All posts by Keith Thompson

The dip after the start

Career, Life

With anything new, it always starts with high expectations and promise but there is usually a dip after it starts. Sometime the dip is shallow and short and other times, the dip is long and deep.

Using two familiar examples to explain what I am talking about. Say you start working out. We all have been there when you get up that first day and go lights out on a new workout. Afterwards you feel fantastic and accomplished and ready to tear up the world. It’s what happens after about day five that matters when you hit a dip and talk yourself out it. That is why workout gyms sign up more new memberships the first week of January than any other week of the year. Ha.

By way of another example, think of a plane taking off from an aircraft carrier. It starts will full thrust and power but when it leaves the carrier deck, it most always takes a dip before it really gets going. That is what I am talking about in this blog. What do you do when the dip happens?

There are many examples of a dip from new relationships, new ventures, new investments, new churches, new diets and many other examples. The theme is consistent for all these examples. There is almost always a dip and what really matters most is what you do when the dip happens, and can you rebound from the dip?

I sell hotels for a living and I cannot count the number of well -intended investors that built a new hotel or bought a new hotel that experienced some dip after it opened. Many of them fall short of investor expectations and some never recover from the dip.

In life, investments, relationships etc., the advice would be to, hope for the strong take-off but plan for the dip. If you do. it will not surprise you when it happens, and you will be better prepared for it when it does. KT

Veterans Day 2019

Family, Life

Today is Veterans Day and we should all be thankful for them.

Several days ago, I wrote a blog about the battle at Omaha Beach in Normandy France. What many people forget is that America was fighting two wars at the same time. We were fighting the Germans in Europe and Japan in the Pacific. Our troops were stretched all over the world trying to Save America.

Two years (exactly) before the battle at Omaha beach was the battle at Midway. As the Battle at Omaha Beach was the turning point in the European war against Germany, the battle at Midway was the turning point in the war in the Pacific against Japan. Midway island is located between Japan and Hawaii, much closer to Hawaii than it is to Japan. As you know Japan had already attacked Pearl Harbor (6 months earlier) and their plan was to take ownership and control of all the Pacific region.  If anyone thinks that their desire for control would have stopped with the pacific, simply does not understand history or the mindset of a dictator. Japan wanted to control the world from the west.

Simply put, if we had lost the battle of Midway and given Japan ownership and control of the island, we would have lost the Hawaiian Islands and then would eventually be defending the west coast of the United States. Much like the battle at Omaha beach, if we had lost Midway, we most likely would have lost America. So, the stakes in the battle was for the life, land and liberty of America.

The battle took place between June 4th and June 7th, 1942. Combined casualties between America and Japan were 3,364. Additionally, there was great loss of naval ships, planes, aircraft carriers, equipment and personnel. America prevailed in the battle and pushed the Japanese control back to Tokyo and retained control of the pacific.

In our personal life there are things we need to do and then there are things we must do. In the course of history, the battles at Midway and Omaha Beach were battles that America had to win. So today, wherever you are, if you see a veteran, thank them and this Thanksgiving, remember the veterans that gave their life so we could have a chance to live ours. KT

Larger than life

Uncategorized

Some people when they are born, come out with a personality that is larger than life. They just have this thing about them that is contagious, and people listen when they talk. It can’t be taught but it can be learned. It is not about who is the loudest in the room. It is a person’s quiet confidence and mannerisms that draw people to them.

I played football with this guy in high school and he was our quarterback. He was the smallest guy on the team, yet he played far beyond what his stature would indicate was possible. It was his personality. He just believed in himself and what he was doing more than the rest of us. On another note we had this camping friend growing up named Bobby. He was a large powerful man, but his personality is what captured you. He could win over the crowd without even trying. Lastly, I know two young women (sisters actually) that both have this gift of quiet confidence that causes people to pay attention when they talk. They are larger than life.

I have friends today that are like that. Some are in my business and one is in my Sunday school class at church. All these people just seem larger than life and leave a deep impression wherever they go.

Like I noted earlier, it can’t be taught but it can be learned. It starts with a person’s self-esteem and self-esteem starts with making the decision to step into who you were really meant to be. Many people live their whole life never really being who they are meant to be. For some it is caused by fear, anxiety, inferiority etc., but for many people, it is just a decision away. This might sound strange but take one day, only one day and make the decision that in every conversation and interaction that day you will be who you want to be in your heart. Ask yourself at the end of that day if you want to do that for a second day or go back to how you were the day before. My guess is that if you act like this several days in a row, it just may be the shift you have been looking for. It can be learned but only through repetition can it began to change how you look at yourself and the world around you. KT

D-Day, Omaha Beach, Normandy France

Life

Our European forces landed on Omaha beach in the northern region of France on June 6, 1944 at a time when the outcome of WWII was still in question. The battle for Normandy France lasted 26 days. Many people gloss over what happened in Europe during the second world war but to state it simply, if we had lost the war in Europe, we would have lost America. The liberties and freedom you have today is because thousands of our service members from another generation died saving the America dream.

When you hear politicians, pundits and intellectual neophytes talk about impeachment, collusion, interference, congressional hearings, twitter and Facebook accounts and who is wearing what gown to the Hollywood awards ceremony, just remember that thousands of our soldiers never got the chance to live a full life because they were fighting so we could have one.

When the US Forces landed on Omaha beach that day, there were 12,020 German troops from the 352nd division, many in concrete bunkers, killing as many of our men as possible. To get from the ships to the beach they used Landing Craft Assault (LCA’s) vehicles that were basically flat bottom steel boats with high sides and a drop-down gate in the front. For many of the men, the only thing they could see was the soldiers with them in the boat. They were standing shoulder to shoulder in the LCA’s waiting for it to get to the shore and the gate to drop down. The Germans would wait until the gate dropped and start firing machine guns into the group of soldiers trying to get to shore. Many of our young men died before they even got out of the boats. One boat in particular had 31 men aboard and only seven men made it out of the boat alive.

At the end of that battle, there were 93,000 dead or wounded (American, allied troops, German, French civilians) evacuated. Within a few days, America had taken the beach and within 26 days, they were operational with 11,000 troops, 2,000 vehicles, 9,000 tons of equipment. 100 days later we had 1,000,000 tons of supplies, 100,000 vehicles and 600,000 men in the northern region of France. The battle at Omaha beach turned the tide of the war in Europe. If America and its allied countries had not won that day, we could have potentially lost the free world we know today.

This Thanksgiving as you have dinner with your family and sit around the fireplace, remember to give thanks to all those families that lost their loved ones fighting for us. KT

A Shepherd’s Rod and Staff

Life

In the 23rd Psalm, part of the passage says, “for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.” This is often overlooked, and I have never heard a pastor speak about it. The 23rd Psalm is so rich in content, but this little sentence doesn’t get much attention.

Visualize this image. A Shepherd walking in front of his sheep holding his rod and staff in his hand.

Definition; the only way his rod and staff give you comfort is if you can see it. The only way you can see it is if he is in front, leading the way. If you want to be in front, out ahead of Jesus leading your own way, you can’t see the rod and the staff and therefore they will not comfort you.

Give this some thought. KT