Author: Andrew Embry

If you mixed diet mountain dew, funk music, dragons, hip hop, superheroes, and lightning in a blender you’d end up with Andrew Embry. He is part wordsmith and part alchemist, able to use his Batman utility belt to turn anything and everything into a story worth telling that is equal parts insightful, memorable, inspiring, humorous, and entertaining. Andrew is comfortably creative in almost any setting, but especially when he is performing spoken word poetry. His enthusiasm for words comes from the way he loves people and the little nuances of life that make it worth living.

Chili and being Inclusive (11-2-22)

Last week was about chili and appreciating simplicity.  This week is about chili and intentionally being inclusive in day-to-day life.

About 2 years ago I wrote a blog series about inclusion and my wife being a vegetarian.  You can read that entry and any of my past blogs by going HERE.  In summary, when my wife comes to my parents’ house for dinner, my mom makes vegetarian options, so Diane is included.  This makes Diane feel cared for and valued.  This week’s story takes this to the next level. 

I take my kids over to my mom and dad’s house for a family lunch almost every Sunday, and my wife stays home so she can have a day to herself after holding it down with the kids all week (teaching, taking care of them, running the house, putting up with me 😉 etc.)  Recently, we went over to have chili.  My mom makes chili with beans and ground beef.  As we were leaving, my mom asked if I’d take some home to Diane.  That’s when my mom reveals that she made Diane her own separate small pot of chili WITHOUT meat.  Isn’t that awesome?  Now, my mom didn’t want to be praised for this or anything, she just wanted to show Diane she cares about her.  I get home from my mom and dad’s house, and I tell my wife that my mom made her a separate pot of vegetarian chili and my wife simply said, “She’s the best!”  You could tell my wife felt loved and appreciated.

What does this have to do with anything?  It’s great that my mom makes vegetarian options when my wife comes over for dinner.  It’s even better that my mom takes action when Diane isn’t around.  In a similar way, it’s appropriate to focus on diversity and inclusion when we are in forums focused on those things or celebrating holidays.  It’s even better, when we are consistently putting in the work because it’s the right thing to do.  It’s even better, if we are making these actions just part of what we do vs. some kind of action that should be celebrated because we are showing initiative.

The challenge:  Do an honest assessment.  How are YOU consistently and intentionally being inclusive in day-to-day life?  Where could YOU improve?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Chili and the Beauty and Power of Simple Things (10-26-22)

This week is about chili and the power and beauty of the simple things.

Imagine for a moment.  It’s a cold crisp day.  You can see your breath when you’re outside.  You’ve been out running errands and you come home.  You still have a little bit of a chill in your bones.  When you get inside you smell it.  A nice pot of chili is cooking on the stove.  You scoop yourself out a bowl, add a little cheese and crackers, and you eat.  That scene would describe a perfect fall day for me.  It’s hard to beat a good bowl of chili on a cold day.  There isn’t anything fancy about chili.  It’s only a few key ingredients.  The power is in the simplicity.  A few ingredients, a hot bowl on a cold day, and it’s perfection.

How does this connect with anything?  We live in a world where so much is at our fingertips.  We live in a world where it is easy to have more and more and more.  It’s easy to get lost going after the next thing with all the newest features.  There’s nothing wrong with new things, but sometimes all of this causes us to get lost in a world of complexity.  Sometimes, what we really need are the simple things.  There is power and beauty in a short walk outside.  There is something magical about a sitting around a bonfire or a table and sharing stories with friends and family.  There aren’t too many things better than curling up and reading a book or magazine.  Some of my best memories were formed playing simple card games.  There is hidden beauty locked inside the world of simple things.

The challenge: Will you stop to appreciate the simple things?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Remembering the World is Bigger than Us (10-19-22)

Last week was about keeping our eyes open for side missions.  This week is about remembering that the world is bigger than us.

This adventure was the first time my kids had ever been to another country.  They enjoyed going somewhere different, where they had the opportunity to experience new lands, new people, and new things.  We were a few days into the adventure and Cam and I were having a special dinner with just the two of us.  We were talking and he said something along the lines of, “I really like this trip.  It reminds me that the world is soooooooo much bigger than Indiana.”  Well said, Cam.  Well said, indeed.

What does this have to do with anything?  .  If I’m being honest with myself, before I went on this adventure I think I was so trapped in the fire drills and day to day grind that I lost perspective.  My world became so small, because I allowed it to shrink down to the size of those routines.  Does this ever happen to you?  Being on this trip with my family caused me to step back and realize how my own personal world is so small, and how there is so much more to explore and appreciate out there.  

