There's an old adage that we should always be in the process of two things:

• Being a mentor for someone a couple steps behind us
• Being mentored by someone a couple steps ahead of us

Mentoring isn't about age, either. It's simply a person who is a couple steps ahead of you in any single area of life, that can help you avoid pitfalls that you might not otherwise be aware of. These areas could be health, career, marriage, investing, spirituality, raising kids, or even a hobby.

Personally, I find I am much more willing to look for a mentor in an area of life I want to improve in than I am seeking someone I can be a mentor for. Whether this is selfishness in wanting to focus on my own ambition or humility in not feeling I can be an effective mentor in anything, I'm not sure.

The reason being a mentee is important is that you are reminded what it's like to learn something new, too. You are reminded how tough change is. This is an invaluable asset as you mentor someone and witness them struggling on an area of your strength.

Take a moment today and think about how you could carve out time to mentor someone. Invite that friend to the gym with you, get a coffee with a young person in your industry, take a new married couple out on a double date, or even volunteer to lead a group at your church.

Help someone grow in an area of your strength today. You'll be really glad you did.

We are over 3 months into 2021, but how are your actions aligning with your goals?
The tendency is to let motivation and actions decrease as the time since setting a goal increases.
If you are making progress, keep it up! If your traction has waned, let's look at 3 quick tips to get back on track.

Refocus On the Desired Outcome:
It’s normal to feel disappointed or even embarrassed when a goal goes unmet, but don’t let those feelings keep you from restarting. Refocus on your desired outcome of the goal, not just the actions. Get excited about reaching your goal again and create repeatable reminders of your desired outcome to consistently refocus on your why. Whether it's a vision board, writing on your bathroom mirror, or a note on your dashboard - make sure it stays front of mind.

Allow your goal to have time to develop:
'Rome wasn't built in a day' is the old saying. There are very few worthwhile goals that can be tackled in a week, so don't get discouraged if it's taking longer than you planned.

Schedule regular check-ins on your progress:
Revising goals should be a regular process, not just for planning the end goal. Keeping yourself in check each week is a great way to evaluate your progress. By doing this you might even notice some changes in your habits that you can improve your timeline. Just adjust the inputs and keep making consistent effort to cross the finish line.

As you take the time to look over your past 90 days be sure to celebrate the wins, too. It's so easy for me to focus on where I missed the mark, rather than where I was successful. Reset, refocus, and make the next 90 days your best ever.

One thing I know we all have in common is that we all have more than one priority in a day. We can all say we have full schedules and never enough time in a day to complete our to-do lists. I find myself with a list of things to complete and that list...never seems to end. The truth is, the list will NEVER end. It’s all about creating margin and recognizing that saying yes to something will result in a no to something else. We simply cannot do it all, ALL of the time.

Keeping margin in mind, I have learned to say, “No" to things I don't want to do or aren't a high enough priority, and realizing that saying “Yes” to something means “No” to something else.  For instance, I know that if I plan on working late, that means I will be missing dinner with my family. I cannot add more time into the day, but I can make conscious decisions about things I add to my to-do list. For me, if it’s not a 'hell yes', then it should be a 'no!'

Margin is the unscheduled time that you can use in whatever way refreshes you. Margin is your breathing room.

Never fill your entire schedule. Give yourself a break, and allow unscheduled time in between activities. Use this extra time as your schedule’s “emergency fund” for when you’re running late or somebody else is running late, or you just need to put your feet up for a minute. Give yourself some time to be spontaneous as well. This will help rejuvenate your energy levels and give your mind some time to catch up with yourself.

How can you create that margin?  The best way to start would be to numbering your priorities. If something is on your to-do list, but it isn’t a true priority, delegate it or opt-out of it.  Deciding what is most important, and getting those items crossed off daily will make you more effective, and delegating (or dumping) the others will give you margin.

Unfortunately, as time goes by, the busyness WILL creep back in and your margins will shrink. With any area of your life, there is proactive planning required. Plan a time to reassess your schedule and adjust regularly! As we go into spring, this is as much a reminder for me as it is for anyone else.

Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating. Start breathing freely today.

