Free Agent Underground

Free Agent Underground Show – “When do you know it’s time to make a change?”

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“What do you think is the main differentiating factor between being an employee, and being self-employed?”

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:34:18 +0000

I posted this on the Free Agent Academy Facebook discussion page and received some incredible replies. You can see them below. If you want to hear the live show, the audio is at the bottom. But do yourself a favor and read the replies.

My experience in dealing with scores of people every day who are in traditional employment and want out, is the main differentiating factor and obstacle…is this:

When you are traditionally employed, much the same as when you are in the traditional school system, you

Follow directions,
Fulfill requests,
Primarily do your part and aren’t liable for the end result
Do…what you’re told,
RESPOND to rules, requirements and expectations, if not downright demands and policy

Very conversly, when you are SELF-employed, you

Are fully responsible

THAT…is something most people have never encountered before. We go from school to j-o-b and just followed the directives. To think about waking up one morning and it’s all on us? THIS…is what most folks find overwhelming. It’s like having a baby at the hospital. They direct you for 24 or 48 hours and then send you home. You get in your car, strap the new baby in, and drive away. Then it hits you…”Oh crap…this kids is totally ours, totally in our care, we are 100% responsible! Isn’t there a manual or anything…?” And none of us are born as naturally perfect parents. We have to learn a ton.

On relevant thing to point out is before the Industrial Revolution the majority of the culture was primarily self-employed. They knew a trade that they offered to others. It was after the assembly line and big business that we became a primarily ‘employed’ society. Our grandparents or at least great-grandparents understood full responsibility for providing a product or service and being responsible for the primary decisions and responsibilities to the end user.

So…what do you do now? Transition. Find your viable idea and start it on the side and transition slowly. It’s like getting off life support so you can breath on your own. You were MADE to do it, it’s just gotta be relearned.

Here are the Facebook discussion page comments:

Eric Haselhorst Being an employee, I can say there is a bit of comfort (albeit misguided) in being told what to do.

February 15 at 2:03pm ·
Thesa Bryant slavery and living out someone elses dream vs. free and living out your own dream. However, both have a variety of responsibilities that if you fail to be responsible as an employee; you are fired. If you fail in your responsibilities as an owner; your business potentially falls apart. Good choices reap success in both … typically you go farther in a self-employed situation (more sustainable).

February 15 at 2:06pm ·
Dallon Christensen The biggest difference is having the freedom to choose the projects you want to do instead of having the projects-and related deadlines, no matter how unreasonable-thrust upon you.

February 15 at 2:08pm ·
Peter Brissette Employees believe that they can just show up everyday and punch the clock and get a check. Someone who is self employed (whether that is full time on their own, or working for another company) recognizes that the opportunity to succeed or not is up to them. they realize that the “job” they have is there because they are the ones responsible to make it there. It is not given to them, they earn it, every single day. The only way to do that is to provide value to their customers (real customers, managers, fellow employees, etc.) But what most employee’s dont realize that they can most likely not realize their full potential until the leave the “protective and stable” environment of a job.

February 15 at 2:19pm ·
Marta Goertzen Sometimes there isn’t much of a difference! I am self-employed but have ended up creating a business where I am my own employee (working on changing that!). The main differences for me are 1) Who I report to, 2) What I am responsible for now, and the biggie 3) I also have the freedom to make changes, change direction and even change my mind, couldn’t ever do that as an employee in the corporate world.

The desire for self-employment has been a desire for freedom and the doors it can open up. As a corp employee I was trapped and that freedom was elusive.

February 15 at 2:27pm · · 1
Jack Lynady For better and for worse, there’s more skin in the game when you are self-employed. It’s the difference between living on the frontier verses living in the city.

February 15 at 2:31pm · · 1
Tom Labuzienski Self employed are risk takers and leaders. Employees are followers with often times a false sense of security.

February 15 at 2:33pm ·
Free Agent Academy these are great…perfect…I’ll be reading them on the show in a moment

February 15 at 2:48pm ·
Will Laohoo I think it depends on the company culture and feel, but generally I agree with people’s comments on employees. There are some companies, though, that I think do a great job of empowering their employees to live out their callings. I’ve never worked for Dave Ramsey, but I’d imagine it’d be pretty awesome to work for his company.

February 15 at 3:09pm ·

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Listen to the complete show replay here:

Free Agent Underground Show – “”What do you think is the main differentiating factor between being an employee, and being self-employed?”"

Marriage, self-employment and a free agent anniversary

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 04:26:38 +0000

Today we talked with Joshua & Sarah Gordon of The NonConformist Family. They have just celebrated their 1-year anniversary of full-time free agency.

How did they get there…from traditional employment and doing the grind, to self-employment and living out their convictions for their family?

How did their marriage fare along the way? I’ll give you 3 hints on the culmination of the show:

Invest in yourself
Make sure you and your spouse are on the same page
Commit…be ruthless on anything that is holding you back

Listen in as my bride Teri and I interview them on this splendid Valentines day.

Free Agent Underground Show – “Marriage, self-employment and a free agent anniversary”

Whose language do you speak fluently?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:15:30 +0000

I’m not talking Swahili or Chinese. I mean a certain demographic of people who you know well. You know their lingo and the secret handshake and have understanding that only those who are kindred spirits would know.

I shared this on Facebook and got a lot of great comments. Some people shared areas of interest that really didn’t equate to our topic here, while some nailed it.

Examples: I have 7 kids, so I can speak the language of big families. I was a pro endurance athlete for over a decade, so I can speak their language. I built my house (general contracting and much of the actual labor) so I can talk shop with other homeowners who did so. Get the idea?

Example #2: I can’t connect well with folks in the big corporate world, I’ve never been in that. I can’t talk formal education, never spent a minute in it.

SO AGAIN: “Whose language can you speak fluently?”

The point…you may have a product or service that in an of itself is not dramatically unique or remarkable or new. But you can provide it to a target market whose language you speak, and THAT makes your offering remarkable.

Listen in for a lively show that involved nearly 50 people between the live audience and Facebook postings:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Whose language do you speak fluently?”

Building a following from scratch for a new business

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:00:05 +0000

So you have a great idea that you are passionate about, discovered how it’s valid in the marketplace and built a storefront to provide it to the world.

You’re ready for business!

But wait…where does that business come from? It comes from people who are listening to you. Who care about what you have to offer. Your ‘following’.

How do you get…a following?

My friend, professor at Free Agent Academy and founder of CoachRadio.tv, Justin Lukasavige and I tackled this topic with what we’ve found to be the most viable and efficient methods.

I’ll give you a big hint though…

If you’re looking for ‘list building’, this is not the show for you. That verbiage never crossed our lips. If you are comfortable with ‘relationship building’ however, listen on!

Free Agent Underground Show – “Building a following from scratch for a new business”

My boldest claim yet: This…is the biggest cause of failure (Show recording)

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:30:04 +0000

This is the show recording from this blog “My boldest claim yet: This…is the biggest cause of failure”

Free Agent Underground Show – “My boldest claim yet: This…is the biggest cause of failure (Show recording)”

Free Agent Q&A with Kevin & Teri

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:40:02 +0000

Today I posted an offer on the Facebook discussion page to answer a few free agent questions. My bride Teri joined me and 40 folks in the live chatroom and video and we covered a lot of ground. Here are some of the questions:

“We are essentially running two businesses in one. A consignment clothing store and a silk-screening and embroidery shop all in one. I need to find a way to get some help with out hiring a full time person. Mainly because I can’t afford to hire a full time person. Any thoughts there? In all reality, if I had someone that I could send out artwork to, to be processed into silhouettes for making the silk screens, that would free up a lot of my time. I’m not that good of a graphic artist and doing any kind of editing/layering takes me forever. I enjoy it, I’m just not that good at it yet.”
- Chris Puckett

“How do you stand out amid all the clutter on the internet? And, along those same lines, how do you differentiate yourself from your influences? With my budding business (www.TheCallofMen.com), I am so passionate about those who have influenced me but I don’t want to just parrot them. How do I stand out?”
- Scott Moore

“I have an idea for a DVD to create. Others have products out there. I think that mine can be different, and I believe that I would bring community and a connection with the audience. Should I still move forward? (training / educational DVD on small business for children aged ~10 to 16)”
- Jason Vandehey

“Question for the show- didn’t want to post it on FB. How do you maintain hope for a future free agent life as you slosh through the present trying to get all the mundane things done? Would you leave my last name out of the show?”
-EG

Listen to the answers here!

Free Agent Underground Show – “Free Agent Q&A with Kevin & Teri”

Self-employment is NOT the holy grail

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:51:37 +0000

Some people get the perspective that I think the reality of self-employment is some kind of spiritual mecca. Those that are self-employed are ‘better’ or more worthy and righteous, or get closer to the right-hand of God himself!

And that those who are working jobs and traditionally employed are lessor.

That would be similar to saying a man is better because he has a pair of hiking boots and that the guy with flip-flops is inferior. That’s stupid. It really has little to do with the person.

LISTEN TO THE FULL SHOW:

More Free Agent Underground podcasts
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Free Agent Underground Show – “Self-employment is NOT the holy grail”

One shoe just enables you to get where the other won’t, and to more places. It’s that simple. Want to hike the Barr Trail to the top of Pikes Peak? 12 miles and 7,000 up with chance of snow any time of the year? Someone might be able to do it in flip flops. It will be slower, you might get frostbite, and you’ll definitely get some bloody toes.

The truth however is this – if all you have is flip flops, you’ll likely never even attempt the climb.

