Tease.....

HB.

Poor Bass turd puts himself out there and we just dump on him.


Come to think about it.... GOOD FOR US!!


:lol: :lol: :lol:

I was hoping for way more... (tomatoes flying) :lol:

One thing I want abundantly clear is that I'm not trying to push my beliefs on you. Much like building a custom car or picking a mate, the shoe does need to fit. What makes me feel good and get results may not be as beneficial to you. I will reiterate that nutrition is EVERYTHING. That means that you need to take the initiative to educate yourself, test your blood, and experiment with what makes your boat float. The basics of nutrition are the basics, however. Find what makes your body respond. Now, I'm certainly not telling you to live like a Nun either. While I am very disciplined when my sights are set on a target, you have to stretch it once in a while. A nice dinner on Friday night and a few beers isn't going to derail you. When you do it 5 times week, well....

Now, good health has to very crucial factors, physical and mental. Without the other, it doesn't seem to matter in the long term. You can look great and feel horrible if your mind is in the gutter. Being fit and looking good certainly does help your psyche but it's not the magic potion. Personal development is the key to mental health.

I've said it a million times... "Learn to work harder on yourself than you do on your job" - Jim Rohn I'll be honest, it took me a while to figure this one out. It made sense but I didn't fully comprehend the philosophy until I spent time living it. Getting super fit physically, changing my nutrition, tested by competent medical staff, changing my financial direction, changing the plane of my business, becoming a better leader, a better spouse, a better friend, volunteering through benovelence, and improving my attitude.

You see, every discipline effects the rest. Your conficence inspires confidence in everyone around you. When you are confident, you share and contribute to other peoples lives. You are the biggest beneficiary at the end of the day.

One of the major keys is to seek out new knowledge and philosophy every day of your life through education. Try new things, make new friends that make you stretch and grow.

One of the things I finally realized is as you age, you naturally absorb experiences that turn into baggage. You become more coherent in your own life. The day you realize you aren't living the best life you can, you are letting down at work, on your family, on your kids, it's like an infection, it eats you from the inside out. You can change it through personal development.

"If you change, everything will change for you." -Jim Rohn

You have to find the passion and desire to change. What fuels your fire? For me, it's seeing how far I can go in this life. It surely didn't start out that philisophical.

My tendency is to go off the deep end. I find a desire and goal and go 110% until I achieve it. What I've learned is to pull on my own reigns. That means finding more balance between all the variables in life. While I'm in great shape, I spend 2 hours a week running or in the gym. Sure they are a very productives hours. The self education on nutrition is what keeps me where I want to be. I have a team built at work that allows me the freedom to pursue my interests without dropping the ball at the office. I can service my clients at the highest level ever, while taking most weekends off to volunteer for Big Brother/Big Sisters, hang out with Kelli, Hunt, Fish, Golf, whatever. I'm off at 5:30 every night and rarely put in over 40 hours.

My point, life is custom and what you make of it. You have to pave your own way through education and experience. We are doing one of two things in life. progressing or regressing. Make sure you aren't getting rickets of the mind.

"All life asks of us is to make measurable progress in reasonable time" -Jim Rohn

:cheers:

I was just checking to see if you were reading... :poke: :D

Well said Todd. Most of us on here are "type A"... and or have addictive personalities. Ordinary people just put wheels on a car and upgrade to a four barrel. :D "We" go overboard and put in whatever it takes and then some. BALANCE is important.

Great thread.


Gwen just finished Wheat Belly - she's jumping my arse to start the new plan with her.

happy b-day fatty!:trophy-1302:

I seem to hear more and more about Monsanto and GMO all the time. Just a bad deal all around. I eat a good amount of whole wheat. It's better than white bread which is whole wheat bleached of all it's nutrients. You have to be careful with whole wheat as well. If the ingredients don't start with Whole Wheat Flour, it's less than whole wheat bread. I can see how elimnating bread would help some people lose weight. Real whole wheat bread is low on the glycemic index so I'm not seeing the diabetic relationship.

Everything in moderation....
Thank you sir, what have you been up to?

