Monday, August 26, 2013

A Little Cottage in Maine


Every summer my family spends a few days in a little cottage located on a little island in Maine. The cottage has been in my wife’s family for five generations. We park at the club lot and boat the 100 yards across the harbor to the island. There is no television or internet. Apparently, water and electricity were fairly recent additions to the cottage. We are cut off from the outside world and get to spend our time and our thoughts on each other. It is a welcome holiday for me, void of all worldly distractions.

Imagine what this vacation might look like to those who do not appreciate the calmness? To those who rely on information from the outside world to make them feel connected. What does feeling connected mean anyway? I choose to turn my focus onto the beauty around me: the morning sun telling the world to wake up, my playful children, the sound of the waves, the collection of seashells and sea glass, the wind in my face as our boat skims over the water, my imagination, and I could probably go on and on. I imagine that it could take some reframing for some to learn to appreciate the “bareness” of a disconnected little cottage in Maine. It is worth it to come here though. It is a wonderful place.

I even enjoy when it rains in Maine. That is, as long as the rain doesn’t last for days. When it rains we are stuck inside the small living space. We play card games and board games, read books, and just talk more. If we choose to, we also get to spend time visiting our innermost selves. We get to revisit the memories of where we have been; we get to ask questions about where we are now; and we get to think about where we want to be in the future. We get to dive into the depths of what are the most important things in our life, what we value the most. It is here when I think of the importance of my discovery of coaching. I think of how coaching has filled a desire to have a passion for what I do in my life. My goal is to align what I do with who I am and what I am passionate about.

I am a father and a husband. I am a brother and a son. I am a friend. I am an athlete. I am a sports fan. I am an honest person. I am a truth seeker. I am a thought provoker. I am a coach.

Who are you? What would you list for yourself as the things that are the most important to you? What do you do, or want to do that stirs your passion? Discover it. Perhaps take a trip to a little cottage where you can disconnect. You may learn something new, or simply rediscover something you forgot.

Enjoy Life.

Coach Randal Suozzo, CPC, ELI-MP

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Spartan Race Completed

I finished the Spartan Race with a time of 57 minutes and change, my goal of completing it in under an hour accomplished. My friend, Rebecca, finished in 48 minutes and change. My second goal was not accomplished.


The SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Reasonable, Time oriented):
1. Finish the race in under an hour.
2. Finish alongside Rebecca.

I let go of my second goal less than a mile into the race when we were running up an incline and I could not keep pace. Rebecca turned out to be in much better shape than I suspected. She was beyond impressive really, finishing 30th overall and 1st among females. Amazing.

I was happy to reach my first goal. Imagine if I had just missed my goal and instead finished in, say 62 minutes? I would have a whole different perspective, even though my experience would essentially be the same. Instead of being happy with the results, I would be incredibly motivated to take on the course again next year. Why? It is just the type of person I am. I am the type of person who loves the challenge of success. I would need to race again to achieve that goal. This is why I like to set a second goal that is much more difficult to obtain so it creates my next challenge.

Setting goals are important, but more important is setting goals that are in line with the type of person you are. Set "reasonable" goals and if you are motivated by success, then you can build upon that success by setting new SMART goals. (See goal number 1). If you are the type of person who excels against adversity, then maybe you should have certain goals that are less "Attainable" - set just out of reach so that you never stop improving yourself in order to get there. (See goal number 2). I knew that I am a person who appreciates the extreme challenge which is why I set two goals instead of one. The first to reach and the second to keep me motivated beyond the race. I know if Rebecca wants to race again next year that I will be motivated to train harder and reach that second goal I had for myself this year.

My first goal was SMART. My second goal was smart, without the acronym. It may not have been very attainable, but it turns out to be very motivating.

If you are reading this Rebecca, do you think you could give me another chance to meet my second goal?

Set goals. Stay motivated. Enjoy Life.

Coach Randal Suozzo, CPC, ELI-MP

Thursday, August 8, 2013

SMART Goal - Complete The Spartan Race

First introduced in 1981, SMART goals are used by many people today to achieve anything from healthy eating habits to becoming a successful business person. Setting Specific goals where success is Measureable, Attainable, and Reasonable for you to achieve, while also being able to accomplish the goal in a specific amount of Time, is SMART. As with anything else in life, you also have to be flexible. As you gain experience in attempting to achieve a specific goal, feel free to modify. For example, you may find out that what you thought was reasonable is really not. Or that it may take more time than you originally thought.

