GreatLIFE Community,
GRATEFUL! That’s what comes to mind as I reflect on the past month at GreatLIFE. I was able to spend time at all of our facilities this month and not only was able to watch so many quality interactions between Team Members and Members, I was able to watch Members helping Members! Last week when I was out at one of the golf courses, I watched a Member hold a door open for someone walking in. He noticed that the guy looked a little lost so offered to help steer him in the right direction. AWESOME! The next morning as I walked through one of our fitness centers, I heard a gentlemen introduce himself to someone he didn’t know and invite him to come to spin class with him. AWESOME! Just this morning, I walked into a facility to work out and saw 2 dads with their 10-year-old sons working out together. AWESOME! As I was out visiting a course this afternoon, I came across a lady who was golfing with her daughter and her 3-year-old granddaughter. AWESOME! Finally, last week we hosted our annual golf tournament (Challenge for Change) where I watched numerous volunteers come out to help raise money and awareness to more than 20 local non-profits. I get asked often what makes GreatLIFE different. It’s without a doubt YOU! There are so many stories I could go over but these are just a few of the things I’ve been blessed to witness over the past month that makes the GreatLIFE community special. As we go into the last month of the summer, we are excited to continue to find new, creative ways to people become the best version of themselves they can be. In an effort to make fitness even more accessible, and fun for everyone, we partnered with the City of Sioux Falls to bring the Mayor’s Fitness Court Challenge on August 9th at the new Fitness Park in town. We would love for everyone to come check out the new park and help us officially open up the newest addition to our amazing parks in town.
This month’s book came from a request by a reader of the newsletter. I was introduced to The Energy Bus several years ago from Tom when he chose it for our monthly book club. It certainly isn’t a deep, theological book. However, I love coming back to it every year to help me get “back to the basics”. Oftentimes, I can find myself overcomplicating, or wanting to change things, because I feel like I need to. This is one of those books that I know I can count on to help me refocus and simplify life. It’s challenging not to talk through each of the 10 rules but here were the top 3 that stuck out to me this go around:
- Move your bus in the right direction (Rule 2) – After you’ve taken control of your bus and know which way you want to take it, it’s time to put your energy and attention on this vision to get your bus moving. The law of attraction says that positive people attract positivity and negative people attract negativity. Those times that I find myself surrounded by negativity; I have to make a conscious effort to change my behaviors into positive ones. Sometimes, I will literally tell myself that I am choosing to think negatively and to STOP IT! I then start listing out things I’m grateful for and it usually snaps me back into a growth mindset.
- Love your passengers! Jon talks about becoming a “love magnet” by loving your team, company, family, friends and life. He talks about the 5 ways to love people: Making time for them, Listen to them, Recognize them, Serve them and Bring out the best in them. I need this annual reminder of how seemingly simple relationships can be if you take time and be intentional with those around you.
- Have fun and enjoy the ride! This takeaway may sound funny but as a person who’s top strength is focus, I can find myself getting so focused on the goal, that I can forget to enjoy the journey. This is always a simple, yet necessary reminder that it’s not only ok, but necessary to take time to have fun and enjoy the journey!
NEXT MONTH’S BOOK: UPSTREAM by Dan Heath
Positive Thought: “Practice makes IMPROVEMENT!” It’s such a simple concept but for me such an important one to come back to often. The mindset shift has allowed for me to appreciate the progress and not get stuck on having to be PERFECT. The idea that perfect isn’t the goal but rather progress has allowed me to enjoy the journey and extend grace to myself when I fall short.
August 2023