The new year has started and most of us have hit the ground running trying to keep up with our plans to make 2021 the best year ever.  One of the foundational ways I have learned to tackle my goals is by proactive weekly planning. The book 7 Habits highlights this in Habit #3:  “Put the First things First.” If I don't set my calendar around what is most important at the beginning of the week, I get to the end of the week with a few of my top priorities tackled.

Most of us have more to-dos than we have time to accomplish them, and without making time each week to prioritize what should be done first, we end up crossing a lot of things off that don't really end up moving the bar at all. Proactive weekly planning is simply deciding in advance what is most important and what is not, and then locking your calendar to mirror that.

Everyone has their own way, but I start by taking the first day of the week (Sunday) and checking in with myself and the roles I play in life. I am a business manager, landscape designer, gym rat, father, husband, youth ministry leader, pilot...I have a couple more than that, and certainly not in that order. Unfortunately, my calendar will look like that is the order of priorities if I do not plan around it.

I look at my calendar and how I can intentionally move the ball forward in each of these roles I play this upcoming week. Naturally, some will carve out their own time. My office sets my landscape design appointments and my gym routine is routine as well. However, I have looked back and noticed it's been a month since my son and I have hung out 1-on-1. I have gone weeks without seeing or talking to my mom in the busy season. You get the idea.

Without this planning session, it is easy to lose focus because the whirlwind just keeps sucking me in. By being proactive, I don't have to wait for circumstances or other people to create perspective expanding experiences. It can just be a calendar reminder to call mom (which seems to be out of the blue to her), planning an ax-throwing date with my wife, or scheduling a tractor and dump truck dirt pile play date with Griffin.

It usually takes me about an hour to get done, but I promise you won't regret it. Whatever the roles that you play are - it just helps you intentionally improve in them each and every week, in spite of the whirlwind we call life. And we all need a break from the whirlwind.

So here we are, we survived 2020! Planning for the future might have been a daunting task last year. We had many unexpected challenges and obstacles to navigate through that tested our health, relationships, careers, and finances. With the new year, we have a chance to press the reset button and begin again on a positive note. Many people focus on new year resolutions and often give up within a few weeks. I find that setting goals gives you long-term vision and short-term motivation so that you can make the most of your new year.

I have made a list of 5 areas of your life to focus on for the year 2021 that will help you start strong with a plan in mind. These 5 originated from Zig Ziglar's Wheel of Life.

1. Health
   Being healthy should be part of your overall lifestyle. Living a healthy lifestyle is more than just loosing weight, which is generally a resolution's focus. A healthy lifestyle is more about feeling good about yourself and accomplishing things more than just looks - although looks are a piece of it. Maintain a healthy lifestyle by doing what is right for your body - which involves goals to get adequate rest, physical activity, and choosing healthy foods; not just weight loss.
    
2. Relationships
   All the relationships in our lives need nurturing to thrive. No matter the relationship, whether it is family, friends, or coworkers; the relationships we form with other people are vital to our mental and emotional wellbeing. A positive relationship can be shared between any two people who love, support, encourage, and help each other practically as well as emotionally. This is an area I can personally struggle in due to my natural unbalanced focus in other areas; so having a goal in this area is extremely beneficial for me. This year, for example, I am choosing to focus more on intentional date nights with my wife, "boys nights" with Griffin, and inviting friends over for dinner more often. This intentionality creates balance for me that would be missing otherwise.
    
3. Career
   A career is a very important thing in one's life. Whatever career path you choose to follow, it will impact your life greatly. Having a career plan can help you design your future the way you would like to see it. Yours may be to grow and set deeper roots in your current job, or it could be to change your industry entirely. Either way, set your goals this year with a focus on where you want your career to be heading by the end of the year and then work out the steps you will need to make that happen.
    
4. Spiritual
   Spirituality is linked to many important aspects of our lives - such as self-esteem, optimism, charitable-giving and purpose. Spirituality is that part of yourself that helps you find meaning and connectedness. Whatever your walk of faith, with the challenges we faced in 2020 this may be an area of your life that is hungry for intentional focus. Personally, I have set a goal of increasing my quiet time in the mornings. For more on this, read the Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. It was a game changer for me about 5 years ago, and has had positive effects on my health, relationships, stress levels, and spirituality.
    
