Begin at the beginning, a very fine place to start.

Wouldn't dare disagree with Rogers & Hammerstein wisdom.

Years after writing my last post, despite many changes, revisions, alterations, and even, I believe, some self improvement in the interim, I'm on the road again, running.

Perhaps "running" is an overstatement of my result; it's not an overstatement of this morning's effort:

Not bragging, dear reader, simply stating, and offering encouragement to you too, to do whatever you do that keeps you being you.

And thanks for reading all the way down here.

motivHATE?

Does hate motivate? 

Is there more to hate than the raw emotion? Does it serve a purpose?

It’s emotionally intense. And breeds the same.

It is raw power.

And maybe, that’s a power we can use to motivate.

For positive things.

Sounds incredible, huh?

Well, where do you think hate’s intensity ranks on motivation scale? On the persuasion scale? On the unnerving scale?

Exactly.

Hate’s outside our comfort zone. But does it make us uncomfortable simply because it’s too strong an emotion?

Granted, hate is way past dislike,

                distaste,

     or even disdain.

Hate is out there where the words like execrable, odious, and repulsive tend to cohabitate, collaborate, and lie in wait.

And yet.

Is that a bad place to be when trying to grab your giddyup from getting going without you? Get your meat hooks into your Mojo?

"Anger leads to hate.

Hate leads to suffering."

—Yoda

With apologies to the short-statured Star Wars shaman, we grow only when we leave our cushy, comfy, comfort zones.

Here’s an example of how one engineer so hated diesel engines that he invented an entirely new type of diesel engine, without what he hated about it. Or so the story goes. [Not a paid endorsement by Honda, for the record.]

 see the spot

 

Maybe, just maybe, if something is so powerfully ain’t-what-we-stand-for, it’s enough to get us into making a change. It’s worth a shot. Besides, just think of all the haters you’ll prove wrong.

And thanks for reading all the way down here.

Pete Van Bloem is an ad copywriter in New York. He often writes for clients at advertising agencies. The views stated above are his and not in any way, shape, or form affiliated with any ad agency, its employees, clients, partners, shareholders, groupies, fans, lovers, or even, haters.

The cost of getting things done

Digging in gets it done, just so you know.

Chain jumped off the bicycle. Stopped, grabbed it and put it back on (also realized why bike shorts are as black as bicycle chain grease, just so you know).

Copier jammed at the office. Stopped, took out the offensive paper and put it back on (also realized why my work clothes should be black – xerox toner blends with black pants, just so you know).

See a theme here?

My sister in-law is a chef who runs a cooking school. One of her favorite mantras - and was a class she taught at one point - is dead on: gotta break some eggs. This is based on the truism, “If you want to make an omelet, you gotta break some eggs." (And it was famous way before Fight Club, just so you know).

Getting it done sometimes takes a few moments of getting

• Goo between your fingers

• Grit under the nails

• Grease on your clothes

But then, it’s done, you know?

As a side note, noticing—and pleased—the computer keyboard has black keys.

Thanks for reading all the way down here.

Pete Van Bloem is a copywriter at New York advertising agencies. The views stated above are his and not in any way, shape or form affiliated with any ad agency, its employees, clients, partners, shareholders, overlords or landlords, or the work he gets done for them.

A plug for improving with the power of petite

A plug for improving with the power of petite

Little. Different. Not mutually exclusive.

Just because something’s shrimpy small, doesn’t mean it’s insignificant.

The street that leads off the West Side Highway to Fairway Market uptown, for example. Even its name seems to belittle it.

But it ain’t.

It’s one heckuva significant street. Desperately needed to stock the shelves the with scrumptious sustenance that shoppers’ carts swallow whole.

There are all kinds of dimuntive people who’ve done remarkable things:

-Indian statesman and freedom fighter Ghandi was 5’ 5”

-NBA slam-dunking point guard Mugsy Bogues,  was 5’-3”

-World renowned, rock star Prince was 5’-2”

And in the everyday, there are little differences that give us a lift. A dollop of peanut butter in oatmeal. An extended, open-palmed gesture, pointing the way.  A hint of lemon verbena.

“No act of kindness,

no matter how small,

is ever wasted.” 

– Aesop (Lion and the Mouse)

Be it a smile. A wagging tail on a small dog. A wink.

Here’s to making a difference, no matter how diminutive. Disregard any delay to it dawning.

And thanks for reading all the way down here.

If you’re not removing the headwind, you’re creating it

If you’re not removing the headwind, you’re creating it 

(bicycling to work via the Hudson River esplanade, NYC)

As a worker, it’s great to have the wind at your back, pushing, cajoling, tempting you to throw your weight into that next pedal rotation. It pleads with you- and pleases you - to pedal furiously.

Faster

Further.

Experienced it this morning on my way into the office.

It was glorious.

Pain-free.

And fast.

Just like some days at the office where I work, when the brief has insights; the time is ticking, but not too fast; the planets align, and the ideas are flowing.

Hurdles? Handicaps? Holdups?

Hah. They all become

Opportunities

Openings

Occasions to shine

As a manager, I should be creating those situations more and more often. So people who look to me to remove the shackles, the snags, and the shortcomings to let them soar.

Maybe you can too.

Ask yourself: what are you doing – today, right now – to reduce the pushback on the people who need you to block the wind in their face and give them a push to move forward?

Here’s to helping create more tailwinds.

And thanks for reading all the way down here.

Pete Van Bloem is a copywriter at a healthcare advertising agency in New York City. The views stated above are his and not in any way, shape or form affiliated with that agency, its employees, clients, partners, shareholders, overlords or landlords, irrespective of which way the wind blows.

Starting over? Go for it.

There is no statue of limitations on staring over.

Reinvent.

Revamp.

Revive.

Reawaken.

Reignite.

Reaffirm.

Rejuvenate.

Rebuild.

Refurbish.

Realign.

Readjust.

Recopy.

But, a word before you begin: relax.

Consider maybe this is not the time for a re-anything. Maybe this is the time to start fresh.

Rebel. Torch it to ash and toss it in the trash. Begin at the beginning. With a new beginning. It’s what I’m doing on this blog after a very long vacancy.

So don’t mind the naysayers; clear your mind.

Create with a clean slate.

More power to you.

Anybody else hear John Lennon singing this in the background of this post?

And thanks for reading all the way down here.

Wishing vs Working 

(aka: It Ain’t Shin Splints)

For all the hoopla about hope, it makes a wretched remedy.

Hope, like it’s sibling - Placebo Effect, is no cure.

Time is often a cure.  Rest is too. But hope, with its wild, wide-eyed, pie-in-the-sky, fly-by-night, put-up-a-fight, just ain’t right to make us alright.

At least, not when it comes to thinking you’ve developed shinsplints even after you stopped running for over a month. (It was actually another stress fracture.)

Lesson learned.

So here’s to hearing when your body says, “hey.” And to having the wisdom of sharing that vital intel with somebody who can make a real difference (in my case, happy to share that it was Dr. Jordan Metzl at Hospital for Special Surgery).

Thanks for reading all the way down here.