Teddy Burriss

I went to my second Transition Tuesday meeting today in Winston-Salem NC

This is a group of men associated with the New Canaan Society, many unemployed and searching for that next position or career. The others in attendance attend to provide spiritual and emotional support, guidance and ideas toward the goals of others.

Today the speaker was Ted Budd, a guy I worked with for a few years who has a good head on his shoulder and a Godly passion to help others.

Below are my notes compiled based on Ted’s discussion.
This is not specifically what Ted said to us, just a compilation of my thoughts and Ted’s words:

Far too often we allow our lives to be on cruise control. A good life filled with happiness and where we respond to the ups & downs, as well as opportunities of life must be experienced more like riding a sports car. Hug the white line, use the breaks sparingly and press the gas pedal only when it makes sense.

Live life with a check list. Not someone else’s, but your own.

The first B-52 crashed on takeoff because someone forgot to remove a safety pin in the rudder. A checklist would have allowed the engineers to see that the pin needed to be removed prior to flight.

Ted told us that his checklist is based on the word Pearrls (yes, dual R).
Here is what Pearrls stands for, in Ted’s life. I added my interpretations of the message.

Prayer – quiet time, listening, study, ask God for help. A great way to prepare yourself to pray, listen and reflect is by turning down the ambient noise around you.

Exercise – take care of your physical body. It is the only one God will allow you to have, and a good well maintained body will take you far in life. Does this not make good sense?

Appetite – feed your physical body. Feed yourself good foods and do not over indulge. Good foods are what makes a body run well.

Relationships – share your ideas, desires and worries with others. Without good professional, community and family relationships, your running along thru life by yourself. What good is this. Work on building great relationships, and don’t forget your spouse. Personal relations are a priority in a good life. Also, pay attention to who you build these relationships with. Positive people beget other positive people. Don’t hang with the wrong people.

Read – stay sharp, read good stuff, seek new knowledge. Don’t read just text books or business council or development books. Throw in some fiction, autobiographies and the Bible. Knowledge is best if it consists of lot of perspectives, from lots of different sources.

Lights out on time – put all the stuff down and rest your body. A well rested body helps to keep you alert and energetic. And, don’t just rest at night. Find periods of time thru out the day to rest. Studies have proven that periodic rest is better than only a good nights sleep.

Schedule the next day – keep an active schedule that can help you reach your goals. Schedules help you stay focused and helps to get the tasks completed. And, don’t forget to schedule for rest, love, happiness and others.

PEARRLS is how Ted’s checklist. We all need one similar for ourselves.

I hope you enjoy my notes from this morning’s Transition Tuesday in Winston-Salem NC

Teddy