5. Financial
   Setting a financial plan is essential to financial success. Set goals for your budget, adjusting your spending habits, eliminating credit card debt, saving a set percentage of your income, and/or establishing your emergency/rainy-day fund. Try saving enough to cover 3-6 months of your expenses to create a fallback in case of emergencies. As Dave Ramsey has always said, you can wander INTO debt, but you can't wander OUT of it. It takes a plan, but it is worth it. For more on this, read the Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. Reading this book in 2004 is what set me up to have the financial ability to open TMLC.

Take some time to review your 2021 Goals to make sure you’re still on the right track, and don't hesitate to re-write some if you want to make a change. Consider what you want to achieve, and then commit to it. I plan on starting this year off strong with these goals in mind and reflecting on the lessons I learned in 2020. Happy New Year! Let’s make this the best year yet!

As this year comes to an end, I would like to thank you for being a loyal member of The Master’s Lawn Care community.

I just want to start by saying thank you this holiday season. Whether you're a team member, client, vendor, or member of our local community; I just want to show my appreciation for your support of our business and your contribution to what makes our community so great.

It’s so easy to forget how blessed I am to live in North Central Florida. There aren't many places on earth like Gainesville, that within a very short drive I can be at the beach, the gulf, the springs, the university, rural towns, urban cities, and world-renown theme parks.

The best part about living and working in Gainesville isn't the proximity to amenities though - it's the community of people. It's you. Rarely do you find people so bought-in to giving back to the community - whether you're here for a college education or putting down deeper roots.

This holiday season, I just didn't want the chance to slip by me to say thank you. Thank you for playing your part in a large community that I'm so proud to call home.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays,
Rusty Thompson

It has been a long and strenuous year for us all. Many of us have faced new challenges that have changed our lives completely from 9 months ago.

As we move into the holiday where we are reminded of the importance of being thankful, it can be difficult to get into the season when considering how 2020 has gone.

Whether it is tangible or intangible, being thankful for everything we have is all about focus. That focus usually lies in comparison - and focusing on measuring this year to last year leaves me feeling many things - but thankful is not one of them.

However, changing our focus can absolutely change our mentality.

Although it has been a tough year, we thankfully have not seen the level of hysteria many experts predicted. Switching my measuring stick to those predictions - virally and economically - helps me stay appreciative.

Changing my focus to the positive side effects that have come from this year also helps.  This year has reminded me that my house is my home and I am fortunate to have one. I have also been reminded that spending more time outside helps me appreciate the absolute beauty and wonder of nature.

Political years will always have some form of chaos and division in them, but measuring our system against governments without the rights of voting, free speech, and open debate creates much more appreciation for our political freedoms than simply focusing on the flaws.

As we begin to plan for the holiday season, I am choosing to focus on the things that create gratitude instead of frustration. I'm also choosing to focus on the things that I am blessed with, rather than the negatives 202 has challenged us with.

Thanksgiving may be different this year, but it still carries the same reminder - maybe even a stronger one this year - that I can be thankful and show gratitude, even when faced with challenging situations.

In the past several months, we've had some interesting events in the world, and more specifically even, in our corner of it. We won't list them one-by-one, as we all know several that have made 2020 a year for the record books. In each of these unique challenges there has been a mixture of fear, stress, and panic that has gripped me - for my family, my health, my team, my friends, my business, my church, my community, and my country. I wonder how much less stressful these situations would have been if, instead of looking at the negatives and reacting with fear, I could have looked at things in a different way. 

I speak with our team often about one of our core values, which is having an "Attitude of Optimism." One example is weather, of which can be brutal on our team in a lot of different ways. Hot and dry weather causes dehydration for the team, drought stress in the lawn, and a higher liklehood for chinch bugs. On the other hand consistent rain causes high humidity, scheduling delays, longer work weeks, and saturated lawns. Both extremes are frustrating, and can cause green industry professionals to look negatively upon almost all weather in our ever-changing Florida climate.

Instead of taking the pessimistic view, we talk about how we should be more thankful for the dry weather allowing us to maintain a normal work schedule, and then appreciative of the heavy rains doing a great job of cooling us off and keeping the lawns healthy. We know that we cannot control the weather, but we can control what how we see and percieve the weather. Simply put, we strive to see things from an optimistic point of view.

