Live the Life you Love :: Michael Rucker's Sandbox
Archive for the ‘Beer Drinking’ Category
Life Life Love | Volume Five
Hello Everyone,
Happy Holidays! I have added some new names to my quarterly musings through my Facebook and LinkedIn contacts. At the end of 2007 when I started the Live, Life, Love endeavor I was filled with elation. Unfortunately, the end of 2008 has been quite tumultuous for me as I am sure it has been for many of you.
It is important in these times we keep our head up, surround ourselves with propitious people, and make sure we reciprocate in kind… but don’t take my word for it, check out this article from Science News.
I found myself in one of the corporate offices of Nike recently and I was taken back by a marketing slogan plastered across the entry wall: Training is the opposite of hoping. The message really resonated with me. As many of you know, I have been a staunch critic of people who interpret and/or peddle the Law of Attraction to mean that you can manifest anything in your life without action. This was further reinforced this quarter through my physiology studies at UCLA. I was surprised to learn that at the muscular level the notion of “muscle memory” is a complete fallacy. After three days of inactivity we begin to lose the positive effects of adaptation and there are limited accelerants to help regain what has been lost. This applies to both anaerobic and aerobic conditioning. In short, the feast and famine training approach I’ve adopted over the years has probably hindered any real progress towards achieving some of my overall fitness goals. I am going to implement a more well-rounded and continuous approach in 2009. I’ll let you know how the experiment goes.
And with that introspective let me introduce the fifth fitness leader to contribute to the Live, Life, Love knowledge database, Dave Scott. Dave is one of the “local boys done good” from my hometown of Davis, CA. He is a six-time Ironman World Champion athlete and the first inductee into the Ironman Hall of Fame. Dave continues to live up to his distinction as “The Man” through his various speaking engagements, sport clinics, and race sponsored activities. It was a true honor that he took the time to answer my five questions. The interview about fitness training can be found here.
The fifth business leader tapped in my quest for knowledge is Scott Bell. Scott spent the last ten years at one of the largest and most revered firms on Wall Street. For legal reasons the company shall remain unnamed but it shares a commonality with my favorite rum (a hint for the truly inquisitive). In 2008, Scott left this firm and started the company Gross Domestic Product. Within less than a year’s time he is already managing over $25 million in personal assets. I am equally honored that Scott took the time to be interviewed, given his profession and the understandable time constraints placed on him over the past couple months. My five questions with Scott about wealth management can be found here.
The life experience for this quarter was going to Oktoberfest in Germany. It was the first time I got to share one of these adventures with my brother and we had a great time — a beer drinker’s dream!
Oktoberfest | Munich, Germany
As for giving this quarter, I helped aid the efforts of few of you, like Melissa, Stephanie, and Mark but I think my favorite was sponsoring Todd’s mustache growing efforts… part of the proceeds Todd collected went to helping fight male depression so it was a truly worthy endeavor (click here to learn more about Movember). Anna and I also donated our old cell phones to the Cell Phones for Soldiers program.
Once again, thank you for being a part of my journey (and sharing in this fifth installment). Please continue to let me know if I can help you in anyway along your path. Wishing you nothing but the best in 2009!
Warm regards,
Michael
Life Life Love | Volume Four
Hello Everyone,
Can you believe as of today there is less than 100 days left in 2008? Are you on the way to accomplishing what you set out to do? Do you like where you are currently sitting?
As for me, I happen to be sitting in a hostel in Vienna, Austria sipping on a Pittinger with my brother getting ready to travel to next quarter’s “life experience” pondering my success in Yahoo Fantasy Football this week — given New England’s dismal effort against Miami I should have lost (for my friends interested in fantasy football, I was using New England’s defense this round and just got wind of my week’s tally).
Lately a few of you have asked me how I have been able to architect a life that enables me to do what I do. So in the spirit of my miraculous fantasy football victory this week, I offer you the following two analogies:
- I don’t score too many touchdowns but I have mastered the art of first downs. I did not start at a top tier school, I did not knock high school out of the park, I don’t make a ton of money, etc. etc. I have also been known to fumble the ball, in fact I have done so in grand fashion rather recently, but I don’t give up and I try hard to reset the sticks. This approach — in my life at least — has proven to get me to the elusive “touchdowns” more than if I had been trying to throw Hail Marys the whole time hoping for the best.
- I have been blessed with the resources and happenstance to acquire a great team: a terrific wife, great friends, influential teachers and outstanding mentors — life becomes a lot easier when you have the humility and support to work around your own shortcomings.
With that said, let me introduce this quarter’s interviewees who both have been a big influence in my life. First, in honor of the Summer Olympics let me introduce Jeff Atkinson. Jeff is a world-class athlete who broke the fifteen-hundred meter record at Stanford University in 1985. Jeff represented the United States in the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea. He ran professionally for 10 years, earning spots on eight U.S. National Teams. Jeff currently trains athletes at all levels (myself included) in the Los Angeles area under the banner Olympian Fitness. My five questions with Jeff about running can be found here.
My business interview for the quarter is with Olav Sorenson. Olav is a prolific academic professor with an impressive resume. His current research agenda sits at the intersection of organizational ecology and social networks. He is an expert in business strategy and has guided me through several entrepreneurial problems. My five questions with Olav about business strategy can be found here.
I have two exciting life experiences to report this quarter. One was visiting the San Francisco de Asis Church in New Mexico, which many have claimed as a “must see” in the United States.
San Francisco de Asis Church | New Mexico
The other is attending my first Burning Man in Nevada, which I will boldly claim as a “must see”.
Burning Man | Black Rock City, NV
My primary donation for the quarter went to Graeme Staddon who undoubtedly will be featured one day as a wellness expert (as a part of this project). Graeme has thrust himself into the challenge of a lifetime by committing to cycle across the Pyrenees (in France) from Biarritz to Banyuls in just 8 days, climbing 2,000 meters each day.
As I finish my beer I send to you a virtual cheers — to a fruitful last 99 days of 2008!
Warm regards,
Michael