Cold season update. I have 2 kids, one in preschool, one in K, and the wife day cares for another... so our house is germ central. My kids USED to have chronic ear infections with EVERY cold... this season they have weathered 2 colds with NO ear infections. WHY? I took them off of store bought milk and limited dairy. Its the #1 allergy to kids that causes ear infections. I also took myself off most dairy except Raw Milk. I have had NO ear infections. This season will be the true test as I suffer from seasonal allergies, so we will see if the non-dairy diet helps that. I also eat local honey which is said to help too. Related side note: A Zinc dosage with breakfast helps ward off colds and flu. I survived 3 snotty kids for 2 weeks w/o a cold. Woot!

Good for her! People need to wake up to the "Whole Grain" myth that they are good for you.. not anymore! Wheat is a GMO plant now. It becomes and opiate in the body... No one should eat wheat anymore.. avoid as much of it as you can.

A healthy diet is so simple... Go organic, go primal. Avoid processed anything, and remember that natural saturated fat IS good for you. and Farmers markets are your friend.

If anyone is on facebook, like: thehealthyhomeeconomist

Here's the way to keep in shape... have some fun.... burn some calories...


Go snowshoeing in the Sawtooth mountains! If you look you can see the road... we continued to go higher from here. Remember too that you start out at about 7300' of altitude and then start climbing. I'm old at 60... but I keep in shape!




http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/a...ey/file-17.jpg

Way to go, man! Staying active is crucial to a healthy body and mind. They say that the average man dies within 5 years of retirement. They work and in many cases, waste their whole lives looking forward to the day they can retire and live the "good life". When that day comes, they either don't have the money or the interests to keep themself busy and bore themself into depression and ultimately.....

Here's my favorite photo from my deer hunt last year. I made those mountains my bitch. :D

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/DSC_0100.jpg

I had one of the best work outs of my life tonight after a very good day. :thumbsup: Felt really strong and recovered super fast.

The basic fundementals of life never change. They have been the same since the beginning of time. Good Health, Continuing Education, Honesty, Putting in your best effort through labor, Character, Relationships, Economics, etc. They will never change.

I've found that serious personal development makes you a scholar of your own life. It helps you diagnose why things are going right and also, why they are going wrong. No matter what you do, you will always have off days and get in ruts. It's never going to change. What can change is how long it takes for you to comprehend the real source of the problem and change your attitude. How fast can you turn things around and start heading back in the right direction?

"You are what you think about." -Earl Nightingale

Give that some serious thought because it's 100% true. Your thoughts control your attitude, confidence, action, and ultimately, results and success.

You can't change the way you think overnight. To put it in car terms, your brain is like an old radiator that needs flushed. As you add water, you start to push out all the old sludge and corrosion, eventually you will end up with clean water. While the memories good and bad will remain, you now have new information that starts to shape your philosophy and attitude on life. I wrote in my journal this week that I've spent 8 months flushing out 35 years of life. While I've come a long long ways, it takes time to completely change the way you think. Controlling your thoughts is one of the most difficult tasks we will ever face. I have no plans to ever quit flushing my brain with fruitful information. (Books, CD's, Church) Anything of positive influence..... I've found that my best days are normally the days I spend the most time of personal development. Some weekdays I'll spend 1.5 hours. Read in the morning before work/journal, listen to CD's on the way to work, between appointments, and read before bed. The more time you spend on personal development, the more ideas and information you have to utilize.

Those are your deep thoughts by Todd Akes for the night...:lol:

Todd, you must be a single man, without kids. :lol: I remember those days!

btw, speaking of Earl, this one is great.

As a matter of a fact, I am without children but I stay pretty busy. That is exactly the same piece I have on CD. If you like that, you'll love Jim Rohn. Order "The Challenge to Succeed" yesterday. :D

I ran in my second 5k this morning out at Lake Mead. We ran on the former train track trail they used to build the dam. It was fairly rocky and the first 1.5 was up hill while the 2nd half was back down the hill. My goal was to be faster than my first 5k of 25:29 but my real goal was 7:30 pace.

It's amazing what goals do to the mind. I ran my 5k this morning in 23:19 which is exactly 7:30 pace. :thumbsup: The funny part is my watch lost GPS signal in the first tunnel so it was all by feel after that. I did find my pace before losing signal which is huge. I have to say the last mile was brutal. Since I started out so fast this time, I didn't have many to race until the last .5 when I had a 12 year old kid? come up and pass me. I then chased him to the finish line.

I knocked off over 2 minutes from last fall which was an easier run. I'm pretty stoked.

