Make Your Bed

As we hit the ground running in 2018, motivating ourselves and others to be our best, I can’t stop thinking about a simple book I read in 2017 – Make your Bed, by Admiral William H. McRaven. My wife and I both read the book, as did our 5th grade daughters. We all loved it. This simple book really sums up many basic life lessons in an easy to understand way.

Admiral William H. McRaven retired from the Navy after 37 years as a Navy Seal and Commander of all U.S. Special Operations Forces. He gave the graduation commencement speech to his alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin, a few years back. That speech motivated him to write and publish a book based on that commencement speech.

In the book, McRaven shares the ten lessons he learned from Navy SEAL training that can help overcome the challenges we face every day. Summarized, the lessons are:

1. Start your day by completing a simple task, like making your bed

2. You can’t go at it alone, we all need a team

3. Measure people by the size of their hearts

4. Life isn’t fair, don’t blame others and keep moving forward

5. Don’t be afraid of failure, it makes you stronger

6. Overcome your fears, it’s the only way to achieve your potential

7. Stand up to bullies, be courageous

8. Be your best in your darkest moments, rise to the occasion

9. Give others hope, lead with your attitude

10. Never give up, life is what you make of it

These lessons remind us what really matters in life – leadership, attitude, teamwork, accountability, and commitment. When the going gets tough, the tough stay put and help their team through it.

Sometimes we search for complicated answers to life’s day to day challenges. Oftentimes, the answers are staring us in the face. This book speaks to that. Maybe I liked it because it only takes about 2 hours to read. But just because it’s an easy read doesn’t mean it isn’t powerful. As is often the case, simple is better.

I would encourage you to read the book and start each day with a small task completed – make your bed.

Until next time…we are Advoco, make every minute count.

About Jefferson: As Vice President Industry Solutions at Advoco, Jefferson is responsible for strategy and business development focusing on public sector projects. He has nearly 20 years of EAM industry experience and is passionate about helping clients to drive productivity and bottom line improvements through EAM. When Jefferson is not working, he is spending time with family, traveling, or enjoying his “man-cave” in his small hometown of Plum Branch, SC. He enjoys his downtime and occasional weekends there with family and friends – hunting, fishing, cooking, watching college football, and hanging out with his chocolate lab, Max. Have a question for Jefferson? Send him an email!