There’s only one thing I can think of that’s worse than being in your car and on your way to the airport at three-thirty in the morning for a six a.m. flight and that is finding yourself in a hotel shuttle van on your way back to the airport at four o’clock in the morning for a six o’clock flight home  some forty-nine hours later.

The six o’clock flight home isn’t the bad part… It’s the traveling in general, the airports and the traffic (Yes! There IS traffic on the 405… even at three-thirty in the morning!). It’s the rush hour traffic you fly into regardless of where you go, especially if where you go is due East and the two or three hours you add to your trip almost certainly ensures you’ll be stopping more than going in the stop-and-go traffic you are certain to encounter. It’s eating alone and being ‘up’ and ready for an eight-thirty keynote followed by a three-hour seminar four hours later. Did I mention the eating alone? And, it’s changing planes or worse yet terminals in Chicago or Dallas.

And… and… and…

The only thing that can make any of it worthwhile: the leaving your home and your life and your business, are the people you meet and the natural beauty that you find yourself immersed in regardless of where you go so long as you allow that beauty to wash over you. That, and the intrinsic beauty of the people you meet every time you venture out into the world and the impact each of them can have on you… if you let them touch your life… And, especially if they allow you to touch theirs.

I left the shop for an association meeting and trade show in Pittsburgh this past Friday. Truth be told, I didn’t want to.

I know… I know… Then, why did you go?

Well, it wasn’t the meeting or the city or even the fact that it’s still winter there. Or, the fact they’ve had more snow than anyone should ever have to deal with. There was just too much going on here: too much going on at the shop, and I was having too much fun doing it to want to go anywhere. But, they asked and I accepted.

So, I got up at three o’clock Friday morning and was on the road by three-thirty.

I went over my notes for Saturday’s keynote in the air. I went over the slides for the seminar I was presenting later on that afternoon. I thought about the internal struggle I am currently confronting as I try to figure out how to break up my marketing budget: how much for acquisition, how much for retention and how much for loyalty and reward. And, then I started to think about how fortunate I am: how privileged.

I was asked… I was asked to share my experience, my knowledge, my life, with some of the most incredible people in the world: the folks who do what I do… automotive service professionals, like me.

They wanted to hear what I had to say. They were gracious and generous and attentive: grateful that I’d come so far to be with them. But, the real truth  is I’m the one who was really grateful. You see, I’ve yet to go anywhere and speak to any group where I didn’t come home enriched by the experience. So, if it sounds like I was whining about the opportunity to get up that early, I’m not. Not, really… I love what I do and I love the people I do it for. In fact, it’s pretty much what I’ve got written down on the little piece of paper I keep in my wallet:

To enrich the lives of those I serve, moving them toward the success that is so elusive in our industry, by sharing my personal knowledge and experience.

In the end, Pittsburgh was wonderful because the people were wonderful (The food wasn’t half-bad either! Especially, that Iron City cheese steak with the coleslaw and French fries built in washed down with some Iron City beer!). So, it’s a pretty good bet you’ll be reading about my getting up long before dawn to share what I’ve learned and where I’ve been with another group of shop owners long before I’ve had the chance to process how much I’ve learned and how much my life has been enriched by the last group of shop owners I just left.

No, not bicycling… It isn’t the wheels that are spinning. It’s my head!

I’m in the middle of what feels like an endless cycle of effort: like being on a treadmill and having absolutely no control of the speed or the pitch and all you are doing is fighting like hell to keep up. And, it isn’t any one thing…

I could lay it all off on the magazine writing I do, but I’m caught up. Actually, if you want the truth, I’m slightly ahead of the deadlines on both magazines: a great feeling if I do say so myself. And, if that was all I was doing I could take a deep breath and maybe even relax a little. But, and you may have already guessed this by now, it isn’t… And, I can’t.

I just finished writing ‘my’ article for our newsletter, AutoInsights… And, a response to a number of the comments on the Counterman.com website – one of the two columns I write each month. There have been forty-one comments on this one particular article – a significant number of comments for a trade magazine, especially one in our industry. And, that deserves (demands) my attention.