Congratulations.. and it was 90 degress out today

Great job!!!!!!

Nice job bro! :trophy-1302:

But did you really have to pick on a 12 year old to make yourself feel better? :mock:

Thanks guys, I ended up 13th out of 345. http://results.bazumedia.com/event/r...ent/event-3440

Yeah! But was the 12 year old 12th??



:mock: :RunninDog:

If he follows in the steps of his fellow Americans and relies on youth to be healthy intead of discipline, growth, nutrtion, and excercise, he'll end up about mid pack at 36. :D :mock:

I'm going to share my experience from last night as I think it applies to this thread.

Part of my personal growth is through new associations. Kelli & I have become pretty good friends with a top hand surgeon and his better half through a business trasaction 2 years ago.

Fast forward to last night, we went out to meet them as he wanted to introduce me to his new partner. I began to speak with his wife and things became real interesting. She was born in Iraq and her father was a general in the Army during Desert Storm. He was also a dentist so they had a great life by Iraq standards. Her father had the foresight to send his family to Turkey shortly after desert storm as they were Catholic and her father could feel the changes coming down the line. He ended up needing to sneak out of Iraq to be with his family, giving up everything he has worked for his whole life. At that point he had committed treason and would be killed on the spot if caught. They spent about a year in Turkey before moving to Sweden where she went to college and graduated. During that time, I believe her parents moved to Michigan. Apparently, their is a large society of folks from Iraq. The hardships they encountered amazed me and you could see it in her face and hear it in her voice.

To my point, she is a first generation immigrant and has achieved great success in America. Her perception of this country is different than many. She sees the great opportunties that are abound while the average American complains and thinks they have it so bad. It's a fact that new immigrants are highly successful in this country because they are greatful for the opportunity.

I went on to discuss those facts with her and also let her know that it was no different when my family came from Germany in 1695. They started from scratch as farmers with a huge family. Had aspirations, dreams, and the will to create a successful life. The difference, it's been 300 years since they crossed the pond.

The lesson to be learned is that life is what it's perceived to be in your own eyes. I'm a believer that the typical American has become to lazy, ungreatful, and has lost touch with reality. It doesn't have to be that way, it's a choice.

Thanks for sharing Todd, I completely agree.

I'll share my story. My Dad and his family lived through Nazi Germany. After the war was over, Opa was released from being a Russian prisoner of war, they fled Germany to this country. They arrived with very little, knowing hardly any English. Imagine you are German immigrants here after WWII (!) They all worked very hard, and what they've all accomplished is impressive. The same with my mother's side, her great grandparents right off the boat from Sicily. All of them fought ignorance and prejudice here when they arrived only to prosper. They did this through the opportunity that a free market and a free country gave them. That is why it's so crucial that we fight to sustain it, so that our kids will continue to have these opportunities.

So true you guys! It takes drive to be driven.... Ya gotta want it!

One thing I still love about it, we are paid on commission , in other words, the harder you work, the more you make ( in most cases)

Mike

Back in November I had a extensive blood test done and found that my B12 level was abnormaly low and my HDL (Good Cholesterol) was also low.

Since, I've been taking an oral B12 supplement daily under my tongue along with two Omega 3 fish pills.

In November:
B12: 326 (200-1100 US/500-1100 Europe/Japan)
HDL: 36 (40-199)

Recently:
B12: 805
HDL: 42

To bring you back up to speed, my doctor said a B12 level under 500 causes a slough of potential problems and that was confirmed by my research. Number one is fatigue. I'm happy that after only 3 months of supplement, I'm well into the normal range. Most research has shown that levels over 1100 are not harmful. I plan to keep supplementing to increase my level.

I've always had low HDL. Through supplement, I have at least moved into the normal range. Clearly, I will continue to supplement likely for life. I've also changed my diet to include more oils and wine. I've continued to eat wild ocean fish every week. Usually Salmon....

The bottom line is you should get checked out by a qualified pyhsician. In a perfect world, your body regulates your levels properly. In my case, I have two blaring issues that can't be overcome with diet. They require supplement. I can honestly say the B12 made a noticable difference the moment I began to supplement. I have since started taking a vitamin D and I could also feel the difference. There is no doubt it has improved my health.

