all I need. I have a happy life, a long and happy marriage, two loving and well adjusted children and 3 grandchildren. All content in thier understanding of life and thier journey thru it. I have all the business I can use, the money seems to be there when needed and things get done when the are promised. I never feel guilty by having all this in my life. I wish everyone would understand that they create thier reality….good or bad. Your choice.

Ok…I know what some might say….however, take a good look around and see the positive parts of your life and then try to create those happy times every moment….after all….it is just a series of moments that we have.

Jackson