Self-employment is merely a vehicle, and in my opinion and experience, it’s the best vehicle to walk out your calling fully. It gives the necessary freedoms and flexibilities that enable you to live out your values and God-given desires of your heart. your convictions.

In this culture we live in today, the biggest circumstantial limiter I see is the J-O-B. It’s not marriage, kids, money or even health (thought that’s a close runner up).

The J-O-B takes up the most time, has the least flexibility and the most demands. Ultimately it just commands your primary time and attention. People’s main complaints seem to include limitations and infringements around:

Time availability
Creativity
Responsibility
Giftings and Talents
Self-worth (either they feel squashed or they feel important due to the job. Both are limiting)
Wealth
Inspiration
Priorities

Not every job, there are always exceptions. But most.

When you unpack the giftings/talents/skills/abilities/passions/values/beliefs that God created you with and that make up your personal calling, people generally testify that they must limit much of them due to their J-O-B.

I was fortunate to grow up in a free agent home where I got to see these things lived out fully. Unrestrained. The question is whether you believe that to be a luxury or a necessity.

After Teri and I had our first kids we did the 10 million dollar question (what would we do/how would we live/what would we live for, if money were not an issue), what did we believe in, how should life be, what and who did we want to be and for our kids…and saw, even in financial stress, that a job of any type would limit what we believed in, just as eating the average american diet limited our wellness and performance and ability. Just as living in an area that wasn’t big on our lifestyle limited us. Could have still done it, but not as fully.

Why do we readily limit ourselves? Why do we pawn off our core beliefs and convictions as narcissism and so easily accept a life of going through the motions? I think it’s a tool of the enemy to keep us down.

What do you think? Can you accept it or do you think it’s just an attempt to justify doing what we want?

Pursuing self-employment is completely unreasonable

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:46:24 +0000

That’s it, no punchline. Though I’ll say that pretty much anything of great value that you commit to will require you to be culturally unreasonable. Even…gasp…irresponsible (by society’s standards).

So my primary point is that you just accept this reality. Your charge is to find what you feel is right and true and best for your life. To seek God for your calling. And He won’t call you to anything reasonable that you can do alone. It won’t make sense to others.

Accept that. When you share what you are convicted in and committing to and you get disapproval and comments that you are being unreasonable and irresponsible and dreaming and a loon, just say…”Yeah, you’re right” And bid them adiu as they leave to go home to their conformist, mediocre and ‘reasonable’ lives hell-bent on safety, security and comfort. While you’re being unreasonable, they will be on their couches or in theater seats watching with rapt interest and emotion…people on a screen doing amazingly unreasonable things.

You can do the unreasonable, or spectate the unreasonable. Either way, our very souls can’t stomach a life of reason.

I’m preparing for this weekend’s Free Agent Academy ‘Accelerator’ event where we’ll have 30 very unreasonable people, making plans, creating strategies and next steps to achieve unreasonable lives of purpose and meaning and conviction.

I’m secretly hoping that one more person out there will have a fit of gigantic unreasonability and register in the next day or two. That person…will be my kind of person who I want to commune with (details by clicking the graphic on the right).

Teri and I unpacked this topic in today’s show, listen in here:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Pursuing self-employment is completely unreasonable”

The most in demand business opportunity today

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 03:01:56 +0000

This is a question I don’t enjoy. I understand the premise, but it doesn’t matter what the ‘best’ business opportunity is if it isn’t a good fit for you and who you are.

Be that as it may, as I see the array of business being started today and which are succeeding, and what the marketplace is demanding…this is what I see doing best and most in demand. Thanks to “Jason” in the live chat room I changed the title from ‘best’ to ‘most in demand’.

Is it product, franchise, service, something new, something better, technology, health & wellness?

Listen in for today’s show, and you only need listen for a few minutes to get the answer.

Free Agent Underground Show – “The most in demand business opportunity today”

Could your calling be out of the blue?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:43:59 +0000

Could your calling be totally out of the blue, totally out of context of who you are? Requiring you to be who you are NOT naturally?

OR…should it be the fullness of exactly who you are?

That’s the question I posed in our show that Calling guru Gary Barkalow and I discussed with the live audience.

Before you think you know the answer…what’s more important is regardless of what you think you know, how do you really act upon it?

I’ll cut to the chase and you can read more context below if you need it. Gary summed it up during the show with these truthful statements (I’ve paraphrased a tad, I’m not a great transcriptionist…):

“What the world needs is who you are…really. Fully. You calling does not involve becoming someone you’re not, but becoming more of who you really are!” Gary Barkalow

So then how about a formula for discovering your ‘Calling’ and applying it to your life? Cause just having an inkling or certainty of your calling is moot if you can’t apply it. And this is an epidemic. People seeking to understand their heart and calling and purpose…but not knowing how to tangibly apply it to their lives. What good does it do to discover your heart at a weekend conference, then go home and Monday morning your back to the same dead job? Nothing changes circumstantially. It sounds all grand and holy to change your attitude and perspective and be happy while you continue to wallow around in a pile of shite, but we’re generally called to also get out of the stuff!

Here is the magic formula…ready? In all seriousness:

Calling = Your God-given, inherent skills/abilities/giftings/talents + Your God-inspired desires of the heart/passions/convictions

Do you see that? It’s the convergence of your skills/abilities/giftings/talents and the desires of your heart. To see a direct analogy, see the bullet point list on Moses down below.

So the idea that God may call you to something that nearly nauseates you to do, is totally incorrect. Now he will no doubt give you more than you can handle so you’re forced to rely on him, but he won’t call a duck to run or a horse to fly. He’ll call us to the FULLNESS of exactly how he made us.

On one hand that should be a breath of fresh air for many, as you’ve felt impassioned for a long time to pursue certain things, but you’ve questioned and doubted them because they are in your ‘self-interest’. I ultimately make my living doing this…writing. Inspiring. Communicating. Inciting to action and faith. And guess what I can’t help but do in most any situation? Seek to inspire, communicate, incite folks to act. Though for a long time I did not want to be the ‘main guy’ on stage. I did resist that. Not that I hate it, but I didn’t want to work that hard. I finally relented as I felt God’s urging. And in my work, there is plenty of it that I don’t get thrilled by. All the tech crap I have to deal with, finances…

Now there are also folks hearing this who it doesn’t help much, and it might be you. Why? Because you are not aware of your inherent skills/abilities/giftings/talents. You may know some TASKS that you are good at, but that’s missing it. My oldest son has a natural adeptness and joy with math. He hates to read. My oldest daughter can’t get her nose out of books, is incredibly intuitive and loathes anything to do with numbers. These are big manifestations of how God uniquely made them and my job is to encourage them where they are strongest.

Also, when we speak of ‘desires of the heart’, how many of you feel…empty? You don’t know. All you can come up with is some things that are fun? Golfing, watching movies, eating chocolate. These are pleasures, not God-inspired desires of the heart, which will ultimately come to helping and serving mankind in some way.

If you are feeling a void in some of these areas…you just have more work to do in pressing in to uncover what has been lost or never discovered. You. But that can be done.

Last…does everyone’s calling culminate in some grand, spiritual, humanitarian endeavor at the forefront? You must become a pastor, missionary, doctor, politician, teacher, etc…?

NO.

I shared on the show about a friend who owns a local restaurant. Most every other restaurant in town is run by a ‘business person’ who is involved at various levels and focused on gererating a profit by providing food. My buddy however, has his home across the parking lot from the restaurant. The place is doing well, it doesn’t need his involvement so much. However, you’ll rarely go in when he’s not there. And every time the door opens and that little bell jingles, he looks up to see who it is, and walks over to greet them. Most he greets by name and immediately engages them in conversation. If he doesn’t know them, he introduces himself and gets to know them. Why? It’s who he is. He loves hosting and serving people and making them feel comfortable, welcomed and cared for. If you’re feeling down, just visit the place and you’ll leave feeling like you matter.

THAT…is a calling. He makes a great living, but he’s there to care for people and feels grateful and honored to earn money at the same time. It’s still work, but he is in his ‘glory’ as Gary would say. Wouldn’t you rather eat there than somewhere where you are merely a dollar?

What could you work at that would engage you full time in your glory? Folks, this is not a luxury, it’s your responsibility. Want more on that…read the story of Moses below. Here then is the show replay:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Could your calling be out of the blue?”

Moses – and my paraphrasing
Exodus 2:2 He was stated to be ‘beautiful’. They don’t fill the Bible with a lot of extraneous adjectives and adverbs, so we assumed it was specifically mentioned because he was abnormally attractive. This is relevant.
- He was raised in secret by his own mother at the bequest and protection of Pharaoh’s daughter, saved when all other male baby boys were killed, so he was abnormally loved and cared for.
- When he was older, he was given back to Pharaoh’s daughter and raised as her son. Wow. So while his own people were enslaved, he was raised in affluence with power and authority over Egyptians and Israelites. He would have been given high education and taught skills and would not be so daunted by the royalty, as he lived with them. He naturally felt himself equal, different than 100% of the other Israelites.
- Ex 2:11 He saw his own people ‘burdened’, and when a particular Israelite was being beaten, Moses killed the Egyptian who was administering the beating. We are to understand it was an Egyptian guard. So this would have us know that Moses was strong and skilled in combat, which holds true of royalty at that time. He killed a guard spontaneously. And why? His heart couldn’t handle the man being beaten.
- Ex 2:15 Pharaoh seeks to kill Moses, and Moses escapes. Usually when a king wants you killed, your gonna die. But Moses is smart, wiley, strong and he escapes. This again testifies to his abilities.
- Ex 2:17, 19 Moses delivers seven women from a bunch of shepherds who sought to drive the ladies away from from watering their flock. So again, one guy, Moses, is strong and able to fight off a whole group of other men. Shepherds too, strong guys who live in the wild and fend off beasts from killing themselves and their sheep. Moses is a stud. And again, he shows a ‘hearts desire’ for the oppressed.
- Moses’ good deeeddeed gets him invited in by the Priest of Midian, not just any yahoo. Moses is unusually handsome, strong, educated, skilled, heartfelt and the Priest offers him one of his own daughters. So now Moses is son-in-law to an important leader, and ends up tending this man’s flocks…comparable to being CEO of the guy’s company in today’s world. Again…leading.