I plan to go back in 6 months or so to have the full spectrum of tests done plus Vitamin D to make sure my numbers are in the sweet spot.

The problem is most all supplements on the shelf are sub par, overprocessed or rancid, from my research.

Just eat more organic eggs, butter and drink raw milk. Boom. problem solved. Youre welcome. :lol:

Being physically fit is not easy. I believe the public lacks fitness mainly due to these factors:

1. They don't know how.
2. They don't make time.
3. They don't care.
4. They can't afford it.
5. They won't make the effort.

In my opinion, overall physical fitness is 80% nutrition and that's where the work starts. Since good nutrition is primarily made up of non processed, fresh foods, it means more shopping and preparation. Take the average American's lifestyle which is made up of working to many hours and being spread to thin, good nutrition goes out the window. If you have a family, you must get everybody on the same page, especially the shopper. Healthy choices must be available at all times in the house and I strongly urge you to pack a cooler EVERYDAY for work. I haven't missed a day in nine months. You simply must have the option to eat healthy snacks at work and on the run. It's also a metabolism and energy booster. I normally pack two snacks a day. Raw nuts, banana, oranges, etc..

The truth of the matter is that nutrition is getting thrown under the rug for a task that is much less important. What can you eliminate from your life or move down the ladder to make time for your better health? What about your families better health? It's easier to get home late and order a pizza than cook a quality meal. Most don't want to change, I get it.

The fact is that we ALL have 24 hours in a day. It comes down to time management. We are all capable of having a few real principals in our life. Health should be near the top of the list. It's not the easy way out but what that's worthwhile and lasting in life is?

Kelli's out of town on her bacholerette party so I had to fend for myself tonight. That meant a trip to the store, cutting up veggies, grilling steak, cleanup, etc.

Salad:
Spinach
2 different onions
2 different peppers
Radishes
Cucumber
Tomatoes
4 oz filet
Balsamic Vinegar/Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper

I made enough to have one for lunch tomorrow. It was pretty damn good. :D Look at all those phytonutrients and vitamins!

Perfect meal right there!

I pack a lunch everyday.. usually leftovers from the night before. I always include an apple and an orange, a mason jar of water (call me a hippie but I'm avoiding plastics) nuts, raw carrots and leftover beef/shrimp/etc.

I told my wife that since Christmas last year, I eat about 12 eggs a week, drink a half gallon of natural fresh milk from grass fed cow, a 1/4 stick of butter and I'm still losing weight.. down about 8 lbs total. Slow and steady.

Sounds like you are in reasonable moderation Tony. Everybody has to find their own way. I'd still urge you to get a full blown blood profile done for your family if nothing else. Numbers do belong within certain perameters. I certainly learned a few things and made some adjustments that have resulted in a better life.:thumbsup:

I certainly hope my friends here are reading and learning a few things they can apply to their own life. I realize this thread isn't on topic or near as popular as my Payback thread. I can honestly say that all the changes I've made through personal development are far and away the best thing I've ever done for myself with the exclusion of the people in my life.

I've started to study the philosophy of John Wooden, the great UCLA basketball coach. A couple of my favorite analogies so far:

"Improve yourself a little every single day" -John Wooden

I've found through new associations, associations with the happiest, most successful people, that they do exactly that. They are constantly learning, studying their own lives.

"Invest yourself in someone else with no expectation of anything in return" -John Wooden

This one is really key. Nothing makes you feel better than helping someone else. You always gain a friend, perspective, respect, and self esteem. YOU learn and cement your own philosophy.

Life is a continual challenge and work in progress. Don't rely on yesterday to propel you into today. Your past experiences and wins are just that, past success. Today is a new challenge and it always will be. NEVER forget what got you where you are today. NEVER forget what keeps you motivated and propelled to improve and excel. It's different for every single person in this great nation.

This morning I got off to one of the worst starts of this year. Uptight, pissed off, and just flat out no fun to be around. It's going to happen no matter what. I was able to turn it around by mid morning and turn it into a super positive day. Great lunch with my accountability partner, interviewed a perspective employee, prospecting call to a client that had her spouse die without me knowing and offering my help free of charge, taking my lady out to a great dinner.