The challenge: How can we remember that the world is so much bigger than just our day to day?

I stand in solidarity against injustice and in support of humanity.

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Enjoying Side Missions and the Unexpected Things in Life (10-12-22)

Last week was about framing an adventure and preparing for dragons.  This week is about taking time to enjoy side missions and the unexpected things in life.

When we talked to the kids about going on an adventure, we told them there would be main goals and side missions.  We never knew what those side missions would be, but we would need to keep our eyes open for them.  Our favorite side mission occurred when we were in Edinburgh Scotland.  We were there to check out the city and the castle.  Both of those were gorgeous.  We had just finished our castle tour, and we were starting to walk back to the meeting point.  The crowd was all walking one way, when we noticed something out of the corner of our eye.  Out of nowhere there was a company on the street with owls giving individuals a chance to hold them.  My kids LOVE birds.  They were enamored, watching these people hold owls.  Of course, we asked if the kids could hold one.  They were a bit nervous at first, but each of the kids got to hold a baby owl on their arms for a few minutes.  It was the highlight of the trip for them, and the best side mission ever!

What does this have to do with anything?  There were a lot of other people on the street that day that never noticed what was going on around them.  Maybe, it’s because they had their head down as they shuffled along the street.  Maybe, it’s because they were so focused on walking to their next destination that they weren’t open to seeing anything else.  Similarly, in work and life sometimes we can get so focused on the final goal or the next milestone that we miss the interesting side paths that open to us.  We miss experiences that could bring us growth and joy.  Does this ever happen to you?  I know it happens to me.  

The challenge: Are you keeping your eyes open for side missions?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Vacation and Preparing for Dragons (10-5-22)

Pretty sure this is the embodiment of going through busy airports

See the source imageHappy Wednesday,

This week we will kick off a series based on reflections I had during my most recent vacation.  My family went on a cruise that visited Belgium, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and England.  This week is about vacations and preparing for dragons.   

Before we went on vacation, my wife and I sat down with the kids.  My wife explained, “This is not a vacation.  This is going to be an adventure.  We will have main goals, side missions, and treasure!  AND there will be dragons that we will need to slay or avoid.  Luckily, I know we are tough enough to defeat those beasts.”  The kids chuckled at the time, but there could not have been a more fitting description.  While we had an amazing time, we also ran into quite a few dragons like navigating new and anxiety inducing environments, tight layovers and needing to sprint through airports, lost luggage, our itinerary being completely changed due to the passing of Queen Elizabeth (no joke), navigating the streets and tubes of London with suitcases, and more.  Whenever one of these challenges would arise, we would all say, “This is just another dragon to slay,” and after we got through it, we would celebrate surviving the beast.  As silly as it may sound, the simple fact that we went into vacation knowing there would be dragons gave us the strength and confidence to better deal with them.

What does this have to do with anything?  At work, how often do we start a workstream by acknowledging that we EXPECT to fight dragons?  I’d argue, not often enough.  Usually, we plan and assume that everything will go according to plan.  We build timelines with minimal buffer as if there will be no bumps.  Now this might sound good in theory, but then once we run into a dragon, we aren’t ready mentally do deal with it.  Does this sound familiar?  I know this happens to me all the time.  Think of how different it would be if we started projects by talking about potential dragons we expect to encounter and mentally preparing for unexpected dragons.  How would that change our preparation?  How would that change our ability to mentally pivot to deal with the dragons?

The challenge: How can we do a better job of preparing for the dragons we will inevitably face?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Getting Back into Rhythm vs. Choosing YOUR Rhythm (10-3-22)

It’s been a long time.   I’m back from an amazing trip feeling recharged and full of wonder.  With that in mind, I have a blog entry that I felt was best shared on a Monday morning.  It’s about getting back into rhythm vs. choosing your rhythm

Yesterday as I was mentally preparing to go back to work after 2.5 weeks of vacation, I said to myself, “Starting tomorrow I’m going to need to get back in the swing of things.  I’ll have to get back into that rhythm.”  Then I paused for a moment and asked myself, “Am I sure I just want to go back to the old routines and rhythm of doing things?”  Some of the old habits, routines, and rhythm were great, but others didn’t serve me well.  Before plunging headfirst into the way things used to be, I needed to take a moment to decide what I would like to carry forward and what I’d like to adjust.

