Is this it?!

Sean Keener's Personal Blog

June 7th, 2023

Summer 2023 – What I am working on

Running a Taxi Service for my children

Farming

Considering and culling “what I work on” so the list is less when I turn 60 (turned 50 this year) – the 40 to 50 decade felt fast.

Reading, Reading, Reading (Long-form, books)

Lots of Project Managing (Not my best and highest use, but it needs to get done)

Lots of Listening – to other, my children, friends, neighbors, colleagues.

NOT watching the News

AirTreks

November 27th, 2022

What are you optimizing for?

I’ve been asking myself this question and most folks as they share, consider goals, challenges and choices.

Optimizing for…

…Speed?

…Time?

…Money?

…Love?

…Attention?

…Health?

…Joy?

I’ve found this to be a helpful question for myself, and others as we consider paths and ways to go after things.

Something to remember…we can NOT optimize for all of the above.

July 19th, 2022

Summer 2022 – What I am working on and thinking about

Reading a lot about how interconnected we all are

Deep in nature vs the concrete of cities – it suits me.

Deep listening with people that on the outside, look and appear much different than me

2023 Business Plans for Travel and more.

Time with my children in nature and on farm. Deep listening with them. Only after some time, I’ve learned, can be 30 minutes or more will they start to reveal to bring about connection, learning and “what is the truth here really”.

Lots of Farming, which means lots of learning, and often times being appropriately scared. (via my ignorance) – Many folks are asking about hunting on Oregon Private Land

Thinking about opportunity cost and more including being intentional and having fun with the next stage of life (I turn 50 in 2023)

Love to you and those you love.

September 29th, 2020

What I am working on Fall 2020

– Enjoying and challenged on being with Kids and the Digital Learning Experience. In the old model, we dropped them off and went about our day. This model, as a parent we have the opportunity to participate, learn ourselves, help and be an integral part of the learning day.

– Lots of listening, learning with and among friends, colleagues, peers, family and other community members.

– Exploring Doing vs Being

– Thinking about my 1st 50 years on this planet – I’ll be turning 50 in 2022.

– Trying to not get sucked into the “news”. I have a few times and I don’t think I am any better for it vs not paying attention.

– Lots of walks and talks

– Grateful for all that is here, even the uncomfortable.

February 24th, 2019

What I’m working on – Winter and Spring of 2019

…Lots of changes in a changing world, makes it easier to embrace change

…I started mentoring and coaching folks in marketing at AirTreks and BootsnAll

…I started a new position at AirTreks…Travel Servant. Learning a tonne, listening and helping travelers that are looking to transform themselves and family.

…Asset prices still look high to me, opportunities to buy into or invest in companies with a margin of error are not coming through my deal flow.

…I’m working with professionals to further learn and explore communication and perspective taking. I’ve dived deep in the Drama Triangle, and Empowerment Triangle and how it can come up in my personal and business life. Awareness of this has been super perspective changing.

…I struggle to relate to the main stream media and cultural conversation around dualistic thinking and perspectives.

…continuing to engage, learn, be humbled and have massive moments of love and joy as a single father of 3

…considering the math problem of carbon being burned by humans it vs stored in the earth. I’m considering it as a math problem. Not an if you agree or don’t agree issue as promoted via main stream media.

…The Travel Access Project won an award a few months ago that we did not apply for. Jenn and I and others continue to try to make a difference in people’s lives via gap year grants. We have learned that candidates outside of the USA make the $3000 per grants go a lot farther.

As always, please reach out if you want to talk about any of the above, or something related. Sending positive energy your way…

June 29th, 2018

What I’m working on – Summer of 2018

…started as part-time CFO of the BootsnAll Travel Network in beginning of 2018, while continuing as Chairman of BTN since Jan 2017

…started small scale farming, lots of learning and experimenting

…continue to work with The Wayfinding Academy in an effort to disrupt higher education. The 3rd cohort is starting this Fall. Lots of interesting challenges in starting a college from scratch.

…continue to work on the Travel Access Project in an effort to get a GAP year on every Resume. We are launching new products in 2018

…continue to explore investing in companies and a few start-ups that align with my purpose and core values. With asset prices so high the past few years, I’m not finding many value oriented ideas.

…continue to be actively involved in my 3 kids day to day lives at school/home. This summer we are exploring Oregon, Pennsylvania, doing another Family Camp, and being outside as much as possible without devices.

…continue to be highly involved/interact with people in the EO and YPO chapters in Oregon/Washington

…continue to practice meditation and movement in nature

…continue to meet with people over walk/talks and smoothies instead of sit down lunches/coffees. (Contact me if you want to join me)

…continue to read books and ideas and theories that challenge my current paradigm.

October 17th, 2017

Why Failure is and misfortune is “Good”

“Now the commencement speakers will typically also wish you good luck and extend good wishes to you. I will not do that, and I’ll tell you why. From time to time in the years to come, I hope you will be treated unfairly, so that you will come to know the value of justice. I hope that you will suffer betrayal because that will teach you the importance of loyalty. Sorry to say, but I hope you will be lonely from time to time so that you don’t take friends for granted. I wish you bad luck, again, from time to time so that you will be conscious of the role of chance in life and understand that your success is not completely deserved and that the failure of others is not completely deserved either. And when you lose, as you will from time to time, I hope every now and then, your opponent will gloat over your failure. It is a way for you to understand the importance of sportsmanship. I hope you’ll be ignored so you know the importance of listening to others, and I hope you will have just enough pain to learn compassion. Whether I wish these things or not, they’re going to happen. And whether you benefit from them or not will depend upon your ability to see the message in your misfortunes.”

Watch entire Speech or read transcript

Found this via Farnham Street, Mr Shane Parrish

September 1st, 2017

Notre Dame Commencement Speech 2017

A few ideas from Father Boyle’s talk (11 mins) are sticking with me

– Thoughts on not standing in judgement, but with
– The story of the Jose. (Watch on youtube here)
– His message was short, sweet and impactful. I cried while watching.
– What is it that I am leaving, and moving towards?

Sending positive thoughts to all folks in the world today.

January 14th, 2016

2015 Year in Review – It’s all about love

Scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the best) – my feelings are at this time, 2015 was a 9.17.

I look at the past, through rose colored glasses and forget or remember challenges as “fun” after the fact.

Just the other night, I was out to dinner with some travel industry folk. Another person said, “What a great time to be alive and human” – I could not agree more and have said this myself the past few years.

Before Christmas, I had a dinner with a group of super accomplished business folks and we all shared our highlights from the past year. Everyone’s highlights, including mine were of a personal/love/family nature.

I was stoked since all our accomplishments, pail in comparison to the feeling of being connected to our fellow humans. Maybe the word “love” could be a way to describe this feeling.

Yes, there is tragedy, suffering, and injustice in the world. There always has been.

I’m continuing to put my attention in the joy and love direction. I suspect what we give attention, grows.

Where is your attention in 2016?

January 26th, 2015

No Drama

While speaking with some friends last night about 2015 goals, one of them stated:

“No Drama”.

I’m a proponent of the No Drama philosophy. I made the unfortunate decision of hanging around some people who “Love Drama”.

I remember lives that were filled with huge ups and downs over nothing. I think they thought they had their own reality TV show, but of course, they didn’t.

The smallest perceived slight turned into Drama that lasted hours/days.

How tiring and wasteful.

Drama did not build good vibes between the folks involved. Perhaps it is an ANTI – 7 habits of highly successful people habit.

Is this it?! Sean Keener's Personal Blog

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