Blue Collar Rich

05/18/2026

This is week 3 of this 5 part series. To recap we have established that we all encounter circumstances and they are 100% neutral and when we experience a circumstance we have a thought about it which gives that circumstance a polarity.

I had another great conversation about this last week. A great example of the neutrality of circumstances was being at the top of a 100' tall water slide. Some people will think "this is amazing", some will think "I made a mistake and don't want to be here" and others may think it's boring.

This brings us to the next party of the universal truth about the human experience, feeling. Once we have been presented with a circumstance and we have our thought about it, we have a feeling. This feeling is what is going to drive us to action.

We act, or don't act, based on our feelings. Like working out. Some people feel like it's hard, or amazing, or even driven to work out. No matter what, it's that feeling about that thought that is going to have you act upon it or not act. Not acting is absolutely an action.

The circumstance of needing a new car can elicit the thought of joy giving the feeling of excitement and you start thinking about how it's going to feel to be behind the wheel of that new car. While others will think this sucks and fear learning a new vehicle.

You starting to get the idea here? It is in these three phases of the human experience that we go on autopilot. Something happens, we have a knee jerk thought and that drives the feeling. It happens unconsciously, unless we are mindful.

We all have life experiences. Some of these experiences serve us well and give us fuel to build a Rich Life. Some of these experiences are just running in the background creating thoughts and feelings that no longer serve us.

Can you identify a thought and feeling that no longer serves you?

05/11/2026

This week's thought is, Thoughts.

How did you do with circumstances last week? I did get one good conversation about circumstances last week. A person's Limiting thoughts are circumstances. When we have thoughts that we think are reality like, I'm not smart enough, I don't have enough education, etc. those are circumstances.

To recap, circumstances are neutral things that happen to us. So following the universal truth for all human beings of CTFAR we move from the circumstance to the thought. CTFAR again is, Circumstance, Thought, Feeling, Action , Result.

So the thought is where the circumstance gains a polarity. When something happens to us we then think it is good, bad or neutral based on our life's experiences.

So let's take a common circumstance. Someone's uncle passed away unexpectedly. If that someone is your close friend you think, that sucks and you feel for their loss. If that someone is a random person on the other side of the country and you hear of it, you think that sucks and move on without any effect on your life.

These just scratch the surface of Circumstances and thoughts.

What circumstances can you think of that elicit different thoughts?

05/05/2026

This week's thought is part of a 5 part series.

Everything we as humans encounter and deal with in life, good, bad or indifferent boils down to five things.

Circumstance
Thought
Feeling
Action
Result

This week I'm going to explain Circumstance. It seems like an extremely easy topic but it is the toughest to grasp fully. Circumstances are anything that happens to us. In order for us to be in full control of our lives and prevent ourselves from being victims, we must accept our circumstances. We have to take full responsibility for what happens to us.

Let me explain further. Circumstances can be something someone or something does to us or says to us or happens around us that invokes a thought. Someone saying hi, the death of a loved one, a tornado demolishing our home, a hug from someone, being abused by a loved one, someone killing a puppy for no apparent reason, and on and on. Some of these sound extreme and I used them purposely because we have to remember 2 important things about circumstances.

1. ALL circumstances are neutral and factual. Like evidence that could be used in a court of law. Leave out all bias and opinion. Like water is a molecule of 2 parts hydrogen 1 part oxygen. (No matter what)
2. We must accept our circumstances. (Because they already happened. They can't be taken back. Life happens perfectly, again, because it already happened)

Take this week to notice your circumstances and what you think about them. Are you a victim of, or are you accepting of your circumstances and moving forward? I welcome comments on your hardest circumstance to debunk their neutrality.

We will dive into the next aspect of CTFAR next week, Thoughts.

04/27/2026

This week's thought is to have compassion for your fellow human.

It is very easy to be in our own heads with our home, political, religious, personal, etc. life issues while judging and hating others for their life's experiences that shaped them as a person.

We are all humans living different lives, having different life experiences and doing the best we can to live a great life with the knowledge and experiences that has brought us to today.

Give your fellow human grace for their lifetime and maybe you'll learn something. If we all had the same life, life would be boring. The world wouldn't be what it is today, either.

So if someone has a differing opinion don't automatically go into territorial mode and treat them as an enemy. Allow them their life's experiences and have a compassionate conversation. You get to leave with your opinions and they get to leave with theirs.

We are too divided these days. Most things aren't black and white, but are grey in my opinion. I can find common interests or common ground with every person I've met when I choose to be curious instead of judgemental.

I challenge you to drop your judgement and connect to all humans. Do you accept?

04/15/2026

This weeks thought is work life balance. Do you have work life balance? What is work life balance?