Before that, I felt compelled to comment on a blog post penned by the president of one of the trade associations I belong to. Most of the time I’m able to persevere and have the discipline to ignore posts like these regardless of who the author might be. But, this time the subject was one I have written about extensively myself and just couldn’t stay away. I wrote a blog post for my other blog at: CaptainCarFix.blogspot.com. And, a guest editorial. So, it isn’t as if I haven’t been writing.

Quite the opposite, really. I think I’ve been writing too much – just, nothing for here which is why I’m writing this now when I should be getting ready for bed. Guilt is perhaps the most powerful of all motivators and I’m feeling pretty guilty about focusing all my efforts elsewhere.

So, here I am, apology and explanation in hand… With a promise to be more diligent, even if it is unclear who – if anyone – is out there. Regardless, I’m here and as long as I have the keyboard I guess that’s all that matters.

When I return, I’d like to share some of the ideas that have been bouncing around in my head: ideas from the latest of Seth Godin’s two newest books, Tribes and Linchpin. There are some important ideas buried in the pages of both and I think they are worthy of sharing. Until then, it’s time for me to quite…

Know how I know? Lesley, my wife, just told me so!

I’ve been interested in this ‘blogging’ stuff almost since it started. But, interest isn’t always enough to motivate one to action.

I don’t watch television because it is a distraction I can ill afford. I work eleven or twelve hours a day at the shop and spend most evenings writing for both sides of the industry I am involved in. If you understand deadlines and recognize the kind of writing responsibilities I’ve accepted, it shouldn’t be hard to understand why someone like me would not allow themselves the luxury of getting involved with a series they know they’ll never be able to follow?
So, despite my interest, I never allowed myself the luxury of following a blog or a blogger until my son started writing about his Iron Man training experience (theironmadman.com).
You might be able to ignore a televisions series, but it’s unlikely you would be willing to ignore one of your kids – especially, when that kid is as articulate, thoughtful and as entertaining as mine is.
Consequently, I found myself ‘hooked’ on Ryan’s blog for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the tendency most writers have to share their innermost thoughts and feelings in print more readily than they might in conversation. The interesting thing about following his blog is that it inspired me to go back to the gym and start training again myself.
At about that same time, and through the same son: I discovered Seth Godin’s blog and became an addict almost instantly. That blog started me thinking about my own business in ways I never even thought possible before. Now, I wouldn’t think of starting the day without checking in with either.
Reading about blogging and starting to follow more and more blogs forced me to consider blogging myself – a difficult decision when you aren’t sure you have anything of value to contribute to the terabytes of material already out there. Nevertheless, I added this blog to our company website.
After I started blogging here, I discovered that there were parts of my life independent of the shop and my industry involvement that I felt compelled to write about.
Please note the use of the word ‘compelled.’ Somehow, this ‘blogging stuff’ has gone from an interest – and, a moderate one at that – to an obsession. Note to self: do not get obsessive-compulsive, anal-retentive individuals started on projects that feed their compulsive-obsessive nature! Not, if you want them to stop! Not, if you care whether or not they ever enjoy a normal life again!
So, I started a second blog… Not bad for someone who didn’t see the need to have a first one! Now, I spend more time than I would like agonizing over what to put where, and whether or not I really do need two blogs in the first place.
Barring all that, I’ve got to tell you that from a personal point of view, whatever this is: it’s weird! You start out not knowing what you’re going to say one moment, and then trying to figure out how to stop the next.
It’s kind of like going to therapy without a therapist: you’re on the couch struggling to make a breakthrough, struggling to say something substantive, when all of a sudden you’re stricken with verbal diarrhea and find that you just can’t stop! And, all the while – not a sound can be heard, because there is no one there to guide you.
It’s like talking to yourself, only you’re not. You’re talking to anyone and everyone out there who will listen.
You’ve got to wonder what it says about us: this need to connect, the need to communicate, the need to share the intimate details – the minutia, of our lives, with literally everyone in the known universe.
What does all this say about the nature of our relationships and how we choose to interact with each other? Is this some kind of a window into an ‘arm’s length’ future where relationships become more virtual than real; more distant than intimate?
I don’t know and I’m not sure, but this does seem like a good place to ask questions like these: doesn’t it?