Negativity only makes a hot day hotter and a long day longer.

When challenges come our way, it may be easy to succumb to negative thoughts; especially as the 24-Hour news cycle continues to push the next breaking news. However, working to change our mindset and look on the bright side allows us to see through the storm to the brighter days on the horizon.

At first, I struggled to come up with positive ways to view recent evens. I looked over things such as:

• Extra time with my family at home
• Renewed awareness and focus on my health
• Increased space in my budget due to not eating out
• More free time due to the lack of events cluttering my schedule
• The amazing infastructure of technology we have to work remotely
• More time outside in nature with so many indoor activities closed
• More awareness of how we treat others in our community - especially those of a different race

I believe that no matter our circumstances, we can choose to see things in a more positive way. Cultivating an attitude of optimism takes work though.. It also requires that we be honest with ourselves and notice when, as I did earlier this year, we are seeing things through pessimistic eyes. This type of shift in thinking takes a lot of effort but the rewards are great.

I encourage you to adopt an attitude of optimism in your life. It won't just change your attitude though -  it will change your life. That's why I end most all of my emails and communicationswith one statement: "Create A Great Day." It's completely up to you.

Rusty Thompson of The Master's Lawn Care vists the WHOA! GNV Podcast and shares how he keeps this labor-intensive business fresh and qualifies team members to ensure a terrific service!

5:30 - Rusty, tell us your story.
9:51 - Is The Master’s Lawn Care a franchise?
10:47 - What has been the biggest whoa factor in your business career?
13:02 - What got you interested in the lawn care business in the first place?
14:35 - Talk to us about the competition in the market?
17:00 - What is one thing you have experienced that you never thought would happen?
18:16 - Has more sales meant more profit for you?
22:09 - Does the team get paid per job?
23:06 - What is your quality control system?
25:09 - How often do you check each truck’s GPS on your crew?
29:29 - Have you experienced a spike with COVID?
33:03 - Did you have any clients cancel?
34:05 - Did the cost of the job change because of the virus?
34:57 - Does the neighborhood lawn kid still exist?
35:54 - Are your sales up or down since last year?
39:52 - How has your leadership changed since you started?
47:41 - How do you get someone so passionate about a base level job?
51:36 - Are you doing assessments to qualify your employees?
53:36 - How do you qualify people for high labor jobs?
55:25 - How do you make sure people are not overheating on the job?
56:50 - What is your go-to advice for a new entrepreneur?
57:43 - Where is your time as a leader being spent?
58:32 - How long did it take you to identify your weaknesses?
1:03:54 - Where can our audience connect with you?
1:04:45 - What are lawn tips you have for those who do their own lawn?

- - - - -

Subscribe to WHOA! GNV YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW1tLSw2Z5MB6Yebj_2pDJA?sub_confirmati…

CONNECT WITH RUSTY AND THE MASTER'S LAWN CARE:
http://themasterslawncare.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtOAGfIAVUoR98cYSl3PDbw

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themasterslawncare

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themasterslawncare

THIS SHOW IS PRODUCED BY OUR COMPANY, REPAINT THE WALL:
https://www.repaintthewall.com/
Facebook: http://facebook.com/repaintthewall
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/repaintthewall
YouTube: http://repaint.tv

CONNECT WITH THE WHOA GNV PODCAST & NOMINATE A GUEST:
https://www.whoagnv.com/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/whoagnv
Facebook: http://facebook.com/whoagnvpodcast
Twitter: http://twitter.com/whoagnv

Know someone that would be PERFECT for our show? Nominate them here!  https://www.whoagnv.com/nominate-a-gu...

CONNECT WITH COLLIN AUSTIN, HOST:
Instagram: http://instagram.com/collinaustin
Facebook: http://facebook.com/thecollinaustin
Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/add/ns4lcollin
Website: http://collinaustin.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/realcollin
Medium: http://medium.com/@collinaustin

ABOUT THE WHOA GNV PODCAST:

THE PODCAST BRINGING YOU BUSINESSES AND INDIVIDUALS THAT MAKE YOU GO WHOA!

