Kids and Technology

2011 is just about over, and with it my blog for the year.  Yes, this was the first year I ever wrote a blog, so for that I feel some sense of accomplishment.  We have covered a lot of different topics this year including: Vision, No Excuses, Mentors, Letting go, Encouraging others, Risk taking, and many other avenues.  Hopefully you may have learned a thing or two, as I did.  It goes without saying that the person who writes is usually the person who learns the most.  I definitely learned a lot in 2011. 

As we near the end of 2011, I was struck at how fast life can come and how fast life can go.  We have all lost loved ones, good friends, colleagues, and even mentors in 2011.  Time never slows down. 

My 11 year old son has been saving his money for quite some time to get an iPod Touch.  A couple months ago, my wife and I finally let him get his own Gmail account.  Right away, he was emailing family members.  (I must admit, I absolutely love receiving an email from him when I'm on the road.  It totally brightens up my day.)  He finally received enough money and was able to get an iPod Touch.  He is blowing me away with what he can do on it.  My daughter...well, she really wanted a Kindle. She too had been saving up for one and she just got it in the mail today.  Of course, now she had to have her own email account too, so now she's off to the races!  I know this is going to sound like I am REALLY old, but my kids are doing things that I never even dreamed about at their ages.  The truth is they're growing up way too fast.  I just want to slow the process down as much as I can, but unfortunately, I cannot. 

Life doesn't slow down and it will continually go faster and faster.  Don't let life rule you - rule it!  Take time with your family, your friends, your colleagues and get to know them on a deeper level.  The "hi, how ya doing" mentality doesn't cut it.  Dig deep!  Trust me, I know I have to do a MUCH better job in this department.  

Embracing change is no easy task.  It isn't easy to see my kids growing up as fast as they are, but I'm truly thankful.  I can either sit back and discourage all the changes, or I can embrace them.  The same goes with your career.  You can either embrace the changes going on around you (economy, new boss, job change, etc.), or you can sit back and get run over by all the changes.  If you take the latter approach, it won't be as easy to jump on the train and ride it.   

I'm excited about what lies ahead in 2012, and I hope you are too.  We have so much to be thankful for!  As one of my good friends, Cynthia Ellison, CCIM always says, "Today is a gift, that is why they call it the "present." 

God bless, and I wish you all the best in 2012!

Dave