The Survivor Tree

Survivor Tree

Survivor Tree at 9/11 Memorial

This is a story that I really want to share with you.  Last week, I heard the story of the “survivor tree”.
The callery pear tree became known as the Survivor Tree after sustaining extensive damage, but living through the September 11, 2001, terror attacks at the World Trade Center. In October 2001, the tree with lifeless limbs, snapped roots and blackened trunk was discovered and freed from the piles of smoldering rubble in the plaza of the World Trade Center. The tree was originally planted in the 1970s in the vicinity of buildings four and five in the WTC complex near Church Street. The damaged tree measured eight-feet tall when it arrived in November 2001 at the Parks Department’s Arthur Ross Nursery in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. It was nursed back to health and today has grown to a height of about 30 feet.

 

– 9/11 Memorial Staff

 

https://www.911memorial.org/blog/survivor-tree-withstood-911-attacks-returns-wtc-grow-memorial-plaza-update-x3

This tree has lived through a terrorist attack, has been blown over and uprooted after it was replanted, and then later survived the flooding of Hurricane Sandy.  Today it stands approximately 30 feet tall even though it was found charred and broken.  If you are living in “entrepreneurland”, you know about facing challenges.  The question is are you prepared to survive anything that is thrown at you like the “survivor tree”?

Personally, I don’t think it matters what resources we have at our fingertips.  The only thing that matters is if we have a will to continue.  Are you willing to dig in and fight for your dream?  The one thing that no one can ever take away from you is your will to continue.  You will always have the choice to move forward or to stop.

I had the incredible opportunity to participate in a SWAT team tryout.  Even though there is a level of physical fitness required, the real test is how strong are you mentally.  Here is the most important advice I was given: “Do not stop!”

Once each challenge starts you do not stop until you have completed it.  You move from challenge to challenge pushing forward.  Are you willing to push through the resistance and keep moving no matter what?  When your body is screaming in pain and your breathing is labored will you continue?  Those who say yes and never stop are the ones who get invited to join the team.

The same goes for you the entrepreneur.  Are you willing to dig in and face the challenges head on?  Will you live with a belief that will carry you through the resistance?  Will you be keep on surviving no matter what like the tree?

If you say yes and you never stop, you will be invited to the team of the successful.

– Catalyst John, Small Business Expert & Coach

Please feel free to comment on this blog or connect with me on Facebook & Twitter.

Imagine a life in which…

I just talked to a person about what they want to do with their life.  They appear to be off course and adrift.  They need new bearings to get back on track.  I hope this post will speak to you if you feel the same way.

Imagine a life in which an anonymous person decided that you would receive a unique gift.  The gift is that you will never ever have a bill for the rest of your life.  You will receive an average sized house, an average car, and everything else you need to live for free.  A maintenance team will make sure everything you own stays in working order, your yard will be mowed weekly, and your fridge will never go empty.  You will never have to worry about housing, food, transportation, utilities, or insurance again and you will get a reasonable “allowance” to spend each month on entertainment.

Its not a “catch”, but to receive this unique gift you can never work to earn a paycheck again for the rest of your life.  You can get a “job”, start your own business, volunteer, or do whatever you want for work, but you can never be paid for your time or effort.

If this happened to you, what would you do for work?  What would you be willing to do every single day without ever receiving a paycheck?

Seriously think about it and then decide if what you are doing today is consistent with the answer you just gave.  If it isn’t, you may want to look at a course correction and a new set of bearings in your life.

The best way to make a change in your life is to decide where you are and where you want to go.  Once you know where you want to end up, you can create the steps to reach that destination / target.

Catalyst John, Business, Entrepreneur, & Solopreneur Coach

Please feel free to comment on this blog or connect with me on Facebook & Twitter.

Have you named your day yet?

Most people think that today is Tuesday.  I disagree.  Correction – I fervently disagree!

You do not need to think of today as “Tuesday.”  Instead, you need to name it.  Today is “I am going to set a PR on that 5k day!”  Today is “I’m going to land that customer at 9:30 am day!”  Today is “I’m going to write that blog and actually publish it day!”  Today is “I’m going to propose to the love of my life day!”  Today is “I’m going to leave work early and head to the park with my kids day!”  Hopefully for some, today is “I’m launching my business today day!”

Today is…

Figure out what today is to you and name it.  Now go out there and make some things happen!

 

Catalyst John, Business & Entrepreneur Coach

Please feel free to comment on this blog or connect with me on Facebook & Twitter.

PS – Don’t forget about tomorrow…  It’s not Wednesday, because you have a much better name for it.

 

Who is the fool???

I have been thinking and thinking about what I would tell the world today.  Finally it hit me.  Today I want to highlight integrity and character.

It is “April Fool’s Day” and in my opinion those who use this day for practical jokes are just that…Fools.

Do you really want to start off today with a blemish on your integrity and character?  Personally, I want to live a life where there is no question or doubt about my words.  I want to teach others to be successful and do not want to allow even a “holiday” to taint my integrity in the least.  I live to uplift and encourage others not play with their emotions.

I will never forget one of these pranks in which a man of integrity lied to his entire tribe about a huge blessing for his organization.  That one joke did not destroy his organization, but it is not today what it was back then.  It may seem little at the moment, but you never really know the impact your words will have at the time you say them.

So, I am having an incredibly productive day and not playing the part of a fool.

– Catalyst John

Business & Entrepreneur Coaching