How difficult is it for you to get out of bed in the mornings? Do you rise before the alarm goes off, or do you lay there slapping the snooze button several times before reluctantly putting both feet on the floor? For you students, on Saturday mornings, do you sleep until noon? Do you lay in bed playing social media before finally making your way to the refrigerator or the Keurig? Regarding work, are you sitting in the parking lot before the doors open to see your first customer, or do you not leave home until 8 a.m. thinking you are “working” while driving. Drive may be the key word in this article. Now let’s shift gears and apply “Drive” to our outdoor endeavors.
For you fishermen, are you the first one to the landing to launch your boat when the spring crappie bite is on? To the duck hunting enthusiast, are your decoys, calls, and boat prepared for a launch in the pre-dawn darkness? Is your gear organized to minimize fumbling around in the dark looking for necessary items? To the deer hunter, are you perched on a limb 30 minutes before dawn and prepared to sit all day? Do you have the stamina to hunt all day, or are you one of those that can’t wait to get back to “camp” to cook breakfast and watch college game day? To the golfer, are you dedicated to the game to practice hours upon hours to make that 15 foot putt when the match is on the line? Need I even present a scenario like this to the turkey hunter matching wits with a five-year-old gobbler?
Let’s revisit work. Do you wait until the last minute to prepare a required report that you have known about for a month? Do you scramble to finish your expense report on a Friday afternoon, when it was due yesterday? If your phone rings from a client at 9 p.m., do you answer, or say to yourself, “I’ll call them back in the morning?” How would you describe yourself; complacent, or driven?
You may recall this story, because I have mentioned it in the past. My grandfather, a cotton producer back in the day, called me one morning at 5 a.m. when I was in college. To paraphrase, he told me that until I had a biscuit and a cup of coffee before the sun came up, I would never amount to a “hill of beans.” He continued by saying ,“If the sun ever beat me up, I would never get a full “day’s” work in because I had already missed part of the day.” He made a huge impact on my life that morning, and I have never forgotten it.
I get extremely frustrated when I am dependent upon someone else to do their job before I can do mine. This is especially true when someone has no sense of urgency to tackle the task at hand. I think this is due, in part, to my career in the agricultural world when timing is critical for many endeavors. Whether it is planting a crop, controlling weeds and insects, or harvesting, time is of the essence. Granted, the weather can have a tremendous effect on our endeavors, and this is beyond our control, but when the weather cooperates, we better be on our A game and not late to the party. Is any of this resonating with you? Are you a doer, or a waiter? Now back to the outdoor world.
Many years ago, I was having a good run harvesting some exceptional bucks. I remember an acquaintance and hunting buddy saying, “I was just lucky.” His words stuck with me, and I pondered that statement for a long time, and truthfully, I still do. After much thought, it occurred to me there is not a day that goes by that I’m thinking about my next day in the woods. This balances on the edge of an obsession disorder. Rather, I freely admit, it is an obsession. However, in my defense, this “drive” bleeds over into my work ethic too. Now, I am not saying this is totally a good thing, but it is for certain, a reality. Ironically, I am not devastated if I don’t load a buck in the truck, or if the crop is a little short of what we worked for, but if unsuccessful, lack of preparation and effort will not be the culprit.
There was a day though when I failed in any endeavor, that I dwelled on it far too much. Maybe it can be called maturity. Perhaps this is the natural progression of life. In my younger days, I “needed” that sense of self-satisfaction when successful in the woods, on the water, in the classroom, or in the business world. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy the thrill of victory, but I am not on suicide watch if I lose the skirmish.
Do you have an issue with moderation? I certainly have in the past. If I couldn’t turkey hunt every day, then I wouldn’t go at all. I can still hear my dad telling me, “Moderation in everything.” This was a huge struggle for me. Is it my DNA that defines me? For you tennis players, when you leave the court, is this all you think about until your next match? I read something about Elon Musk and how he only slept an hour or two a day, and when he did sleep it was under his desk. If this is correct, this defines dedication, or perhaps some other “disorder.” Truthfully, we all could probably benefit by seeking balance and moderation in some aspects of our lives. At least this is something to think about.
During my high school years, and through college, I attempted to play the banjo. Though I surely wasn’t an Earl Scruggs, I could manage to “pick” my way through Cripple Creek, The Wildwood Flower, and the Ballad of Jed Clampett. A little thing called “life” got in the way of my practicing and I put it away for a long time. Recently, Timmy Avalon has agreed to take me on as a new pupil, and time will tell if an old dog can still wag his tail every now and then. Timmy keeps emphasizing to me, “practice, practice, practice.” This will be a good test for me to see if I still have the “obsession” in me to become fluent with the five-string. We might want to say a prayer for Stacey, as she endures my string plucking. I’ll let you know how it goes.
If you’re one of those that borders on extreme when it comes to work or play, maybe this article will help you to think about moderation in your life. However, if you’re one of those that stays in bed too long and perhaps lacks the drive and motivation to push for success, then maybe this article will be of benefit to you too. I’ll let you decide which category you’re in. Keep in mind though, those public land ducks, those wary whitetail bucks, and those smart ole gobblers take some dedication to play in their world. I would think about this the next time you hit the snooze button when it’s 20 degrees and the wind is blowing.
Until next time enjoy our woods and waters and remember, let’s leave it better than we found it. jeff.north@northag.net
