4 Things....

In our Sustainability, Innovation & Entrepreneurship class Professor Larson asked us to write down four things that were core to our future happiness. These four things were to center around our professional life and were supposed to identify the four qualities a future job would need to make us professionally and personally happy. For years I have been thinking about things like this - probably part of my weird make up that has me wanting to control situations. But as I reflected on what is really important to me, it gave me great hope that if I can give up some of that control I'm going to have a much happier and more fulfilling life, those 4 things to me are:

1. Have time to be the best Father and Husband I can be. Family has been and will always be a huge priority in my life, although I am neither a father nor husband yet; I know that my future career better allow me to make both my children and wife a priority. In large part this is why I did not go into coaching football out of undergrad, because I knew the commitment required for a high level of success in that career almost eliminates the time for anything else.

2. Have a position that lets me impact others and aids them in living a healthier lifestyle. I want to help people, I need to learn how to do this in a less controlling fashion, and need to learn just to listen sometimes. But I have a core belief that living actively, and eating healthy will lead to a greater level of happiness for everyone.

3. Work in something that is related to athletics, in a non-corporate culture and wants to be sustainable. Athletics has been the one thing that has always made sense to me, and the one thing that has always made my worst day better. Staying involved with athletics, whether through nutrition, apparel or something I haven't even considered yet will be a huge driver to having fun and enjoying my profession.

4. Solve a problem and leave an impact. This one is pretty self explanatory; I'm a problem solver by nature, for better or worse. I think strategically, I act analytically and I crave a puzzle. Professionally, this is an awesome quality, personally this one needs to be shut off sometimes and I'm working on that. But to be professionally fulfilled I need to be working towards solving a strategic issue that will allow me to leave a positive impact.