Do we see a theme of ability and desire of the heart here?

So when God ‘calls’ Moses to approach Pharaoh and lead the Israelites to freedom, is it out of the blue and out of context to Moses? Or did God look down and pick out the one person on the planet best equipped (by God) in physical and intellectual ability and hearts desire?

It doesn’t mean Moses had a dream to be leader of the Israelites, or that he longed to be a speaker. But the calling fit his conviction and ability tremendously.

The question again then is…would your calling be some out of the blue, out of context directive? Or simply the sum of, or an opportunity where your inherent skills, abilities, gifting and talents meet the desires of your heart? As with Moses?

When we get more clarity on both, we’ll likely find an opportunity and ‘calling’. Furthermore, if you don’t have clarity on your natural abilities and heart, and haven’t spent time honing and strengthening them, would God even reveal your calling? Or if He does reveal it early on, are you automatically equipped to tackle it, or must you grow yourself first?

And last, what happened when Moses questioned God in this calling? Ex. 4:14 God got angry.

I’m just here till you believe

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 04:42:59 +0000

Leading up to today’s show, I struggled with what to focus on. I am never at a loss for relevant content, that wasn’t the problem. It was just getting to brass tacks on what mattered.

Here’s the deal. We all spend most of our time reacting to our schedule and it’s demands:

work
family
home

Basically, the ‘have to’ things of our lives. Much, maybe most of it…is good stuff! But the point is our lives are filled with these ‘have to’ tasks. That’s what commands our time. Not a lot of decisions to be made, just things to take care of, right?

Then there is this ‘other world’ of things we know would be good to do. Things that would make like better, healthier, more meaningful. Maybe even…epic.

The problem is those things will NEVER be literal ‘have tos’ or musts. They will forever be optional, in the face of what HAS to happen to exist. I have to pay the electric bill. I have to get new brakes for the car. I have to change a diaper and school the kids and make dinner.

So you have a whole sea of people that includes me, pastors, speakers, authors, oaches/counselors/consultants and various other guides (I prefer guides over leaders, just a personal thing).

They they (we) are trying to get you to do something that is not, and never will be, a ‘have to’. Things like:

losing weight or getting fit
deepening your faith
making your marriage a romance instead of a partnership
having a true, worthwhile adventure
making lifetime memories
becoming self-employed, creating wealth, living a legacy

And what I believe, is that we can’t really sell you on committing to those things. You’re going to buy toilet paper no matter what. It’s an absolute have to. So if I have a brand to offer, I surely might be able to sell you on it.

But membership in a school to discover your personal calling and create a revenue generating business that gives you freedom to walk out that calling? I can’t sell you on that. You’ll ultimately sell yourself, or not. You’ll only do it, or any of those great, but non-have-to endeavors I listed above, when you get to the point of believing you should.

Until then, I and all the other purveyors can only fan your flame.

We can drone on and on. Seldom does any one message just strike the heart of the audience and make them take action in droves on a non-have-to. We just keep in touch to fan the flame and keep your attention until you do one of two things:

Ditch it
Finally believe you should and you can

Now I’m not going to dive further into this issue, but we discussed it in the show below. With the ‘have to’ items, there is a tangible, and often harsh consequence if you don’t do them. Don’t work? You don’t make money. No money, you can’t pay your electric bill and your family freezes to death. So, you commit no matter what.

But with these non-have-to issues? If you don’t do them, or start and quit…no real tangible consequence. Sure, you don’t get the benefit. But that’s a longterm, ‘softer’ consequence. At least next to no electricity.

So my point? I’m not sure I can make one. Maybe just to state that I have little power here. I’ll try to convince you that you in fact, CAN do this. I’ll brick by brick try to take down the walls that you see keeping you from this better thing, but a non-have-to thing.

When you decide to believe you should commit, is in your court. Till then, I’m here for you.

Free Agent Underground Show – “I can’t sell you, I can only fan the flame”

Round two on lack of support from friends and family, and the biggie…spouse

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 00:41:18 +0000

In today’s show, my bride Teri joined me (www.StumblingAroundInTheLight.com). She’s seen the worst and best of free agency. From my main critic, to my main supporter.

We kicked the show off talking about yesterday’s blog, and the immense power of what those closest to us think about us. How their lack of encouragement, if not outright criticism, can cripple us. How do you, must you…deal with it.

Then of course we hit the biggie, your spouse. It’s a different game there. So check out the video, or the audio, whatever your flavor. If both are too long, then just read the blog, “Why your friends and family can’t support your free agency”

Free Agent Underground Show – “Round two on lack of support from friends and family, and the biggie…spouse”

http://freeagentacademy.com/apply

This event wouldn’t work for you

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 00:12:28 +0000

You are discontent with your vocational life, which shapes your life overall. What is going to change it? Will ‘something happen’, or will it drone on until you are forced to react? I keep saying this cause I keep seeing it, “The great outcomes don’t come to those who are gifted or lucky. Just those who do the work.” It would be like seeing some muscled up guy and saying, “Wow! How lucky you are to have such a naturally good physique.” He’d look at you like freak and say, “Uh…I just go to the gym everyday and lift weights and watch what I eat.”

Application form is back up!

Looks like we had about 40 hours where our questionnaire/application was down and we didn’t know it. Michael M. from TX finally called this afternoon and let us know (thank you!) and it’s fixed. My apologies…here I am telling everyone to go there to inquire about FAA membership or the event, and it wasn’t working. I wondered why we had a lull when it had been so busy:

If anything is going to change, you’ll…just…have…to…do…something. And you know what, it’s not really 1) taking action that is the issue. Taking action is just the result of 2) making a decision‘. And making a decision is a result of either 3) confidence or motivation. Meaning, we make a decision to DO based on confidence that it’s best and right and will work, or on motivation for a result, which can often override confidence or logic (falling in love is not a product of ‘logic’).

September 2011 Event Group

On Jan. 27-29 we’ll be gathering at 8’500 above sea level in the Rocky Mountains to work on personal calling and self-employment. All 8 of our professors will be there, plus myself and the world’s best biz coach, Chuck Bowen, who has coached most of our professors! There will be very little in the way of presentations and teaching. You can get that in our online membership. Heck, you can watch presentations all you want from your couch online. This event is about guided work. Progress. Hands-on. What you can’t do alone or remotely.

Still, if you’re like me, the first thing you’re mind will do is discount it. There are no doubt huge reasons that it doesn’t make sense. Not enough time, not enough money are at the top. But it’s really not true. If you had a close family member die and the funeral was cross country in three days, chances are you’d do what it took to be there. You’ll think that an unfair comparison, but the point is that we make it happen when something is of value enough.

So not considering this event (or even membership in Free Agent Academy) boils down to you not having enough faith in it. Not enough confidence to make a decision and thus…act. Or not enough motivation in changing your life. You’ve probably been to conferences and seminars, or heard from others who have. Lots of excitement and fun and inspiration and motivation…that weeks or months later, really didn’t change things all that much. True? Same with me. And all the notes and materials collect dust on the shelf. I recently helped start a big bonfire on our property with old conference materials.

Which is why our event wouldn’t work for you either…if it was a stand alone event like others. Nothing significant happens from a one-shot deal. Here is the deal, with this event:

Personal Audit: You do a personal audit and submit it to us before the event so we know your status and you can hit the ground running when you get here.
Workshop: You are working here. But the guru guides are with you, as are your peers. Working together, answering questions, giving insight.
Intimacy: See the picture, we keep events to about 30 folks. That’s the only way we can get to really know you, you get to know us, and you make some deep relationships with others.
Inspiration: We don’t host the event high up in the Rockies just cause it’s convenient for me (7 miles from my home, which IS handy), but because it’s inspiring and memorable. It will lift you and stick with you. Much more than a hotel conference room, 1,000 people and pyrotechnics. Nice show, little longterm impact.
then the biggie - Continuing Together: This is what makes our events unlike any other. You don’t leave and get left alone to do it all. You go right into your course work in Free Agent Academy, continuing to work with the same Professors and fellow members that you were at the event now. The event is merely what it says…and Accelerator and catalyst. It also takes the pressure off of you to have some unrealistic, supernatural, arrival by event in…you keep your momentum and continue in the following days and weeks and months. Many attendees are still fervently working and corresponding together in our member’s community from the airport as they prepare to fly out!

On that note, we of course always guarantee the results. If you did not get the value you expected for your registration fee, simply state what it was worth, and we’ll refund the difference…down to zero.

So does this help your confidence? If so, are you really motivated enough? Or are you OK with things continuing as they are indefinitely?

