Slam, I am! I still AM!

     SLAM, I am! Sounds like a Doctor Seuss story doesn’t it??? Bear with me and I will explain.

                                                                                               ADD An L!

     Everybody is different. One of the most special blessings about the joys of being human is the variety of people, you get to enjoy. It never ceases to amaze me, how many diverse but intricately detailed human beings there are in this world. You think you have seen it all and then comes another strange oddity of a person. And this lets you know; there are plenty more to discover. 

     I think of the amazing diversity of human beings as the greatest canvas of God. Wow. How Incredible is the beauty, wonder and amazing differences of human beings! No wonder the Bible says in Psalm 8:5 “For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.”

   This is also one of the chief things I enjoy about the Twitter stream. There is such an incredible variety of people to exchange ideas with, learn from & get to know. 

    So before I write this piece, I am fully aware that I am not the only “strange duck.” Still, strange duck I am…. SLAM, I am! One of my strange duck qualities is: I am one of those guys that they warn you “He plays rough.” “Be careful shaking his hand,” you are warned. Yep, its true. I confess. But in my defense, I am much better about this than I used to be. I work daily at being in touch with God and other people. But my natural tendency is still, to show you I love you, by crushing your hand. (I repeat. I am improving.. lol)

    Also, I must make another confession. I am a hugger. But not just any kind of hugger. I am a bear hugger. (Very careful with the ladies mind you. I am quite careful of the lines of courtesy and very chivalrous but that is another story). But if you are a guy friend; I shake your hand if I don’t know you well. But if I like you and get to know you. Yep, its coming; sooner or later; you’re going to get a Timothy Grant Carter style, bear hug. Oh and if your a strong guy like me; all the better. We could win a tough guy competition with some of those squeezes.

I guess I am a little more cultured than I make it sound.. but not much. lol // And people that don’t like hugs. Don’t worry, I will teach you.   (Seriously, I am quite respectful of other people’s privacy zones and space but I do tend to appropriately, reach out to touch and show that I care!)

     Where did I get this tendency from. Well, for one thing; I was born with it.  When I was a little tike (terrible two’s); one of my parent’s biggest challenges was to get me to quit beating my head against the wall. Yep. There was little Tim driving his parents crazy beating his head against the wall… 

     This scared my mother to death. But my wise dad knew just how to handle a little hard-head like me. He waited till one day when mom wasn’t home and I was beating my head against the wall, to use his unconventional but effective methods, to train me. When I pulled one of those head banging fits with Him; He encouraged me to beat my head harder. No problem. I did. —- He asked me if that was the best I could do & could I beat it any harder. I did. I did till I nearly knocked myself out with exhaustion & was unable to continue. Dad won. (That was the last time I ever did that). But still, the point is I was born hard headed and that talent remains.  INTENSE

has always been an understatement with me.

     Some of it is not my fault. When my brother was trying to teach me to be “mean enough” for the game of football. He put me in pads and gear and lined me up on the fence at the ball park. And when he said “Hut,” I had to charge the fence. I had to charge the fence until I broke it & then when I did, he just moved me to the next part of the fence. He would order me: “Hit it again. Hit it harder.” — This wasn’t helpful or healthy. —- It just en-grained an already deep tendency that the answer to everything is HIT IT HARDER [and it is not the answer, always].

     You may have heard my friend  Steve Gutzler ‏ @SteveGutzler call me “Slam.” Yeah, I earned this title. Here is one example. We were playing intramural football in college and he and I were terrors on the freshman squad. One game, as we played the Seniors; nobody could keep me off the QB. So they commissioned some guy, who had played for Arizona State U, to clothesline me from the other-side of the field. Knocked me clean out….  So, that stopped me; right??? Wrong, as soon as I shook the cob-webs from the brain; I went right back in the game doing it again. Yep, you guessed it; got blind-sighted and knocked out again, still charging the quarterback. But the point is; I don’t have a quitting gear. Knocking me down doesn’t work. You have to knock me out; to stop me and then you must make sure I’m down for the count. If I can get back in the game, I am coming after you again.

     I learned some of this from my gracious and beautiful mother also. It was common knowledge in my house. Start every good thing, you want to. We will support you. But finish everything you start; we will make you. Wow. Did she stick by this and I have learned to… I think she sensed what I was going to face.

     Don’t get me wrong, this fighting spirit has helped me far more than it has hurt me.  For Twenty five + years in the martial arts; my ferocity served me well. I had a “take all comers” attitude in my dojo, in Florida. I treated everyone well….. but don’t show up looking to demonstrate your hind quarters in my school, in front of my students. That was a mistake. There was a good reason, why I was the teacher and I would show you, if you pushed me. There were many moments that this was true. Use your imagination. Nuff said. 

   I remember when I was coming through the ranks having a minor surgical procedure that lasted too long. I needed to get to the dojo to take my brown belt test … They said no way Mr. Carter. You are still hooked up and in no condition to go! I removed my own IV and signed myself out and went and got my brown belt that same evening. Yes, I am very forceful and deliberate when I go after something. “Slam,” Yep. that is a good description!

     Also in business, this fighting spirit has helped me a lot. Because of it, #sales growth was always a way of life for me. The next #sale: was just the next round of the fight and I liked to be in the ring….. And if I was in the ring, I wanted to win (both for you and for me). Fortunately, I was always natured to be a defender more than an attacker.  I would prefer to  fight to defend you, than to hurt you. In #sales, this characteristic was always true also and proved to be a

good trait, to have. 

     Much of my professional life was spent, fighting to get special things done FOR my customers. With this attitude, A good #salesman has an easy time convincing his customer to buy from him / her. Because it is easy for the customer to clearly see, how you fight for your their interests and well being.

     So this BEAM (post) is both personal and #professional. Guts really is the key to a better life. But I am older and wiser now than when this nickname was born, and can not waste my energy on every fight, I can get into. I have to save my energy for the fights that count. 

     This is my Why. 1- Loving God and serving Him; I want to give my all to this fight. Its everything to me.  2- Blessing my wife and providing a better way of life for her; I’m in the fight. 3- Developing a profitable, fulfilling career, speaking & writing… These are the fights that mean a lot to me.

     And I will pursue them as only SLAM can in 2015.