Run Jeremy, Run!

A Health Wake-Up Call

How my father’s heart surgery changed my perspective on health

Person running on a path
The simple act that might have prevented my father’s heart surgery

My Father’s Urgent Advice

“Jeremy, RUN!”

My dad had a four-way bypass today here in Portland. After being able to talk to him after the third time seeing him today, he had some advice he urgently wanted to share with me. This was the first thing he said to me.

What he was referring to was that I had started to train for a 5k a few months ago that I wasn’t able to participate in because I came down with the flu. Essentially he was saying, “Jeremy, do whatever you can to take care of yourself because you don’t want to be where I am someday.”

Trust me, I want no part of what I saw today.

How This Experience Changed Me

I played some basketball in school, but once I got into the corporate world, exercise—like a lot of things—took a back seat. Today I got scared straight, let me tell you.

Food Perspective

I haven’t been able to eat meat for 2 days now. I’m scared to death of meat in general after seeing what I saw. If one of your favorite foods is ice cream and hamburgers like mine was, go to a hospital cardiac unit and see how good that hamburger and ice cream sounds after sitting in the lobby.

Next Steps

I’m seriously contemplating going vegetarian, but want to talk to a dietitian as soon as I can to make sure I do things correctly. My dad had to go through so much over the last few days—I am so motivated to get healthy.

The Toll of Medical Crises

My dad is doing well, but he had one heck of a day today. The anxiety of the last 5 days has caused a big strain on all of us, but nothing like it has for my dad.

Physical Effects of Stress:

  • Different breathing patterns
  • Frequent headaches
  • Tightness in back and shoulders
  • Carrying the family’s collective stress

I saw my dad three times today and like most dads, mine is like Superman to me. I really haven’t ever seen my dad down for very long, ever. Today he was strong as always and determined as ever, but man did it shake me to my core about eating right and taking better care of myself.

If you aren’t taking care of yourself, spend 5 minutes with me, and I’ll try my best to convince you to change course.

Run Jog Walk Hike Bike Get Active Eat Well

Seth Godin on Compliance vs. Initiative

The Educational Challenge

“

Compliance is simple to measure, simple to test for and simple to teach. Punish non-compliance, reward obedience and repeat.

Initiative is very difficult to teach to 28 students in a quiet classroom. It’s difficult to brag about in a school board meeting. And it’s a huge pain in the neck to do reliably.

Schools like teaching compliance. They’re pretty good at it.

To top it off, until recently the customers of a school or training program (the companies that hire workers) were buying compliance by the bushel. Initiative was a red flag, not an asset.

Of course, now that’s all changed. The economy has rewritten the rules, and smart organizations seek out intelligent problem solvers. Everything is different now. Expect the part about how much easier it is to teach compliance.

– Seth Godin

https://seths.blog/

Compliance

  • Simple to measure
  • Simple to test for
  • Simple to teach
  • Rewarded with obedience
  • Previously valued by employers

Initiative

  • Difficult to teach in a classroom
  • Hard to showcase at school boards
  • Challenging to implement reliably
  • Previously seen as a “red flag”
  • Now valued by smart organizations

Food for Thought

How might we redesign education to better nurture initiative while still providing necessary structure?

Join the Conversation

Do you agree with Seth’s assessment? How has your educational experience shaped your ability to take initiative?