I had the pleasure of spending a week at a friend fathers house up in Cocoa Beach, FL a few years back. I always admired this man as he lived his life so vibrantly and energetically. Knowing that I was going to spend a weekend there, I was looking to gain some tidbits of wisdom from this man of which I can learn and apply as so I can also live a long healthy vibrant life.
We stayed over the weekend and on the first morning, Mr. Gardocki woke us up and said, “come on boys, I know a great breakfast place that serves steak, eggs, home fries and a big cup of coffee, let’s go!” I immediately thought, well that’s not it.
After breakfast, we went back to the house to trailer his boat to do some cruising and fishing in the backcountry of Cocoa Beach. We all enjoyed ourselves having fun cruising, fishing, drinking a couple of cold ones while listening to Mr. Gardocki share amazing stories of his life.
When we returned to the dock, Mr. Gardocki wouldn’t let us do a thing. He drove, docked and trailered the boat, pretty much by himself. As we returned to the house, I offered to wash the boat down. He exclaimed, “No, my wife has some nice sand-witches made for you boys, go enjoy your lunch.” I’ll take care of the boat.
After lunch and the washing of the boat. Mr. Gardocki and I sat in his garage watching the afternoon Florida rain while engaging in a conversation. This is where I was waiting for those tidbits of wisdom. Mr. Gardocki shared of how crazy and wild he was when he was young. He shared about when he was in sales how they would have a sales lunch and start drinking and the last man standing was pretty much the guy who closed the deal. He shared about his crazy escapades to where he would actually go to the hotel, drink a pint of half & half to settle his stomach, go to sleep to wake up the next day and start the whole process over again.
Now I’m thinking, this guy is giving me absolutely no clues of how to live a long and healthy life. With a puzzled look on my face, Mr. Gardocki finally shared, “You’re waiting for some clues, aren’t you, and I’m not giving you any, am I?” I reply chuckling, “No you’re not!” That’s when he slowly leaned over and said, “Let me tell you the secret, keep your mind and body active. My wife would be happy if I was on the lazy boy recliner right next to her with the channel flipper in my hand. If I go out 25 miles off the coast and I’m fighting a dolphin (mahi-mahi) in a school, if I go out there, I’m happy! I’m going to live my life to the fullest and I’m going to go out the way I want to go out.”
“The clue you’re looking for here is mind-body, stay active, keep the mind strong and you’ll live a long healthy life.” Finally, it took me the entire day to get it, however, I finally received the tidbit of wisdom that I was looking for.
The last word in my personal culture statement is Energy; Energy, Enthusiasm, and Stamina are needed for true success and we will stay in top physical and mental form to consistently give our all to others.
Let’s face it, the business world can sometimes be a grind and we need the stamina to succeed. The only way to have stamina is to have energy and the only way to have energy is that you need to be in your top form, you’re A-game both mentally and physically.
My lesson to you today is in whatever you’re doing if you are not keeping your mind sharp by reading, listening, mentoring, studying and doing new things, you need to venture into this area. If you are not at the gym, if you’re a business owner that is running so fast that you haven’t made time for yourself to be active and work on your body, on your physical attributes and your energy, block out the time to get to the gym as this is important. You need your mind and body to be on its A-game to be your best and do your best to receive the best in return.
Thank you to Mr. Gardocki for today’s wisdom tip and may you rest in peace.