Big decision and investment: Free Agent Academy “Accelerator” event, January 27-29, 2012 in Colorado
Lesser decision and investment: Free Agent Academy membership – Registration / Application

Meet our most recent registrants and new members since the first of the year. You may find something in common:

Sid L., Englewood, CO – quit his job in corporate America to pursue free agency, business idea is a slow food related business bringing local Colorado farmers and ranchers together in one location (sort of a virtual farmer’s market), married with 2 sons.
Bruce V. (Registered for the ‘Accelerator’ even too!), Findlay, OH – private care provider for mom and brother, wants to start life coaching.
William M., Greeley, CO – currently unemployed and ‘no idea’ what biz to pursue. Married with one daughter.
Angela B., Naples, FL – works as an Accounts Payable clerk for Habitat for Humanity, would like to work with teens, maybe something with home schooling or an adventure experience, serious boyfriend
Jarrod N., Woodland Park, CO, has a traditional job and ‘can’t stand it anymore’. “All I am is a number and my employer could care less about me or my family. I don’t have a solid idea yet and am hoping to have FAA help me narrow that down.” Married with 2 kids
Kimberly A., Leavenworth, KS – rejoined! Single Parent Entreprenuers, Single Mom ministry….and a few other ideas I am mulling around.
Christine K., Lincoln, NE (Registered for the ‘Accelerator’ even too! w/husband) – Married
Karena K., Jacksonville, FL - Currently doing web and graphic design. Idea is to build on that with a community based website/blog focused on living full receptive lives.” Married.
Corina M., Pittsboro, IN - Doesn’t have a specific idea at this time. “I may be interested in something which involves nutrition, fitness, and children/teens and how they can live a healthy lifestyle.”

Free Agent Underground Show – “This event wouldn’t work for you”

From ‘American dream’ to a more worthy dream

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 19:27:35 +0000

It really just depends what we want in the end. What our goal is.

If it’s a nice job, great money, good perks, nice people, interesting projects…then Deb Ingino arrived long ago. $500 million dollar company, executive position, New York City…all the trappings.

The American Dream! What’s not to like?

Well, that’s the point then, isn’t it? Is the goal of our life to get everything to where we ‘like’ it? Comfort, security, safety, happiness and money to afford anything you want?

Or is there something else? Notice I didn’t say ‘something more’, as I don’t think those things have much value. If you get them, good for you.

But where is:

Purpose
Calling
Meaning
Value
Conviction
Heart
Fervor
Service
Devotion

Just stuff we watch in movies with pretending actors? Or stuff we read in history before seeking our own kingdoms overcame seeking THE Kingdom and saving others? Just optional luxuries for the lucky and the rest of us are just filler in the world? Peasants? That doesn’t quite line up with my Bible…

You don’t have to listen to guess what happens. Deb walked away. Jan. 1, 2012 she announced her full-time free agency. She’s now devoting herself completely to the calling she can’t escape.

Listen and let your faith and conviction grow that you’re settling for second best.

Free Agent Underground Show – “From ‘American dream’ to a more worthy dream”

Planning for 2012 – Is it too late already?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 01:18:52 +0000

Of course you’ll expect us to say yes…but there is more to it than that. I was joined by planning guru James Woosley, a professor of our 5th course in Free Agent Academy, “Roadmap”, founder of Woosley Coaching and a guy I’m proud to call…friend.

We talked about the reality of how and why we must plan if we’re going to realize anything of value. But it differs significantly based on your personal style, with James and I being very different…he plans to much, I plan to little.

Over 30 folks joined us in the live chat and video and gave some great feedback on the realities of ‘planning’. Listen in below for a show what will help and convict you to know what you’re going after and take action.

*At the outset of the show I got to announce 7 new members to Free Agent Academy, two of whom signed up for the January 27-29 ‘Accelerator’ event out here in Colorado. Time is ticking down to get a slot at the event, and get decent travel rates. James will be there in person to help you plan out your steps!

Free Agent Underground Show – “Planning for 2012 – Is it too late already?”

The true story of St. Nicholas, and a bit on work…

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:57:38 +0000

There are two types of people:

Those who don’t question life and just go with the flow, accepting whatever they are given,
Those who DO question life, and make attempts to get out the flow and struggle with accepting what’s offered.

If you are listening or reading this, I assume you are the later.

Our primary premise here is free agency. The seeking of one’s personal calling, and a vocational opportunity that engages you full time in that calling. Further, a vocation that you own, so as to have control of your time, freedom heart, beliefs and values.

I’ll come back to that.

But while I’ve got you now, and Christmas is neigh, I want to showcase another area where the flow has taken us away…

First, I adore Christmas. Music, festivities, fun. I think Jesus would have fun at my house like he did with the other sinners, enjoying food and drink.

But I do care about realities, and what doesn’t seem to be working.

I know lots of people who like the idea of Christmas, but in truth, it’s just a burden an already overloaded schedule and budget.

Let’s look at two focal points:

Christmas – It’s about the birth of Christ, check it out on Wikipedia

St. Nicholas – This is the one that was of interest to me here. So I read a short story on the show. You can hear it in the audio below. But the point ultimately, is that a guy gave presents to the poor and inspired others to. Then somewhere along the way, we just started giving gifts to each other and slowly forgot the point.

So here we are killing ourselves to buy a bunch of stuff nobody needs. Staying up late nights buying stuff online, burning gas to run all over creation and shop, and maxing out our finances and probably going into debt.

Isn’t it amazing how over time, we get so skewed?

I’m not harping on the fact that we miss the reason for the season, Christ. Or even that we gloss over the poor and just trade affluence with each other. I’m mainly looking at the fruit…or lack thereof. We do all this stuff and there is little joy, if not outright loathing.

Reminds me of work and culture.

We used to live in community. Sharing, serving, being. What mattered is who you WERE. What you did to make money or raise your own sustenance was not all that relevant. What mattered is who you were in the community. How you served and loved. And seeking new horizons, seeking God, seeking truth, seeking adventure and new territory were lauded.

Somewhere along the way (the industrial revolution had a lot to do with it) we traded who we were, for what we did. Or we traded both for what we could have.

Nothing against Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple who recently died. I’m sure he was a good guy and had some humanitarian interests. But he’s been revered in our culture like Martin Luther King. Jobs seemed to have devoted his life primarily to providing us tech gadgets. I enjoy them plenty! But to revere him like Martin Luther King who devoted his entire being to people’s freedom, and was even martyred for it. Nothing against Steve Jobs, but I cringe when our heros are now business men and no longer epic humanitarians. Can anyone name a marquee, life long humanitarian in the past decade? Someone who truly fought for truth and goodness? Someone like…Saint Nicholas?

So here we are. Here I am. Am I what I do? Am I what I have? Or am I…who I am to others? How about you? Are you giving to the poor, the needy? Or are you just trading affluence and abundance around with others? Are you devoting your life to people, or to your own small world, status and comfort?

I’m surely not a saint. And my ego and flesh runneth over. Here in my home we’ll enjoy some non-necessary presents. And I haven’t gone to bed before midnight for many days. We’ll overeat. It’s not all bad. Jesus turned the water into wine, eh? Not healthy, herbal tea.

But how far do we go? Something to think about.

Free Agent Underground Show – “The true story of St. Nicholas, and a bit on work…”

What change will you have to make?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:28:47 +0000

2011 is ending. If 2012 is really, truly going to be any different, big change will have to happen. Which means…big decisions on your part.

What will you add, what will you subtract? What investment will you have to make? What sacrifice will have to happen? What risk and faith must you accept?

What will you have to intentionally take action on?

Listen in to today’s show, it’s only 20 minutes. This topic comes right from what my wife Teri and I are discussing (sometimes heatedly) right now in our lives.

Free Agent Underground Show – “What change will you have to make?”

Scrooges real problem, and possibly yours

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 20:17:44 +0000

A classic Christmas movie, “Scrooge.” My favorite was given to me by my great friend Scott Stearman (check out his amazing bronze sculptures here). It’s the one starring Albert Finney.

Here is the line that most impacts me. It’s said by his girlfriend, when he was young, and she was falling OUT of love with him, ”All your nobler dreams that I loved I’ve seen die off, one by one, until only the desire for gain is left.”

The story of Scrooge is not that he didn’t like Christmas and came to love it. It’s that he didn’t like life, and came to love it.

You may think you’re not Scrooge because you actually like Christmas. But what about life? Are you like he is at the end of the movie? Full of joy, happiness, exuberance, gratefulness, giving and sharing wildly from your abundance?

If not…why? Have you let your nobler dreams die? You may not feel you did so out of a pure desire for gain…for money. But it’s probably not too far removed. The passions of your heart that you’ve set aside or never fully even realized, are probably superceded by work. Paying the mortgage and car payments and the latest iPhone.

What would your life show if you were videotaped for a month, that you’re most devoted to? Your noble dreams (desires of the heart, convictions, hopes, values, legacies, caring for others, your faith), or…the desire for gain (money, security, possessions, safety, comfort, investments, savings).

So what do you do about it? Honestly, WHAT is the wrong question. What will just lead you to some tasks that you won’t follow through with because you haven’t gotten concrete on the WHY.

The why, is the biggie. The foundation. The rudder. The fuel. And it is…having faith in your ‘nobler dreams.’ Which I like to define as ‘convictions’ and ‘values’ and ‘core beliefs.’

And here is the deal, you will likely never be able to put enough faith into those nobler dreams, unless you start running with a different crowd.

My wife and I didn’t fully have faith we could build a house. That we could design it, be the general contractors and literally pound in nails and lift joists. But when we surrounded ourselves with homeowners who had done it and various subcontractors who could do it, we were able to fully commit. And that’s what made it come to be (that’s it on the right, our straw bale cabin in the woods).