What does this have to do with anything?  Maybe you’re coming back from vacation.  Maybe you’re coming back from a weekend.  Either way, right now you are likely in front of your laptop or smartphone getting ready to dive into the week and get back to the rhythm of doing things.  Before you dive in, is this the rhythm you want to be part of?  Are there any tweaks or changes you’d like to make to what you are part of and how you are doing things?  Now would be a good time to think about those and figure out how to evolve your rhythm.

The challenge: How will you find the best rhythm for you?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Stress Fractures and Taking Time to Heal (9-13-22)

Happy Tuesday,

Breaking the rule and sending my blog out on Tuesday. Our topic is taking time to heal.

Last week I mentioned that when the doctor diagnosed me with a stress fracture that he then shared a plan to help me get back to doing what I wanted to do.  The first part of that plan was REST.  He looked me in the eye and said, “If you continue training and doing what you’re currently doing, you are going to cause more damage.  Damage that will be longer lasting.  You need to rest.  If you need crutches or something we can do that.” He then outlined what I could and couldn’t do for my health.  Eventually he gave me a plan to ease into running.  It felt weird resting.  It felt like I was doing nothing.  However, it was the best training move I made,  and now I feel better than I have in a long time.

What does this have to do with anything?  Think about work for a minute, how often do you give yourself time to recover?  How often do you truly unplug and do what you need to heal from a day, a week, a month, a quarter, a year of running HARD?  This rest is essential if we want to keep performing at a high level.  Now I want you to think of the doctor.  He came into this situation and did a few great things.  He saw me and my pain.  He took things off my plate (no impact on the leg).  He offered resources (crutches).  Even as I returned to running, he gave me clear parameters on what I should focus on and how long I should run in order to avoid reinjuring the leg.  Now think of work.  As a leader, are you doing what this doctor did?  Are you acknowledging where your people are mentally/physically/socially?  Are you seeing their struggle and pain?  From there, are you putting a plan in place with clear priorities that removes things from their plate?  Are you giving people the appropriate resources and support to do what they are being asked to do?  We need these all these things, not only to do our jobs, but to give us the space, freedom, and opportunity to heal and recover.

The challenge:  Are you taking the time to heal?  If you are an official leader, are you creating the space/culture and are you putting in the support, so people have time to heal and recover?

Bonus: Even if you’re not a leader, as we work on projects, we could all do a better job of finding places and spaces where we can encourage folks to slow down and work at a more suitable pace vs. sprinting on fractured legs.  I’m proud of myself, because I recently told a person, “Don’t do any more work.  This will wait, and we will be fine with waiting even though it’s late.”  I gave them permission and space to recover.  I’m also disappointed in myself, because I’ve also ran colleagues into the ground lately with some projects that were overwhelming fires that consumed so much time at work and beyond.

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Stress Fracture, Setbacks, and Bouncing Back (9-7-22)

Happy Wednesday,

Last week was about taking time to find stillness.  This week is about setbacks and bouncing back.

When the doctor told me I had a stress fracture I was happy to know what was going on with my leg, but I was also bummed because I knew this would be a setback for me.  had been training for some races during spring/summer that I was excited about.  Those goals were now out the window.  After that sunk in, I looked at the doctor and said, “Okay, well the fracture kind of stinks.  I want to be able to be mobile and ideally, I want to be able to get back to running and doing races.  How do I get back to that?”  At that point, he walked me through his plan to help me recover and ease my way back into running.  I agreed to his plan and followed it.  After a few months I had made nice strides in my recovery, and I recently completed my first obstacle course race since the stress fracture.  The race was a lot of fun and I and was proud of my performance.  I found a good rhythm and most importantly, had no pain throughout the event.  It was the first milestone of the comeback, and I have a few more races set up before the end of the year.  (Side note, why haven’t I quit my job yet to become a race model?  I mean, look at that pic! 😉)

What does this have to do with anything?  Whether at work or in life, we’ve all had setbacks.  What matters is what happens after we have the setbacks.  Do you get stuck where you fell, or do you find a path forward?  I do both.  Sometimes when the setback comes, I fall and get lost in that failure.  I get trapped in a cycle of self-doubt and believing it won’t get better.  I lose sight of my goals and purpose, so I struggle finding a path forward.  Do you ever feel this way?  Other times, I find a way to bounce back.  I believe the key to bouncing back is to first allow yourself to full experience the setback, because that’s where the learning comes.  Then, you must reorient yourself and refocus on your goals.  If you can do that.  If you can say, “Yeah, this setback/failure stinks, AND I still have a vision for where I want to go” then your body will find a path forward.

