I was reading an article in the USA Today earlier about some of the commercials that will run during the Super Bowl. We all know that the Super Bowl is a marketer’s dream come true but dreams come at a price – up to $2.7 million this year for 30 seconds of commercial time.
$2,700,000 FOR 30 SECONDS ON TV!
But what was more interesting to me was that the article interviewed a couple of companies who made their ads in house. One company founder, who wrote his company’s commercials said this: “These are not great ads, but they are good enough.”
Are you freakin’ kidding me?!?
You’re going to pay $2.7 million and settle for “good enough”?!? That just seems absolutely ridiculous to pay that kind of money and be content with mediocrity.
But I guess we all settle for “good enough” in others areas of life don’t we?
Maybe I’m not one to talk…
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…
- What have you been saying “good enough” to lately that you know you could do better at?
Watch out world…tonight my wife learned to play the Nintendo Wii! From Guitar Hero to Bowling to Tennis, it was truly a sight to behold. So naturally I’m picking on her until she challenges me to a game of tennis. Keep in mind we’ve both played the Wii for a total of about 30 minutes so we’re both extremely amateur at it.
But being the sports guy that I am and having grown up on video games, I felt pretty confident to accept her weak attempt at a challenge. After her first serve went blazing by me at what had to have been 100+mph, I knew this wasn’t going to be good. I assume you see where the story is going at this point…
Although she would like for me to share more details, let’s just say that I had a lovely piece of “humble pie” for dessert this evening.
Morale of the Story: Don’t Talk Trash To Your Wife…She Will Destroy You.
It is one of the simplest and most powerful words in our vocabulary. It consists of only two letters and receives universal understanding around the world. But often times it is one of the most difficult words for us to use. It is the word…
NO
How about in Spanish? “No”
French? “No”
German? “No”
Often times, it is difficult to use this 2 letter word because many of us are people pleasers. If we say “no” then we feel are letting someone else down. So rather than protect ourselves in those situations by just saying “no”, we think that it is easier to just keep the peace and say “yes”.
I love the way Andy Stanley describes it in his book, “Choosing to Cheat”. One of his main ideas is that every time you say yes to one thing, you’re saying no to something else. When you say “yes” to work, you’re saying “no” to your family. When you say “yes” to your friends, you’re saying “no” to studying for that test.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…
- What do you have a tough time saying “no” to?
- What have you said “yes” to this week that meant you were saying “no” to something else?
I’ll admit it…I found myself watching American Idol tonight.
Year after year, it never ceases to amaze me how many horrible singers genuinely think they are good. Now of course there are those who are horrible, know they are horrible but are willing to give it a shot if there’s a chance they may make it on national TV.
But then there are those who are so sincere and genuine and are just pitiful. Sorry if I sound rude but can we just call it for what it is?! What’s even more interesting to me is they all say that the people who have heard them sing think they are really, really talented. Which of course makes me wonder what kind of friends do these people have?!
So I have to ask the question…if you had a friend who was an extremely genuine, kind, and sincere person but were just not talented at something they believed they were…would you tell them or just let it slide? If the role was reversed, would you want someone to tell you if you sucked at something?
I’m in Kansas City tonight sitting in my lovely Holiday Inn room although it’s not quite as nice as the Holiday Inn Express from Wichita a few weeks ago! Have you seen the video from that experience?!?!
So I’m sitting here working when my wife sends me this picture…
How cute is that?!? Whenever you watch TV, don’t you sit in a laundry basket?
On Friday morning I was driving to go speak at a couple of school assemblies and was running a few minutes behind. So of course you have to compensate for that by increasing your speed ever so slightly. But when that happens, wouldn’t you know that I would pass an officer of the law who decided I wasn’t going at the rate of speed that he would prefer I travel at.
Thankfully though he asked me where I was heading to which I politely responded, “I’m going to do a school assembly where I hope to influence America’s future. All I’m trying to do, officer, is make a difference in the lives of teenagers. May you find it in your soul to have compassion on me.” I don’t remember what I said but it was something along those lines.
And fortunately for me, he found mercy on cause and set me free. The moral of the story…trying to make a difference in the world will get you out of speeding tickets…sometimes.
Did you see this story about the do-over game in the NBA? There was a scoring error in the game so the NBA ruled that the teams would need to replay the final 51 seconds of the game.
When was the last time someone gave you a do-over? A second chance? An opportunity to make things right?
Or maybe beyond that, when was the last you gave someone else a do-over?
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…
FOR YOU: Is there someone in your life that you should give a “do-over” to?
FOR US: Share a story when someone gave you a “do-over” and how that made you feel.
When was the last time you made a difference in the life of someone else?
I bet it was more recent than you realize.
Often times, we think of “making a difference” as something big and dramatic like saving a life, rescuing a cat from a tree, or having the restraint not to punch your younger sibling in the face!
But making a difference may be as simple as saying hi to someone, smiling at another person, or having the restraint not to punch your younger sibling in the face. Making a difference doesn’t have to be some big, elaborate thing but often times, it is the simple acts of compassion that you can show on a daily basis.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT…
FOR YOU: What is something someone has done for you recently that really made a difference for you?
FOR US: What are simple things you could do to make a difference for others?