Lastly,


"It's not what happens to you, it's what you do about it" My mentor-Jimmy Rohn

:relax:

update:
ive really been enjoying running lately and today i just did my longest run it was right under 5.5 miles and it was non-treadmill.
i dont know my pace because i didnt log or really pay attention to the time (prolly slow) but i was just shooting for the distance. and i only walked no more than 10 percent of that!

"i feel f-ing great" :D

oh yeah and i weighed 174lbs this morning.

I probably should just for kicks. But then I'd have to listen to some pharmaceutical rep in a white coat give me a lecture on a whole grain, low fat "diet".

Todd, your HDL is still very low! I think I was preaching to you before about that... eat some good healthy saturated fat! It will not make you gain weight, promise. Actually there were some recent studies done... there kids who were drinking skim milk were fatter than ones drinking whole milk!

Yes, virtually everything we are taught about nutrition is wrong.

Love that quote.

Still running. Getting ready for Derby half-marathon on apr 27. Put in 152 miles in the month of march. Still lifting and got me a iron gym and starting doing chin ups/pullups etc. feeling good!

Good to hear buddy! We need to catch up soon.

My hdl was below minimum spec when I ate plenty of saturated fat. :D I'll keep raising my hdl while keeping my ldl the same, thanks. :action-smiley-027:

Beast....

Any seasonal allergy sufferers out there? If so, I'm sure you can relate to the HELL that is Spring. (especially in the midwest)

I have had them since I was born. Every spring and fall (the 2 best seasons!), itchy, puffy eyes, snotty/stuffed up nose and constant sneezing.

I had some high 'hopes' that this year was different and I'm pretty excited that it is. Spring came and I'm waiting for it... waiting... never came, no symptoms. But I wasn't going to get all excited until I survived a day outside cutting grass. That was yesterday and against my wife's suggestion I did it WITHOUT A MASK :D and I have to report that there is NO sneezing or any allergy symptoms of any kind!

Since allergies just dont "go away" I have a few theories as to why I don't have them now and I can only conclude that it my diet, since that is the only thing that has changed since this time last year.

I don't know if its one thing, or a combination of all, but the biggest changes have been that I have cut 90% of the dairy out of my diet. I drink raw milk instead of store bought milk. I eat a dozen eggs a week along with organic butter from grass fed cows. I am eating about 80% less wheat/grains and a lot more organic vegetables and fruit in its place. I eat about the same about of meat (pork, beef, chicken, seafood). I eat a LOT less processed foods. So I don't know if its any of that, all of it, or one thing but I can finally enjoy a Spring season.

That's one hell of a great payoff Tony. I suffer from some pretty wicked allergies but my nutrition overhaul didn't eliminate them, it did help me retain more energy. Believe it or not, Vegas has some pretty potent allergens due to the wide variety of plants from all over the world used in landscaping.

It's been a while since I've checked in on my thread. I've continued with my disciplines in nutrition, excercise, and personal development. I don't think I've missed a workout all year. (4 min. per week) I'm 165lbs and approx. 12% body fat. One thing I can tell you has changed this year is my recovery from burn out. I tend to push to hard all around. Solid effort at the office, personal development through reading and cd's, excercise, and personal interests. I don't like to rest but it's crucial to listen to your body and mind. In the past, I'd get burn't out for week, two weeks and so on...This year I've been able to recover in a day or two. The decrease from 5-6 workouts to 4 has made it easier, but sometimes you just can't cram any more information into your brain. It's a good time to let it flow. Sit down and have a in depth conversation or write in a journal.

Three of the many things I've been working on lately is how I feel about other people, how I think they perceive me, and not speaking negatively about others.

Instead of assuming the worst, give them a chance until they prove you wrong. Don't come to conclusions without all the facts. This one has been tough for me as I'm breaking a life long bad habit. I have been doing alot better. I'll give you a minor example: I was following a truck down the freeway last week and a couple pieces of paper flew out the window. My first reaction was, what a scum bag to litter up society. Then I thought, maybe he rolled his window down and it flew off the dash? Who knows but assuming the worst isn't a postive influence on your life.

I'm a bit of a perfectionist to some degree and I have a tendency to think that people have a more negative perception of me than is fact. It's mainly an issue with clients. Could I have done this better, followed up after the sale more often, blah blah blah The truth is that a majority have a very positive perception of me and I've been picturing it that way lately instead of the contrary.