I, Collin Austin, founder of New Scooters 4 Less and Repaint The Wall - Gainesville's Digital Media Un-Agency, and Michael Dees, CEO of New Scooters 4 Less, are out to bring you incredible and inspiring stories of entrepreneurs, businessmen and women, and other awe-inspiring leaders.  Hear the fascinating challenges individuals have had to persevere through.  Soak in the wisdom of talented men and women that have had the grit and focus to get to glory.  Reflect on their life-altering stories.  Join in and celebrate the wins with them (and us) as well.  If it makes you go “WHOA!”, it’s on this podcast!  Educate yourself and grow as we come together EVERY Monday at 8am to learn from the BEST. 

We're out to accomplish 3 major goals:

1.  Show off what makes Gainesville so awesome... Its stories and people!  I want people outside of Gainesville to hear this podcast and go "Whoa! I want to go/move/build a business/etc. there!" 

2.  Keep some of our Top 7 University of Florida talent here by showing them that Gainesville is SO MUCH MORE than a place you go to college! 

3.  Build as many connections within the community as possible!  I can't begin to tell you how many people tell me, "I heard of that business for the first time on your podcast and now I'm collaborating/doing business/friends with them!"  I'm inspired by the impact this podcast has already had and can't wait to see what the future holds!  Join us!

WELCOME TO GAINESVILLE’S PODCAST.
Join us on the journey and listen on...

• iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/whoa-gnv-podcast/id1381002391?mt=2&…
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/whoagnv/
• Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/whoa-gnv-podcast
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3vZ0Bg4FJmdx3VPKg4ehMf?si=2ET-VhjXRtqIDUT…
• Google Podcast: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy80YjJkODIwL3…

--- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/whoa-gnv-podcast/support

It’s been two months since our community started experiencing the disarray brought on by COVID-19. I know that for many of us, including some of the most vulnerable in our community, what we knew as normal still feels quite distant. And then for some of us, life is slowly settling in to some new sense of normalcy.

As we continue on this path towards normalcy, I have been reflecting a bit. It’s been a challenge, and one that we are still battling with, but I am encouraged by the many positives that I have seen and the lessons we can take from this experience.

Today, I wanted to share four of these takeaways with you.

Global Connection. Before this, I believed a pandemic was a thing that happened in distant times, faraway places, or in sci-fi movies. I have been humbled in seeing how something like this can effect so many lives across the world as we all weather the same storm. The speed that this pandemic moved across the globe has been illuminating in just how deeply interconnected the world is. The virus traveled fast, and that was relative to how we are more globally connected than ever. Although that was exposed as a weakness during this trial, I choose to see the global connection as a positive in that ideas, solutions, and cultures spread quickly as well - and more oft than a virus.

Local Community. This global event has really highlighted the importance of - and the strength of - our local community. I have seen our community band together to feed school children, to pick up groceries for those who are more at-risk, and donating masks and PPE where there are shortages. The chamber also put together the Eat GNV group to keep us informed on how to support local restaurants. I’ve heard before that a community is best measured by the compassionate acts of its members, and I am more convinced than ever that Gainesville is an amazing community to be a part of. We are #FORGainesville.

Empathy Towards Perceptions. I have spoken with people whose feelings about this pandemic range from devastating end-of-world scenarios to completely normal and business-as-usual. Most seem to lie somewhere in between the two. I work to remind myself that we are all unique individuals, and we come to this moment with our own set of experiences and perceptions. I don’t have to agree with everyone to be respectful of their viewpoint. Most of all, I work to remind myself that this broad tapestry of individuals is part of what makes our community such an interesting place, and that empathizing with others' perception of the crisis does more good than debating it.

Enjoy a Change of Pace. Many of us are compulsively busy people. The world moves fast. The list of commitments is unending and the calendar is packed. It doesn’t stop... until it did. We had to adapt quickly to hold on to our sanity. Suddenly, there was time for cooking, home projects, and forgotten hobbies. There was more time with the people in our homes. I’ve gone on more walks in my neighborhood with my dogs and family in this time than ever before, and there is something comforting about a simple walk with the family. I don't plan to forget those hobbies, the walks, or the new meals as I get busy again.

As we begin to slowly move toward some normalcy, I pray that these four lessons of global connection, the strength of our local community, empathy toward perceptions, and enjoying a change of pace aren't soon forgotten. They were takeaways that will be extremely valuable and useful for the future.