Here's my thoughts on work life balance. If you have it, you have it. Work life balance is subjective, in my opinion. It also has everything to do with where you are with work and home.

Let me explain how I found my personal work life balance, that not only worked for me but also my family. Seasons and communication.

Careers and jobs have ebb's and flows. When I have been in a flow, or seen one coming I warned my wife that my availability would be limited. I also explained that when the ebb came I would more than make up for it.

Then I commit to my promises. There are times when my work energizes me and it isn't like work so the balance is different on my side but my family has less of me There are also times when work is a grind and it is the last place I want to be so I limit my time at work and maximize my time with family.

Find your path to YOUR work life balance and don't let anyone dictate what that looks like for you. Don't fall victim to work life balance being a certain number of hours every day for each part of your life unless that's what works for you. That definitely hasn't worked for me and my family. I also haven't found anyone that worked for in the long term.

Be willing to communicate and try things. The most important thing is to be content in the amount of time you spend working and living on a scale that works for you and your family.

Also look up, look around, notice your surroundings and how wonderful this world and life is.

04/07/2026

Today's thought.

Take a moment each day to realize that you are just a mammal walking around on a floating rock in space with a finite life to live.

Put your life into perspective and realize that the small things like politics, sports, getting cut off in traffic or someone not performing a task properly or just about anything, isn't that big of a deal. We are all just humans trying to do the best we can with the time we have.

Have empathy for your fellow human. They are just trying to do their best with their life experience. It is probably different from yours and you may not agree with it, but it is their one chance to pound their feet on this earth. What makes you so important to say they are doing it wrong.

Life is much easier and more fulfilling when we are living in the moment, utilizing what we have learned from the past and acknowledging we have a finite future. Don't live in the past and hyper fixate on the future.

Live and love on purpose. You'll be much happier.

04/01/2026

Today's thought.

Be a consummate learner and willing to do hard things.

The human brain is designed to create, grow and keep us safe. When we become complacent and static we grow unhappy and get that feeling of being "stuck".

Go get a book, take a class, learn that hobby you've always wanted to try, step outside of your comfort zone and try that job you've always wanted, have that hard conversation with your significant other, just feed your brain.

If you feel stuck, find something to learn about it step outside your comfort zone in some way. You'll be amazed on how this impacts your life.

If you can do this for a lifetime you will feel more fulfilled.

03/16/2026

Today's thought.

The master has failed more than the novice has tried.

We all have been novices and masters during our life.

At one point prior to being 5 years old we were all novices failing hard and fast as we learned to walk, talk and learn how to navigate relationships.

Then around that time our parents, teachers and people of authority reprimanded us for our failures. Some of us took it harder than others.

We future how to fail and that fair is actually an integral part of success. If we don't fail and learn we are stagnant. If we fail and don't learn we truly fail.

So failure isn't the end, it is the middle. Get up, dust yourself off and move forward with the lessons you learned.

03/05/2026

Today's thought.

How many times have you said or heard the term "Life is Short"? Have you ever really stepped back to look at your life from the 30,000' view?

We are all just people floating on a rock in space that are born, spend our days making the best of the life we have and then die.

I know that sounds horrible and raises the question why? or why bother?

I've found that it really helps me put the struggle I'm dealing with or the drama that's trying to suck me in, into perspective. Is that thing really gonna matter in a day, a week, a year or a couple years?

This perspective doesn't give me the F it attitude but actually dampens the severity of the situation to be able to step back, gain clarity and move through it with grace.

I'm an imperfect human being and not as graceful as I'd like to be sometimes but staying in touch with my mortality gives me purpose and perspective.

What do you think?

02/18/2026

The master has failed more times than the apprentice has tried.

Failure isn't the end. It's the middle. It is how we recover and what we learn from failure that builds greatness. Fail forward and learn fast.

When was the last time you celebrated a failure or looked back and was glad for a failure?

I wouldn't be where I am today if I hadn't killed power to an entire hospital, accidentally. It's a long story...

02/15/2026

This concept is at the core of my coaching. Around awareness with compassion.

Psychology says the reason older people stop caring isn’t apathy—it’s actually the highest form of self-awareness. Article by Lachlan Brown

https://search.app/Pn8Ty

But psychology tells a very different story. What looks like “not caring” is often something far more sophisticated — a fundamental shift in how the brain processes what actually matters. And research suggests it may be one of the most psychologically advanced things a human being can do.

Why wait to live a rich life when you are older?

Just a thought.

You’ve probably noticed it in someone you know. A parent, a grandparent, an older mentor. At some point, they just… stopped caring about things that used to consume them. The office politics, the social comparisons, the desperate need to impress people. The anxiety about what everyone thinks. Th...