When my Grandfather died, my Dad wrote one of the eulogies. He said, "He never spoke negatively about others his entire life". I'll never forget that fact and that's how I remember him myself. That is one quality I really want to cement. It's to easy to get sucked into conversations at the office or in certain circles. Choose the high road.....

Lastly, is a Jim Rohn video. It's one of my many favorites. It's absolute GOLD and every American could stand to watch it and apply the principals. I do.....

I can say, that first hand, being, saying and getting involved in negativity can and will hurt your health. I firmly believe it attributed to my wife getting breast cancer. It was at a time when she got into a fight with these 2 neighbors who were being jerks her, we were having some marriage issues and she was holding in some major stress. On top of that she was training for a marathon and pushing her body past its limits.

Since diagnosis, treatment and recovery we have changed our perspective in a big way. It's just not worth it to get upset over other people actions. It's a tough change to make for sure. I used to get SO ticked at people who drove like jerks, too slow, people who didn't hold doors open, or say 'thanks' when I did, etc etc ect. We have and still try to just let all that BS go, for our OWN sanity and stress management.

Right now, my only brother has accused me of some nonsense, hasn't talked to me in over 4 months, no birthday card or call.. just totally turned into a first class jerk. I have to let it go, otherwise it was cause some negative stress if I let his drama get to me. The old saying, people who hurt are hurting is true. I can't help him, so I let it go.

Anyway, back on the allergies, I spoke a little too soon.. the eye's are a itching. But no other symptoms. This is about half the intensity that it has ever been. So while they aren't completely gone, this is somewhat manageable compared to how it's always been.

Thanks for sharing that video Todd... everyone should watch that!

That's great to hear Tony. Glad your wife is doing well.

Two of the major pieces to the equation with attitude is how you feel about other people and how you feel about your job. These are the two I struggle with most.

I think it's important to make all the postive changes in your life possible, but the biggest challenge is controlling your own thoughts. I think it's important to find a way to be happy in today's circumstances while working towards being the person you want to be and the lifestyle you want to live. If you can't be happy today, how do you expect to be happy when you have X amount of $, that dream job, kids, on down the line.

update on my running

ran 1/2 marathon on 3/23 in 1:47:54 a pr by almost 11min from 2012

ran 1/2 marathon on 4/27 in 1:47:07 missed my goal of a 1:45 but no excuses, just need to train better

will get back to more lifting and a little less running(25 miles a week instead of 35-40), run some 5k races and in July start training for my second marathon with a goal of 3:59:59

47 years old and by far in the best shape of my life!

I can comprehend the amount of effort it takes to be in that type of shape. That is some serious committment and discipline. Running is definitely great for the mind and soul. :thumbsup:

Attitude is Everything

We've all heard this constantly throughout our lives. I'm a firm believer that making your mind up to have a great attitude is NOT sufficient.

Here are the three major variables to attitude:

Spirit
Mind
Body

Here are the things I work on to improve my attitude:

How I feel about the past- Is it a teacher or a cruch for the future?
How I feel about the future- Are you excited or aprehensive?
How I feel about myself- Do you like who you are today?
How I feel about everybody- Do you give them the benefit of the doubt or assume the worst?
Education- You must input new information into your mind if you wish to think differently.
Influence- The quality of the information you input into your mind.
Association- The quality of people and their attitudes that you hang around.
Effort- Are you doing your best in your relationships, job, etc?
Results- Are you achieving your goals?
Happiness- Are you happy with your current circumstances while you work on getting where you want to go?
Health- If you are sick all the time, how do you expect to have a postive attitude?
Spirit-I'm going to tread lightly here but I've found this to be a huge piece of the puzzle.
Reflection- Are you tracking your results and making adjustments?

Lastly and certainly not least, you don't fix your attitude and expect things to be great until the end of time. Attitude is a daily challenge and it always will be. I've found that creating GOOD habits make a substantial difference.

I now call it the spirit of the day. I start nearly everyday with personal development for 15-30 minutes through a CD or book and say a prayer with thanks for my countless blessings. It sets my day off on a great direction. Then I follow it up with all the disciplines I've worked into my life throughout the day.

I hope this helps you create the attitude you wish to have. Like all good things in life, it takes labor and persistence over time to get where you want to go. It's really a way to diagnose your own life. Until you really break things down, it's extremely tough to put your finger on your own deficiencies. (And we all have many)