|
Here’s a story I pulled from the archives. All this happened about 7 or 8 months ago. It’s not a deep story or anything but it does illustrate how you take the Principles you live by and apply them constantly. Remember, the lifestyle you choose should be your dominant frame of mind – the way you think all day, every day. Jump into the Game by clicking “Read More” below for the full post.  So I’m driving on the interstate in Atlanta rush hour traffic (oh, fun times there). All the while I’m on my cell phone having a pretty deep conversation. My poor stomach rumbled from lack of nourishment but overall I was good. In a couple more hours I would be able to eat. My phone’s alert, well… alerts – it’s an email. The email was a question from a regular blog reader so I immediately thought of a good response. The response would have to wait though; I was still in the middle of driving and having a conversation. Hustler Lesson: Whenever possible, be thoroughly when sharing Game. Don’t half-ass it. I finally arrived at my destination, Walmart. The conversation I was holding made the turtle-paced traffic seem not as bad. So now I’m creeping through the parking lot looking for a decent parking space. Everyone was walking around in slow motion, I guess they had plenty of time on their hands which is great for them but they were holding me up. My stomach growled again. Hustler Lesson: Always have a schedule, but it should be flexible. The exception of course is, if it’s about business there shouldn’t be too much flexibility. I finally found a decent parking space so I pulled in, but I couldn’t quite get out of the car yet because a text message came through. I figured I mind as well respond because I could do it in a few words. Hustler Lesson: The conscious mind can only concentrate fully on 1 thing at a time. So if you have to respond to something, while you’re in the middle of something else, make it as brief as you can (unless it’s about business or sharing Game). I got to the entrance and looked for a shopping cart that actually rolled smoothly. If you don’t shop at Walmart then you’re probably unaware that most of their shopping carts are usually in terrible condition. They pull in 1 direction, or they make a hell of a lot of noise when they roll, or the wheels stall and slide, or they only go forward not backward and… well you get the picture. The third shopping cart I tested out was a winner! My text message alert went off again. That time back-to-back-to-back. Either that was a long message or a couple different people messaging me. I asked the person on the other end of the line to hold-on for just a moment so I could pull up the texts. First one, the wife… Ok just a simple question so I responded. Second one was from an associate that needed advice on how to put a presentation together for her new job. She wanted to be impressive (granted), but she’s a little shy about standing up in front of a room of strangers. Not an issue, I got it and could help with that. I responded back, ‘Fear not, I got you’. Third one, a text from a friend, ‘Did you see my email?’ I responded, ‘I did but haven’t had the opportunity to read it yet’. I know… I know… that email was sent 2 days ago but I would get to it, I didn’t forget. Hustler Lesson: Business first; social matters later.  Sometimes, this is how it feels In a conversational daze I ended up in the wellness aisle. What did I need again? Oh yeah, multi-vitamins. I grabbed those off the shelf and threw them in the shopping cart. ‘Beep, beep,’ that was someone calling on my other line. I asked the person I was speaking with to hold on again. “Hey!” said the voice on the other end. A voice I recognized. “Are you busy?” “Just doing a little shopping and I’m on the other line, what’s up though?” I asked. It was a small situation that I had the solution for, so problem solved. I clicked back over to the original caller. Text message again… The wife with a follow-up question to the question she asked earlier. I responded. And another text message… the associate who needed “presentational assistance” thanked me and asked how she should approach her topic to make it more interesting. Not an issue, I got it – I could help with that but I would have to get back at her in a couple hours. I ended up in the snack aisle. Not part of the plan but those Chips Ahoy cookies with the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup pieces sure looked mighty tempting. I grabbed them and threw them in the shopping cart. I now had junk food and multi-vitamins – the perfect balance if you ask me. I then found myself slightly distracted by one of the biggest derrieres I had ever seen squeezed into a tight pair of shorts. Men, if you’re married and plan to stay devoted, keep out of Atlanta Walmarts! I took in the view for a couple of seconds then refocused. But refocused on what? What did I need again? Why didn’t I take the time to make a shopping list? Hustler Lesson: Whenever possible, have an idea of what you want before you get into something. It can save time. Another Lesson: If you get distracted, don’t get frustrated. Just stop a moment and refocus. Another alert from my phone, it was the email tone. I opened the email. It was from the same person who had sent me an email about 90-minutes ago. They wanted to know when I was going to respond. ‘I was driving when I got your first email so I didn’t get a chance to respond. But I will as soon as I get home. Give me about 3 to 4 hours,’ I typed. Hustler Lesson: I learned on the streets a long-time ago to always say something is going to take longer than you actually think it’s going to take. Not only does that keep some pressure off you to deliver, but if something else comes up, you have enough time to respond and tell them it’s going to take a little longer. Most people are cool with that just as long as you answer within a fair time-frame. Another Lesson: When in doubt, don’t commit. Your word is your bond.  I swung around to a few other aisles picking up other items I needed. The phone conversation finally ended. I then made my way to the check-out line. Seems Walmart didn’t believe in hiring cashiers anymore so there were only 5 lanes open and all the lines were starting to curve into L-shapes. On top of that, I hate the self-checkout so I would have to deal with the long lines.
Hustler Lesson: You can’t control everything so accept what you can’t control and stay cool. A king or queen has little power outside of their kingdom. I could feel the tension building up in the people around me. Those same slow walking, not a care in the world people were now irritated that they had to wait in a line. I got it – NOW they were in a rush. I overheard their conversations – complaints, personal issues, family issues, relationship issues, more complaints. I turned my mind toward other things, things I was working on and writing about. Hustler Lesson: Don’t complain if you’re not going to try to change something. It’s a waste of energy. Put that energy into something more productive. Your body becomes what you eat and your mind becomes what you think. At that point my stomach started to turn in on itself. No snacks though, I wanted some actual food. All good though, I was almost done. After about 20 minutes in the check-out line I made my way back towards the car. It was a beautiful day and the sky was clear. Everyone around was caught up in their own little worlds, and just like them I was caught up in mine. That’s how things are and that’s how they should be. I weaved back into traffic. It was the same song – slow tempo. As I hit every red light possible, I mentally prepared to answer emails – that should take about an hour; and help out with a presentation – should take about another hour, maybe 2; and finish some writing – about another hour; and iron some shirts for the next couple of days – about 30-minutes; but first I needed to eat! Seriously, I only had a sandwich since 7am that day and now it was about 6:30pm. Finally I was about a minute away from the house. My stomach rejoiced to the thoughts of real food. My phone went off again, another text message. It was my wife, ‘You still at the store? Can you get me some ice cream? And I think we’re out of laundry detergent and bleach’. Talk about timing! And what a shame… not one of those were on my shopping list… Hustler Lesson: Life is a series of problems that must be solved. Deal with them. Curious about the Game? Subscribe to the Uncommon Sense Adviser – Higher level Game to help take YOUR Game to the next level. Also receive news, discounts on future books and products along with early access. Join now by clicking [HERE].
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
W. James Dennis
Author
|
RSS Feed
|