So right now. There you are. Feeling called to more. Better. Truer. But alone. It’s hard to believe and make big decisions based on just your own head and heart.

What’s going to change that? You’ll have to step out and join like-minded individuals. Kindred spirits. People who have DONE it, people doing it, and guides who can give you every necessary resource.

The people that makes up our community of peers and guides at Free Agent Academy are more valuable than our curriculum and guidance. Not for their wise counsel even, but just for the environment that makes pursuing and achieving your ‘nobler dreams’ an absolute reality. A very alternative reality than what you’re in now.

It’s not weakness to realize and admit that you can’t do it alone. It’s a myth that we believe we’re even supposed to. It’s a great strength to accept that we are very limited on our own, but capable of greatness when we link arms with others. Others, who have strong arms.

Two ways to join us, and two reasons to do it now:

Free Agent Academy Membership

We have a new website and new pricing coming out Jan. 1. And the new pricing…won’t get less!
Info, inquiry form and registration all on this page

Free Agent Academy ‘Accelerator’ Event

Join us in the mountains of Colorado on Jan. 27-29 and work with us face-to-face and hand-to-hand.
NEW today: From Dec. 14th until Dec. 29th you can register for the event and make two payments. That should help with your Christmas cashflow. You’ll pay half up front, the second half on Jan. 26th.
Info, questions and registration here

- – - -

REPLAY OF TODAY’S SHOW:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Scrooges real problem, and possibly yours”

QUESTION:

What ‘nobler dreams’ have you given up, that you believe are, or might be…worthy?

What work is worthy of your devotion?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 00:22:16 +0000

In today’s Free Agent Underground Show I talked with Love 41 founder Suzette Munson, also wife to Saddleback Leather Co. founder Dave Munson. Suzette has devote herself to work that not only would she do for free…she is. Why? She felt called to it. Convicted. She saw a need and knew God was calling her to fill it. So she sat back and asked herself, where am I strong or gifted?

Love 41 came from this. The audio replay is down below, but as you scroll down, contemplate ‘devotion with me a bit more…

When we think of the word devotion, we generally think of what someone gives the majority of themselves to. So for most people alive, especially the western culture, if we took an inventory…we’d have to agree that their primary devotion is to work.

de·vote verb
1) to give up or appropriate to or concentrate on a particular pursuit, occupation, purpose, cause, etc.: to devote one’s time to reading. 2) to appropriate by or as if by a vow; set apart or dedicate by a solemn or formal act; consecrate:
de·vo·tion noun
1) profound dedication; consecration.2) earnest attachment to a cause, person, etc. 3) an assignment or appropriation to any purpose, cause, etc.

Now most would argue that they merely work in order to earn money for their family and that their true devotion is to their family, not work.
That may be true in core intent. But if we simply say, “What does my life show, that the majority of my time…is devoted to?” For most, it would be work.

So if your work is selling cars, then you are in essence devoting yourself to…selling cars. Now, if you have a personal passion for helping people own a reliable automobile so they can expand their opportunities in life, that could be honorable! If it’s just a way to make a buck, then it seems odd to devote yourself to it. Agreed?

The question then is…are you working at something that is worthy of your primary devotion in life?

If you can say yes to that, will you let us know below? And if not, how is it affecting you?

Free Agent Underground Show – “What work is worthy of your devotion?”

Take 2 “Who has a biz or idea and is trying to grow it?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 04:32:36 +0000

Folks,
So sorry, I posted the wrong audio yesterday. Instead of the show on “Who has a biz or idea and is trying to grow it?” I posted an audio of a call I did with the Free Agent Academy Professors. Sorry for the confusion, and thanks to all who let me know of my mistake!

Here is the correct one:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Take 2 “Who has a biz or idea and is trying to grow it?”

Who has a biz or idea and is struggling to grow it?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 03:56:56 +0000

Today I invited anyone who has a biz or idea and is struggling to grow it, to show up for the live Free Agent Underground Show. We had a good number show up, and we had time to address the five submissions shown below. Here my replies and the conversation in the audio posted at the bottom:

George Frye
“Ok, I want to start a coaching business for kids. I want to teach them about entrepreneurship and also proper business etiquette. I want to teach them how to start a business and as a project break the kids into groups and have them start a business and get it up and running. I also want to have a problem solvers program where the kids form a rountable group and they take one problem and discuss on how to solve that problem on three different levels.”

Kimberly Jones-Anthony
“Still kicking around the idea of something teen related to help parents in my situation with very active teens find employment that can work around their schedules. My son plays sports year round (fall – Football; winter – basketball; spring – baseball) I can’t (nor do I really want) see him fitting into a fast food resturant/grocery store and keeping his 92.5 GPA.”

Jason H. Garey
“Mine is www.buzzmarketeer.com. It is the result of an attempt to win a contest and has been buzzing around in my skull and chest for four years. I’m blogging to gain some forward momentum and get my bearings. I believe it’s a great platform, but almost too many ideas to pick from. My heart is in encouraging others to think for themselves, seek the Creator for purpose and passion.”

Jason Vandehey
“Many ideas for this – Portrait photography business. Homeschool photography training website / curriculum. (private website, subscription). Couple of podcasts (one for family discipleship, one for photography portrait stories / technical).”

Ron Olsen
“Currently trying to pull together information for a new project I want to call “The Time is Now” a call to end procrastination and to become more accountable for action or lack of action.”

Free Agent Underground Show – “Who has a biz or idea and is struggling to grow it?”

Are your desires luxuries, or directives from God?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 18:43:33 +0000

OK, I’m gonna take some fairly big, Biblical liberties, and mix them with some truths. Please go with the analogy, I’m not a scholar, and my book smarts aren’t the point (thank goodness).

In Genesis, the Israelites were held captive in Egypt. Slaves. They were given shelter, food and work. Maybe a beating here and there, but ‘it was a living’.

But, God told Moses to lead them out. Where? To the Promised Land.

As soon as things got hard on the journey, the Israelites, being led OUT OF SLAVERY, complained to Moses and God that they’d be better off back in Egypt where at least they were fed a solid meal three times a day.

So, this journey and escape didn’t seem like a ‘have to’ to them? Hmmm…

Then get this, the Promised Land was said by God to be a ‘land of milk and honey.’ I think that is a big, huge deal. Why? Cause neither are a necessity. Contrary to the American Dairy Association’s efforts to brainwash us, milk and dairy is 100% unnecessary to the human diet. Many cultures around the globe eat no dairy, nor any other animal’s milk products, and they are in far better health and having less disease than us who have been duped in the western culture. And honey? It’s sugar. Again, totally unnecessary. Milk and honey together…freeze it and you have ice cream.

So the Israelites are thinking…”This incredibly long, arduous journey when things weren’t horrible, to a ‘nicer’ place that has lots of ice cream. We like ice cream, but it’s not like it’s a necessity like whole wheat and spring water. Do we really have to do this?

YOU. God has put desires on your heart. Earthly, tangible desires. A Promised Land could be a place for you to live. Milk & honey may be some things that inspire you. Remember, doesn’t have to qualify as an absolute necessity.

What arguably non-necessary, desires-of-the-heart do you have? Things that keep haunting you, pricking you, keeping you up at night, interrupting your attempt to just exist?

My request:

Post them below. A few words, a few sentences, a bullet point list, a novel.

Free Agent Underground Show – “Are your desires luxuries, or directives from God?”

Possibilities for a personal trainer, hiking/running dogs, and coaching…

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 05:15:32 +0000

“And I in my home office, and JP at Micky D’s, brainstormed a bunch of poss-i-bil-i-ties…” (say to the poem of ‘The night before Christmas’)

Today, Idea guru Jonathan Pool and I discussed idea possibilities for three Free Agent Academy members who are nearing the end of our IDEA course:

LOU
Still pretty vague on a specific idea, though he has a good many interests and there is a strong thread of desiring to influence people. ‘Coaching’ was high on the list.

JACOB
His greatest desire is to free people from poor health. He’s currently a programmer, and it doesn’t fit him at all. His view of options for pursuing health advocacy was narrow, but we actually didn’t help widen it too much, as we saw the need for him to further hone in on what his heart for health really is.

CHRIS
Chris is a dog lover, and appreciates a well trained dog. But his personal joy is hiking with his dogs, and feels they often make him accountable to ‘getting off his butt and out the door.’ He’s got a solid idea for focusing on runners and hikers who would like their dogs by their sides…and staying at their sides, not going nuts.

I was in my home office, Jonathan Pool joined me from Boulder where he picked up internet at McNasties. Join us in some real world business development!

Free Agent Underground Show – “Possibilities for a personal trainer, hiking/running dogs, and coaching…”

Should our work make a difference?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 20:46:54 +0000

A pastor ‘serves people’, agreed? And in that role, is paid a salary and supports his family. He uses that revenue to pay his electric bill, buy new clothes, eat out for dinner, buy a car, Christmas toys for the kids, and so on.

A fireman or policeman ‘serves people’ also. They are paid, and support their family. Same with someone in the military. They fulfill a duty and are paid for it and support their family with that pay. Even a donor supported missionary fits in here. Doctors as well for the most part.

But in their ‘jobs’ we would all say they are truly serving mankind. And we’d assume, for the most part, that those people (pastors, firemen, policemen, military, missionaries) felt called or responsible or convicted to pursue those professions.

The majority of the world however, is working at j-o-b-s where they have no connection to who or how they are serving anyone. It’s nothing they felt ‘called to’ or convicted in, just a task they could fulfill and be paid for. Hopefully the job has some perks and decent people to work with.