The challenge: How will you respond to setbacks?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Stress Fractures, MRIs, and Embracing Stillness (8-31-22)

Last week was about stress fractures and paying attention to warning signs.  We are going to build off this idea by exploring MRIs and stillness.

As I mentioned in the last entry, I had been battling shin pain for months before going to see the doctor.  He sent me to get an MRI, so he could diagnose what was going on.  You must be STILL for a MRI to work, and I am a huge fidgeter.  I muster all my focus to be as still as possible as I lay on an uncomfortable platform while being inserted into a loud and strange machine.  I sit still for what feels like forever, as the MRI takes images.  I must have been still enough, because the images were able to show the stress fracture.

What does this have to do with anything?  In order for the MRI machine to work and take quality images, I had to be still.  I was able to find stillness, despite being anxious in a loud and distracting environment.  Embracing stillness, helped diagnose the issue.  I wish I was as good at finding stillness on a consistent basis in work and life.  Instead of making time for stillness, I feel I’ve been consumed by flurries of activity for the past few months.  Some of this is unfortunate circumstances, a perfect storm of being short-staffed and having random fires pop up at work and home.  Some of this also is a result of me not searching for and making time for stillness.  Instead, I’d wake up and get to work, hoping I’d catch up.  Then after work, I’d get back to work, hoping to catch up.  (#spoilers I never caught up.  Sound familiar?)  There was always more work that needed to be done.  Since I wasn’t embracing stillness, I wasn’t slowing down to look at how the toll all of this was taking on my physically, mentally, and socially.

Fast forward to today.  I still have more work than I could ever accomplish, so that hasn’t changed. (Anyone else feel that way?)  One of the main differences is that I’m being more deliberate about embracing stillness.  While embracing stillness is not a solve for all problems, it is something I can control, and it is a consistent series of steps in the right direction.  For me, I’m doing a better job of honoring my morning routine of waking up, working out, and meditating (#Headspace) BEFORE I ever check my phone or computer.  If I check my computer or phone first, my stillness is gone for the morning.  At night, I’m being more deliberate about turning off any screens or work-related activity by a certain time, so I can wind down.  I’ve found the more consistent I am with these rituals, the better off I am.  The more I embrace stillness, the better I can understand what is going on around me and within me, so I can adjust accordingly.

The challenge:  What does embracing stillness look like for you?  How often are you embracing stillness?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Shin Splints, Stress Fractures, and Paying Attention to Signs (8-24-22)

This week we are going to start a series on lessons I’ve learned dealing with a stress fracture over the past few months.  This week is about paying attention to warning signs.

Many of you might remember that I started doing obstacle course races last year.  Originally, I had planned to do more races April through July, but that didn’t quite pan out.  Here is what happened.  I had been training hard for months.  I noticed that my shin hurt when I ran.  It was inconvenient.  I just kept running.  Soon, it went from being inconvenient to hurting.  I ignored it and just kept running.  Soon, I got to the point that my shins were hurting even when I wasn’t running, and if I did run the pain would be sharp.  I ignored all this, and just kept running.  Finally, I got to the point where my shin hurt bad enough that I saw a doctor.  I was diagnosed with a stress fracture.

Looking back, I wish I would have paid attention to my body earlier.  At the first sign of pain, I wish I would have stopped to better understand the situation, so I could have made adjustments to help me recover before it became a substantial problem.  However, I didn’t pause, so what likely started as a shin splint became a stress fracture.  What started as a minor issue, became something more intense that sidelined me from running and physical activity for 3-4 months.  Luckily for me, the leg has healed and I’m back to running and things again.

What does this have to do with anything?  How often do you keep “running” despite the pain and all the warning signs telling you that you need to stop and figure out what is going on?  Maybe the “running” is working yourself to the point of burnout and not functioning well.  Maybe the “running” is continuing to operate in a culture where there are signs that something isn’t quite working.  Maybe the “running” is continuing to press forward with the project even though there are signs that people aren’t exactly aligned.  Maybe the “running” is doing everything else on your own and not having the right support around you.  I’ve done all of these things.  Have you?  In all those situations there are initial signs that indicate that things might not be going well.  If we can pause when we first see the signs, we can often fix things before any real harm is done.  However, far too often we put our head down and keep pushing, believing that pausing is weakness.  We keep pushing, ignoring the warning lights until something finally breaks.  I know I’m guilty of this and am trying to do better.

The challenge: Will you listen to the initial warnings when they come?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry