Life of Ken – Vol. 1

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Happenings from the Homefront

Spring is in the air! The big kids are deep into their spring semester at Auburn, they have about a month left before summer break. Knox has one internship lined up and is interviewing for a second. Grace is looking for an internship and will likely be nannying again this summer as well.

A few weeks ago we kicked off spring break by attending an epic Savannah Bananas baseball game. We had heard the hype but had never experienced it ourselves. It lived up to (and surpassed) all of our expectations! You can click here to read the blog post we wrote about the experience. 

Amber made the journey to Preoria, AZ to play in the annual member-guest tournament she gets invited to with her good friend Tonya. They have a group of ladies that like to compete hard and play hard. Overall, they finished middle of the pack, but they did manage to win a couple of “skins” in the tournament that produced some cold hard cash!

I spent some solitude time at the ranch for two days, working some from the RV and getting lots of ranch work done as well. Had some long contemplative walks just appreciating nature and the beauty that surrounded me. I even got some hunting in and harvested a big nasty pig. Then everyone arrived and we had an incredible time together with friends and family watching the solar eclipse. We were on the direct path and the view was absolutely awe inspiring. I had never seen anything like that before (and likely will never see it again). The next total solar eclipse in the US will not occur again until 2044 (two decades from now).  

Work, work, work!

I am wrapping the final month of the first cohort of Mastering the Art of Success (MAOS). This is a 24 week (6-months) curriculum I put together that helps students to contemplate their definition of success and find ways to live into the best version of themselves. We dig deep into vibrant health, extreme accountability, authentic relationships + emotional intelligence, adventure + lifestyle, contribution + giving back, and wrap with a series on wealth building + legacy. It has been awesome sharing some of the knowledge I have been blessed to receive over the past years. The course feedback has been fantastic and I’m looking forward to future cohorts and helping even more people. 

Amber has been busy at work helping lots of clients. She is a great example of what the universe does when you set an intention and begin to take action on that intention. She committed to rebuilding her real estate business in December of last year. She then hired a coach, hired an executive assistant, went to Ninja Selling orientation (for her coaching program), and clients started flocking to her. Now she is busier than a one-armed paper hanger!

I continue helping a handful of awesome clients (who, coincidentally have become good friends) with buying and selling commercial real estate. The current interest rate environment has dramatically changed the velocity of deals, and cap rates are beginning to float up. And finding land that works for residential development has been a real bear as of late. If you know of any, please let me know!

Laundry Luv has exciting things happening. Our three existing new build stores are thriving, and business continues to grow month-over-month. We are in discussions with several groups about a JV arrangement with them, and we are in deep exploration with a franchise consultant about potentially franchising to expand the brand and the good we are doing in communities across the country. Stay tuned for more to come.

Brain Food (what I am reading, watching, and listening to)

I have committed to re-reading some of the most impactful books of my life this year. I am currently in the middle of Richest Man in Babylon. The book emphasizes the importance of saving, investing wisely, and living within one’s means as keys to building wealth. It dispenses sage financial advice through a collection of parables set in ancient Babylon. This should be required reading for every high school and college student.

I continue with one page each day of The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday. Great reminders to focus on the things that we can control. I recently finished The Go-Giver Influencer by Bob Burg and John David Mann. You can read a blog I posted about the book here.

When I am in the car I am typically listening to The All In Podcast or the Front Row Dad’s Podcast. Both are filled with wisdom, insights, and paths for me to follow for deeper insights. If you know me, you know that I do not watch or read “the news.” Finding podcasts of people I trust are the way I typically find out about world events. 

Lastly, I absolutely treasure receiving Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditations (from the Center for Action and Contemplation). It is a great way (and a great spiritual practice) to start my morning by reading these daily meditations and then spending a few moments in quiet contemplation to let it all sink in.

Kaizen

Big shout out to my friend Nate Palmer of the Million Dollar Body Method. I hired Nate as a virtual coach back in November. He and his team have been sending me daily workouts, providing nutritional guidance, and tracking my progress. He has me eating 200 grams of protein a day – difficult, but doable. Good news is that by eating that much protein, I really don’t have the desire for lots of the junk food that used to slip into my diet.

I had a nagging pinched nerve that lasted for over a week. Nate also gave me some good suggestions for working it out. Finally, after a full week, it subsided and I was able to get back to working out and pushing heavy weights again. My goal is to hit peak fitness when we head out to Cabo San Lucas in July!

This Friday (April 19) a few brave souls will join me and Eliud Sangabriel for our 5th annual Unbreakable 24-Hour Walk. It will be yet another test of our will, determination, and grit. If you would like to see some highlights of the walk from 2020, check out this video on YouTube.

I continue to start most mornings with Wim Hof breathwork, followed by 10-20 minutes of meditation, then journaling, reading 10-20 pages, and then moving onto my daily workout. It’s a great way to start each day by focusing on ME and my own personal development. I think it is crucial for each of us to pour into ourselves first, that way we can show up as the best version of ourselves when we are serving everyone else. 

Random Musings

I have been using Snapchat to keep in touch with my kids. I was super opposed to this for a long time. Thank you to my friend Jeremy Mathis for suggesting to meet my kids where they are at – communicate with them the way they like to communicate. It has led to some fun (and funny) interactions and more frequent communication than I was otherwise getting.

Lastly, that same friend started sending out little bits of daily wisdom to his kids via text. Then he started including some of their friends (and some of his friends, me included) on those texts. I have now taken his nuggets of daily gold and started a Telegram thread appropriately called Morning Wisdom. I now have my kids on this thread and several of their friends. If you (or your kids) want to be added, just let me know and I will make it happen.

Until next time.

Take action and be grateful!

-Ken

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