What justifies devotion to comparably meaningless work? Well, we’re supporting our families with the revenue! Right?

But wait…back to the folks I mentioned above. They’re supporting their families too, but also doing work that directly serves humanity, often to a sacrificial degree. It’s work they believe in, and we do too!

Which begs the question then, of… “Is it OK to devote our work to tasks that we don’t feel called to and don’t sincerely serve humanity in a profound way? Should we expect less from ourselves than pastors, firemen, policemen, military, missionaries, doctors and many more in similar worthy work?”

Before you comment, let me try to define ‘serving humanity’. A crack dealer serves something people want, and he/she may do it with a smile and help old ladies across the street in the process. Maybe even tithe and give to a charity. A nutritionist in a store across the street from the crack dealer is also serving people, but I think we’d agree that one actually helps people, the other hurts. And in between are products and services that may not immensely help or hurt people…they are somewhat neutral.

We can go to great lengths to try and justify about anything, but let’s try to stick with the fairly obvious.

What do you think? Are only the select few allowed and able to serve humanity and their families jointly?

What if we judged work, not by how ‘cush’ the job was or how much money was made or how much free time you had, but by how it helped serve and better the world?

What if that…was the new status symbol? What if we paid premium prices for services-to-humanity that mattered and not for junk we want that’s a non-necessity?

HEAR THE LIVE SHOW WE DID ON THIS POST!

Free Agent Underground Show – “Should our work make a difference?”

Part 2: “Why do people hate their work?”

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 08:14:12 +0000

The amount of relevant questions and comments in the live chat around this topic and show, prompted us to continue the discussion the next day. This was rich…and deep:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Part 2: “Why do people hate their work?”

con’t “Why do people hate their work”

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 08:02:49 +0000

Our feed got interrupted, so here is the continuation of the initial show:

Free Agent Underground Show – “con’t “Why do people hate their work”

Why do people hate their work?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 07:59:16 +0000

OK, here is where this came from. My friend and brother Gary Barkalow leads events across the globe on discovering and engaging in your CALLING. Yes, your God inspired and created calling. The meaning and purpose in life that is NOT an option for you to pursue, but your God-given responsibility to pursue.

Isn’t that utopia? Not to ‘chase your dreams’ but to commit to your destiny?

So people who have attended one of Gary’s Calling ‘Retreats’ or ‘Intensives’ are invited into his member’s community, called ‘Base Camp.’

Last week in ‘Base Camp’ they discussed WORK. Gary and I talked soon after and he said that ‘Why people hate their work’ came up as a primary topic.

So I said…”Let’s do a show on that!”

Here we are. It was lively. Over 40 people joined the live chat to discuss it.

About 20 minutes in, we lost the live feed and had to restart. So the continuation of this chat is in the following post. I promise…it will be intriguing.

Free Agent Underground Show – “Why do people hate their work?”

Which of your freedoms are legit?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 19:12:55 +0000

“Which of your freedoms are legit?”
It’s a very relevant question that few fully ponder, yet it significantly affects the trajectory of our lives and decisions. The truth is that you desire to be free from some circumstances in your life, but you really only have faith in certain ones. The rest you subconsciously believe are optional. And thus, you’ll probably never achieve them. I want to get you committed, or let you off the hook.

You see, I am self-employed because I honestly believe I must. There is no way I can walk in the freedoms I’m convicted in as an employee. Let’s see how it adds up for you…

This morning I flipped open to Galatians 5 in my Bible, it’s a chapter I really relate to. It starts off thus, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled with a yoke of bondage.”

You’ll have to read before it to get the full context, but Paul is referring to being under the ‘yoke’ of earthly law as opposed to freedom in Christ. And hey, not a believer in Christianity? Interestingly for you Americans, you’re Declaration of Independence is best known for this line, “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Most other countries have something very similar.

So it hit me…”What freedoms do we really believe in?” And additionally, “What bondages do we honestly accept?” Because that dictates our faith and commitment to what we do or don’t pursue. You want to be self-employed? You’ve got to know what freedoms and bondages you believe in.

An example that’s relevant for belief in freedom or bondage is financial debt. Most Christians (especially Dave Ramsey fans) will cite that debt is bad. Being under it’s ‘yoke of bondage’ is not only wrong, but bad stewardship and the big word…sin! And they’ll quote scripture backing it up. Yet there is just as much scripture about your body being a temple. I see as many people imprisoned by self-induced bad health and immobility as from financial debt, but for some reason we believe in freedom regarding money but accept bondage in regards to bad health.

So again, be honest with yourself, what to you believe in? Here are some relevant focal points:

Financial Wealth – You have an allotted amount of time you commit to work. Is freedom to create abundance a must, or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of ‘just enough’?

Physical health and vitality – Should you be free to invest in health and vitality, or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of illness and relative immobility?

Engagement with your family – Should you be free to be a full-time parent and spouse and fully engaged in and aware of all aspects of your family’s lives? Or is it optional…do you accept the separate lives and brief check-ins at the beginning and/or end of the day and weekends?

Owning your work – Less than 20% of the population is self-employed, yet that 20% accounts for over 2/3 of millionaires. You spend your vocational life renting your work out to build a business owner’s assets, or you spend it building an asset for yourself. Is this a freedom you must pursue, or is it optional…is giving away your work a bondage you accept?

Available disciple – this is for those of you who believe in serving God. If you fully offer yourself up to be used by God on a Monday through Friday, and He calls you to serve in some capacity that is outside of your workplace, are you free to answer that call? Consistently? Or does your first allegiance belong to your employer? Is that freedom to answer a must, or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of ‘boss before God’?

Talents & desire – If you believe (which I hope and expect you do) that God designed you for a specific purpose, gave you specific talents and placed directional desires in your heart to guide you, do you currently have the freedom to be fully engaged in them? Or are they just for the margins outside your j-o-b? Is the freedom to fully utilize your talents and pursue the desires God’s written in your heart a must? Or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of squelching them or fitting them into the small margins of life in order to earn a paycheck?

Belief in what you sell - Your work is selling something. No matter what you do or where you work, you are investing all your work time into selling a product or service or message. Non-profit and for-profit alike. Do you believe in what you are selling enough to devote your life to it? Cause that is what you are doing today….devoting the majority of your waking time participating in selling something. Is freedom to devote yourself to selling something you believe in a must? Or is it optional…do you accept the bondage to devote yourself to something you care little to nothing about?

Inspiration – The definition is “stimulation or arousal of the mind, feelings, etc, to special or unusual activity or creativity”. The opposite would be akin to ‘going through the motions.’ If you are not inspirational, you can’t be influential. If you can’t be influential, you have no impact on anyone’s life. Do you think Martin Luther King, Bill Gates, Michael Jordon, Seth Godin, Billy Graham and Zig Ziglar were inspired while engaged in their work? Was that a luxury? Can you spend all day UNinspired and expect to walk in your door at home or in your church and fully inspire? Should freedom to be full-time engaged in endeavors that inspire you be a must? Or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of apathy, despair, depression, numbness and primarily…going through the motions?

Influence – building off the previous point, the most influential entity in our world today is the marketplace. It’s greater than education, the church or faith in it’s control of society at large. Businesses and brands rule the marketplace. As an employee, can you influence the marketplace very much? Or can you do it far more, as a business owner? Is freedom to influence the culture in the most powerful arena a must? Or is it optional…do you accept the bondage of anonymity and powerlessness?

I could list more. But these are things I DO NOT BELIEVE ARE OPTIONS FOR MY LIFE. And in today’s day and age, I see self-employment as the best (not the only, just the overall best) vehicle for accommodating these beliefs.

Let me say loud and clear, this is not a ‘salvation’ issue. This isn’t a plaform to judge. Nobody is going to hell or is a lessor saint because they may have consumer debt, or are in ill health, or are an employee. I’ve been in bondage to debt all my adult life until two months ago! I got out of it however, due to my belief that doing so, was a must. It’s about personal convictions that you may or may not feel called to. But those you do…how best to achieve them?

Ponder these things. What you have accepted, should you continue to?

And please be FREE…to post your feelings below. You may speak for and bless many others.

Listen to the show replay on this post, includes commentary on the previous post, ‘God speaks through asses‘:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Which of your freedoms are legit?” and “God speaks through asses”

Idea possibilities for camping, adventure, cooking and troubled teens

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:56:50 +0000

On Wednesdays live Free Agent Underground Show (live every Tue & Wed at 3pm MT) we reviewed idea possibilities for two Academy members, Cindy Thomas and Lance Snow. It was a lively and revelatory show. Joining me was idea guru Jonathan Pool and about 30 people in the live audience.

We took Cindy’s ideas surrounding advocacy of family camping and drilled down during an inspiring session to what her HEART’S message really was.

With Lance’s ideas for an adventure show, we expanded on ideas but narrowed down on who his audience might be and what the marketplace viability is.

Tune in to hear brainstorming, community and the essence of what we do at Free Agent Academy in action:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Idea possibilities for camping, adventure, cooking and troubled teens”

Why business ‘start up’ info is moot for you

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 02:34:08 +0000

I’m not dissing anyones info on ‘business start up,’ just changing your paradigm so you’ll understand why it isn’t helpful for you right now (unless you’re already in business).

If you search the main reasons business start ups fail, you’ll get a laundry list of viable issues. But they are only relevant if…you’ve fully launch a business.

Most of you who read my blogs and listen to my podcasts are not there yet. You are considering and contemplating free agency. Those lists are moot for you.