Earlier this year, I signed on to do one of those obstacle course races that are quickly becoming more and more popular these days. I realized that as I get older, the more important it is for me to exercise in order to maintain good health. I readily admit that although I like to be healthy, I do not like to exercise. I need to set goals around exercising. I also need some sort of motivation to exercise, so I signed up to do a Spartan Race. The  back story is that I have previously signed up and ran ran the Adventure 5k, but  did not train for it. It didn’t look like something I needed to train for. I play in a basketball league every winter and felt like that was enough for a simple 5k. (I am grateful for good genes.)

Also, I was signed up by my brother to do a previous Spartan Race two years ago. I borrowed my brother’s exercise video that required six days of over one hour of exercise routines each week. I lasted a month. The good news came when the hurricane visited our state and cancelled the race. The following year I requested my rain check be postponed until this year because I was in a wedding ceremony the same weekend. So here I was at the beginning of this year, third chance to run the Spartan Race, already paid for, and SMARTer than before.

I purchased the sequel to my brother’s exercise video and with the knowledge of my previous experience, set a more reasonable goal to exercise only three to four times per week. The program is supposed to last 90 days, but I made it 120 days by spreading it out and even skipping routines where appropriate. Something is better than nothing, right?

This weekend I will race over 3 miles and 15 obstacles, through water, fire, and mud. It will be a test of strength, endurance, and will. I am confident that I will succeed. I used SMART goals, consistently re-evaluating them these past four months to reach a fitness level that will allow me to compete in one of the tougher obstacle races out there. My goal is to finish in under an hour. I will be racing with a friend that is a runner. As she motivates me through the running, I will motivate her through the obstacles. I know she has better endurance than me, so my second goal is to finish beside her. I believe that I have a strong enough will to succeed.

Here’s to living healthy and strong, and maintaining goals to stay that way.

Enjoy Life.

Coach Randal Suozzo, CPC, ELI-MP

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Happy Birthday!

“Seize the day, for today’s tomorrow will soon be yesterday.” Anonymous

I seized the day today. The best I could at least. I woke up early to work out, treating my body the way someone should when they want to live for a century. After a shower (who doesn’t like showers? – my wife would take one for hours if she could) I had breakfast with my two little miracles before heading to work. Normally I would be on vacation for my birthday, but this year I made accommodations with our vacation partners and moved it back two weeks. So I had to work. That was the least favorite part of my day, but I made the most of it. My wife helped too. I talked to her probably a half dozen times. Each time she would lead with “Hey birthday boy!” Sure, it’s kinda corny, but it makes one feel good about one’s self. It made me feel special. It should because it’s my special day! What if I were never born? Never being born is something I normally don’t think about, but in this case I am happy to touch upon it because even though I hate the thought, it makes me want to do more for others. To touch more lives. It motivates me to do more with the gift I have been given. The gift to live.

Maybe I should pretend it is my birthday more often. I was happy all day. I wanted to do more for others. I wanted to make my life more impactful. I don’t see anything wrong with any of that.

I will hold on to that thought, but back to MY day! I went for a walk at lunch time to get a treat. My coworker came with me and bought me my peanut butter brownie. That made me smile. When I got home from work, I got my family in the car and went to have dinner with my extended family. We had ravioli and meatballs with my two brothers and their families and my parents. It can be chaos amongst 17 people, 9 of which are spread between the ages of 0-13 years old, but it’s nice to be with family. I get to end my day by putting my kids to bed and sitting with my bride.

I’m not a greedy man. I don’t want for much. I have a happy and healthy family who I love to spend time with. It makes my every day worth more than yesterday. And I have a bunch of yesterdays that I can smile about too! So as today ends, I look forward to tomorrow. It may not be my birthday anymore, but that doesn’t mean I can’t live with a smile and try to make others smile while I’m at it.

Enjoy Life.

Coach Randal Suozzo, CPC, ELI-MP