Right now the only point for you to focus on is the why and how. Why you want free agency, enough to commit to it and go after it. Then how you are going to take action amidst your current life and circumstances.

Making a business work is not easy, but it’s not the hardest part. Getting YOU to work is the hardest part.

That’s what makes Free Agent Academy unique, we focus on you as much or more as your ultimate business. Regardless of joining us, make sure you’re spending your time addressing the right issues for where you are in the journey.

On that note, in the show today, as I normally do, I welcomed new members. I never post that in these blogs and show notes, but decided to do so today. These are two members who joined since last Wednesday’s show:

Jim Land – Pine, Colorado
“I’m currently full time managing the service dept. of a fairly new company in the auto-body equipment industry. I have a wonderful wife (Suzy) who supports me. 3 kids, 2 boys and a girl and 3 grandchildren.”

Julie Caswell - Calgary, AB, Canada
“Currently I am a full time project manager in a traditional j-o-b and single.”

HERE IS TODAY’S SHOW ON THIS TOPIC:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Why business ‘start up’ info is moot for you”

Part 3: Questions on “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid”

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 03:21:38 +0000

The deep conversations regarding the post “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid” led me to leading a live, open discussion on the topic today. We discussed the realities of moving forward on what seems ‘crucial’ to you, but you just can’t see HOW it would really happen. This is from a direct post in the chartroom yesterday. So if you feel that you believe in more for your life and work, but just don’t see how it can really come to pass, this show will be helpful.

TODAY’S OPEN Q&A SHOW

AUDIO

Free Agent Underground Show – “Part 3: Questions on “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid”

VIDEO

Watch live video from Free Agent Underground on Justin.tv

Part 2: How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 03:25:49 +0000

Today I discussed this post “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon” with over 30 people on live, and in just a handful of hours another 30+ have watched the video replay.

If you are really…serious…about wanting to go after anything better in your life, I commit that this message is worth your time and will give you motivation and some faith to move. Or…give up. Either is better than limbo.

Here again is the blog post to READ:
“How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon”

VIDEO REPLAY (please fast-forward to 3:00 minutes and skip me testing some new equipment)

AUDIO REPLAY

Free Agent Underground Show – “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon (full show recording)”

How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 19:54:18 +0000

Don’t you wish a stone tablet would fall from the sky and tell you what to do? Or your spouse and/or friends would all validate the desires you have or despairs you feel?

Yeah…well…probably not going to happen. So you sit through another day doubting and lacking faith in acting on anything and doing anything different. Cause how can you ever be certain on whether what you feel is really valid?

You’d like life to be more meaningful, purposeful, free, inspiring and seemingly worthwhile and fulfilling. But who wouldn’t? Sure, some people seem to have a pretty good thing going, but that’s an anomaly, and the reasonable and responsible thing to do is not rock the boat, keep your nose clean and just count your blessings. Right?

Where did that perspective come from?

Your parents?
The culture?
Your spouse?
Your friends?
God?
SATAN?

Seriously. Who wrote that script? If you step back and view life, how did we come up with a hypothesis that says “fit in and take no risks?”

Yet we doubt our desires and discontent because we really don’t have faith they are reasonably valid, and the world we live in, by far and large, only supports the status quo.

Of course the whole world tunes into TV and movies and sports that glorify the EXACT OPPOSITE. Noodle on that for a while as you think on your fave TV show, movies, book or sports addiction. Are any of them living safely and risk free?

Here’s a big part of the problem. People often talk about ‘pursuing your dreams’ and there is so much talk around ‘dreams’. I’d rather throw out that word and terminology, as it’s got far too much baggage. “Pursuing dreams” doesn’t have credibility because it sounds like a luxury. It’s too hard to disengage from statements like, “I dream of a European vacation” or “a home theater.”

We’re talking here about desires of the heart. True longings of worth. More weighty goals like having more time for family, doing work that will leave a legacy, living an inspired life, serving people in a worthwhile way.

Last Wednesday I had a conversation with Gary Barkalow during the Free Agent Underground Show. Gary is founder of The Noble Heart, author of “It’s your call“, global speaker and authority on discovering your calling, and the Professor of our first course at Free Agent Academy. During our show he quoted a section from Larry Crabb’s book “Inside Out” that categorized desires (or ‘longings’) between:
- Casual
- Critical
- Crucial

Listen to the show here, and also check out Gary’s upcoming ‘Noble Heart Exploration – Calling Intensive Experience’ event Dec. 1-4

Free Agent Underground Show – “How to know if your ‘desires’ are valid and should be acted upon”

I thought that perspective was brilliant and I’m going to ad-lib with my own take and rate some ‘desires’ of my own life in regards to financial purchases so you’ll get a good feel for the premise here:

Casual desire: I want a double scull, which is a rowing boat. We live by a high mountain lake that would be perfect for this. Get out on the water amidst God’s creation, get a great workout, and have my wife or a kid or a friend join me. Lots of worthy benefits. But even though it’s not totally frivolous, I can’t say it’s a necessity. More luxury.
Critical desire: We want help homeschooling our five and six year old boys. They are both in first grade. My wife Teri does all the homeschooling. Our 16 and 15 year olds are both Sophmores and can do most of their schooling themselves, though Teri spends much time shuttling them here and there and checking their tests and such. Our 11 year old needs more attention and is involved in a few things where she needs shuttling. Then we have a three year old and two year old who just need Mommy a lot. In between are the two boys who need more attention and it takes a lot of time and detail. It’s the hardest thing for Teri to facilitate. Freeing her from a majority of teaching their curriculum would add much more time to her busy schedule, allow her to refill her own cups and give peace in multiple areas. A tutor will be costly, but I think one of the wiser investments for our family. Not an absolute have to, but the pros far outweigh cons and I believe it’s worth the financial sacrifice.
Crucial desire: We need an all wheel drive or 4×4 passenger van. We have nine people in our family and our Suburban only seats eight, plus it’s 12 years old with 165,000 miles on it. We sometimes throw a kid in the back where there is no seat or seatbelt. We have a small RV, but it’s not all wheel drive, and our home is in a place where we need all wheel drive frequently for about 6-months of the year. This will be a big expense, but for our family to be safe (and legal) it’s just necessary (unless we sell a kid off or move!).

NOW…those are financial issues, just for the analogy. I can look at them and judge which ones are worth the decision making effort and the financial investment and risk.

Let’s talk about free agency now. Self-employment.

What I want you to do is view your life-values. And list them as Casual, Critical and Crucial. Things like:

Renting vs Owning my work – you’ll spend all those years working, hoping to save some money while you build an asset for some business owner or corporation. Or, be building your own asset. To me this is like renting your vocational life to someone else, instead of owning it. Imagine renting a home for 40 years instead of owning. Nobody would say that’s wise. Yet we do it with our work…
Time flexibility and freedom – is your family OK with the time and availability you have for them? Can you tend to their emotional and tangible needs when they need you? Are you adequately involved in their lives and fully engaged in what’s happening with them? I’ll say this, I would have a much more shallow marriage or be divorced, if I didn’t have time freedom to go deep and work through issues with my wife. We also would NOT have had seven children. Actually, I wasn’t willing to have ONE kid if I could be a full-time Dad.
Purposeful work - does what you do 8-10 hours per day, 5-6 days per week have significant meaning and purpose for your heart and soul? Does it inspire you? Is that important? Will you be all you can be for others with your heart turned off and being fairly uninspired for the majority of your waking hours? Does that make sense? Is that a good design, even though the world accepts it? Gary Barkalow once said that “If your heart is dead, you can only give death to others.” That hit me. If I’m not inspired, how can I hope to inspire others? And if I can’t inspire others, I can’t influence them. And if I can’t influence them, how can I be a worthwhile husband or father or friend? Especially those of you who are parents. If you care to influence your kids, you have to be able to inspire them. Can you do that amidst the current circumstances of your life? I pursue inspiration like water and air because without it I’m only able to be about half the man I am for others.
Health & Wellness – investing in yourself in the areas of nutrition, exercise, spirituality and more requires time and effort. Time and effort that most people don’t feel they have or can afford. And with the structured 8-10 hours per day, 5-6 days per week of traditional employment, there just isn’t time, especially if you have a family. So is this optional? If you give this up now, will you burden your family to care for you when bad health compiles and catches up to you at age 60 or 70? Is that OK? Again, back to my seven kids, I’m 40 and my youngest is 1. When he’s 30 and hopefully has a young family, I’ll be 70. Will I be able to help him build a home or take his kids camping? Or will he be further burdened in his life trying to take care of his feeble, old Dad? It’s what I’m doing NOW that will dictate this.

I could go on, but you get the point.

So for you with those above issues (and you can add more)…are they Casual, Critical or Crucial?

Notice I didn’t talk about being self-employed so you can golf all day and eventually buy a yacht. That’s what’s stupid about the late night infomercials that sell hope and hype but never help anyone. The goal is unworthy and we all know it.

One last perspective to contemplate. I spent a couple hours once, talking with a farmer who owned a big, organic grain farm. He shared with me that he was convicted in his life overall with this statement, “If it’s not sustainable, it will lead to sin.” You can re-paraphrase that if you like. But what in your life is not sustainable? It will lead to failure or depression or despair or poverty. Or lead to a LACK of wealth, health, joy and legacy?

In discussing a tutor for our kids, this perspective impacted Teri. She felt that if the result of her continuing in the status quo of trying to keep up the unsustainable pace…the result would be her ‘being a bad mommy.’ Now, she’d never be wholly bad, but if the kids (and I) only get half of who she could be due to the unmanageable, unsustainable life circumstances…the investment and risk to address and help it is WELL worth it.

Make your list of desires, convictions and values for life that you think might be worthy. That you feel discontent in. Rate them. Think about the long-term affect and sustainability. The ultimate result.

Share if you would in the comments below. I’ll respond to each one. And next, we’ll talk about what to do with them.

Join me in a fast (or new diet!) from any NEW knowledge?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 04:21:15 +0000

Everyday we fill your time with activities such as:

work (making an income)
personal maintenance (shower, eat)
home maintenance (dishes, laundry)
relationship (family, friends)
entertainment (tv, movies, newspaper, online browsing)
exercise
hobbies
personal development

Maybe you don’t do these things every day, but these bullet points should account for the bulk of most of your daily/weekly activities.

I want to talk about the ‘personal development’ slot. This would account for the time you are taking RIGHT NOW to read this blog or listen to the podcast of the show on this topic.

So when you decide to take a minute or an hour or more for ‘personal development,’ how often do you reach for something NEW?

A new book (the latest NY Times bestselling non-fiction, self-help or success book that everyone’s talking about?)
A new daily or weekly blog by some acclaimed guru
A new magazine
A new podcast
A new article
Attend a new seminar or conference

In doing this, are you saying that all the knowledge and information you’ve received thus far in your life, you’ve applied and utilized so that now, you need something NEW?

Doubtful.

So then, why do you (and we as a culture) reach for something new, when we didn’t take much, if any, action on the last thing we ingested?

Because in truth, we aren’t really committed to improving and changing ourselves. We’re just drawn to positive, inspirational ENTERTAINMENT.

That hurts a bit, doesn’t it? It hurts me at least.

Think about the last, great nonfiction, self-help book you read? The last podcast? Blog? Seminar or convention you attended?

How did it change your life? What action did you take that has tangibly altered your life for the better? What would your spouse or friends attest to? Could they testify to your newfound success or overcoming as a result of some great knowledge that you took in over the past year?

So again, what are we doing then? Are we just on a steady diet of inspiration that keeps our hope afloat, but never strapping ourselves down to do the actual work of APPLYING IT TO OUR LIVES?

This happened to me folks. I was reading ‘Trust Agents” by Julian Smith and Chris Brogan a good while ago after it hit the bestseller list. I commented to many folks about the great insights I was getting from it. I talked about it a good deal. Then, before I’d even finished it, I started in on the next bestseller. For some reason, it just hit me. These guys had risen to acclaim and had immense success, and had poured their lives into communicating all they’d learned…in this book. I read it, yet had not taken a solitary minute to put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard to APPLY the wisdom they shared. Would I be better off to put the next book down and spend the next year doing nothing, but studying and applying what these guys had devoted themselves to and shared?

The truth then settled in.

No. I didn’t really want to do the work. My flesh just wanted to pick up the next new book so I could tease my psyche with more inspiring fodder. And on and on. Never really DOING anything.

That’s akin to watching the Discovery channel every day from my couch without ever getting off my fat ass to go outside and authentically discover something.

So…I quit. I’ve quit reading for the most part. I’m not getting new blogs, I unsubscribed from them ALL! Yes, even the ones that I got to thinking were some cosmic lifeline to the world’s great and new truths. I’m not getting any podcasts. I’m not reading the biz magazines that come in my mail. I thank people for the great (I assume) articles they sent to my email box or reference to me in Facebook, but I don’t read them.

I’ve been doing this for the better part of a year.

Instead, when I sit down to devote some of my time to ‘personal development’, I write. I create. I build. I’m not relying on myself here folks. I’m not acting as if I’m the wellspring of knowledge. Remember, I’m always shouting from the soapbox of not going it alone.

I’m merely taking time to actually apply, the glut of knowledge I’ve taken in over so, so many years.

My proposal then, is that for a time, you take in NO NEW KNOWLEDGE. Fast from it. For a week. A month. A year. You choose.

No blogs

No new books

No newspapers

No magazines

No podcasts (even if you have drive time, listen to nothing and THINK)

No seminars or conventions (my events are ‘workshops’ where you a-p-p-l-y)

Take that time instead…to work. Apply. Go down the rabbit hole.

Take come action.

Use the knowledge you already have.

10-20-11 11:06am MT Update: As I was reading a comment below from Justin Lukasavige, I was motivated to change the premise of ‘fasting,’ as that sounds temporary. At heart, I’m talking about a new diet, for life. I have cut my intake of new knowledge by about 95%, and I don’t intend to go back. Comparably I’ve quit dairy in my nutritional diet except for special indulgences. I’ll never go back. I’ll leave the title as is, but in truth I’m proposing we question our intake of new knowledge for life, and start taking more action. A new diet!

Here is the show I did on this topic:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Join me in a fast from any NEW knowledge?”

Watch live video from Free Agent Underground on Justin.tv

How and why to reject the norm – with my Dad, Dan Miller

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:02:37 +0000

I took the opportunity while my Mom & Dad were visiting to candidly discuss the power of the ‘norm’ in our culture, and how and why to reject it.

My Dad, Dan Miller (author of ‘48 Days To The Work You Love‘) was born into a nearly Amish lifestyle. Strict religion, hard work and a very, very small ‘box’ of life. It caused him to not only reject it, but to reject pretty much anything the world offered. Instead, he looked at life with a blank slate and question…everything.

This was a gift. A hard start to life, but a gift. One that I later benefited from. I interviewed him about this a couple days ago, below is the video and audio of our talk together. I think you’ll get a LOT out of it, as you wrestle to be true to your convictions that probably don’t fall in the normal flow of our culture.

I bring this to you because I realize the flow and pull of our culture and society and the ‘norm’ is SO, SO STRONG. To minimize it is folly.

Self-employment is not the norm. Being out of debt is not the norm. Forgoing the consumerism and ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ is not the norm and is so hard, as we all want the status that comes with buying and having and showcasing the latest crap. Eating whole, healthy food (and no meat) and saying no to the normal American diet is not the norm. Killing your TV and unplugging from media is not the norm. Homeschooling is not the norm. Shunning college is not the norm (and another ‘status’ challenge).

Kicking the ‘norm’ in all those ways listed above can be tiring and lonely and even challenging regarding relationships with family and friends. That’s my quick list above on ‘norms’ I don’t adhere to. Seriously, it doesn’t endear people to you when you’re the only one at every event or pot luck or social meal who doesn’t eat the main course (meat).

Having and living out personal beliefs and convictions and adhering to values you hold up to be true to you…is not the easy road. It’s not socially endearing. It won’t win you kudos from the people around you. Remember the culture of popularity in high school? How ridiculous it was? Has it really changed as we pose and posture to other adults in our lives today?

It’s hard to resist and reject the norm. I admit it. I won’t paint a rosy picture. Listen to this conversation with my Dad, I think it will give you some new ingredients for your own desire for resistance and freedom:

VIDEO

AUDIO

Free Agent Underground Show – “How and why to reject the norm – with my Dad, Dan Miller”

If you were forced to be self-employed tomorrow, what would/could you offer?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:43:04 +0000

This was a question I posted on the Facebook discussion page, then did a show on the first 10 or so replies. There are now over 20. You can hear the show below where I expound on the idea, but here is the original FB post, and I’m asking you to share as well. I’ll talk about it more in next week’s show.

Let’s take the desire off the table and the decision of whether you should or shouldn’t be self-employed. Let’s pretend you were banned by the government, today, from working for anyone else. That’s it. The door shuts and you and your spouse (if you have one) are left sitting on your couch at home, bereft. You job just ended and you are banned by your country (or the galaxy, no going overseas) from being an employee.

You are FORCED TO BE SELF-EMPLOYED.

So for the moment, forget your passions and desires, you just have to make an income. And mowing yards or working at Taco Bell probably won’t keep you afloat.

With your current experience and know-how, what can you deliver at the highest value, immediately. Even if you don’t enjoy doing it?

Free Agent Underground Show – “If you were forced to be self-employed tomorrow, what would/could you offer?”

Here are the submissions for far from the Facebook discussion page:

Dallon Christensen

Doing a lot of the business planning and operations work I do full time for businesses that don’t need me full time. I’d also deliver continuing education classes and seminars.
Jason Vandehey

OK, not kidding this time: I’d be doing Family/ Highschool Senior/ headshot portraits at a rapid rate. I’d also be working on building up long-term selling stock-image and commercial product portfolio.
I’d have to pay someone else to do the post-processing though. I don’t enjoy detail-based post-processing of pictures so much.
DeBorah Hamilton-Levy

Childcare. there is always a need for it, although I don’t want to do it. but for this question I would chose childcare.
Mark Koekemoer

I’d build a brand strategy business. But there are so many! I’d need to think long and hard how I can be unique about it…
Becky Whitaker West

I would sell on Amazon and work on my primitivedecoratingideas blog.
Tom Allen

I’d find a street with quite a bit of pedestrian traffic to sing and play my guitar and hope people gave me money, and pick up bottles and cans along the roadside (5 cent deposit here in Iowa).
Nathanael Schulte

I’d do what I did when this happened to me a year ago – gather up small programming projects and build it into a business. But would ask for more help early on, and be really sure this was where I’m headed long term…
Dave Posner

I’d do exactly what I am pursuing right now (coaching in the areas of ID Theft, Credit, and Insurance). I would just have to dramatically step things up as I wouldn’t have my current J.O.B. to pay the bills.
Jake Woldstad

Step up my computer consulting work to pay the bills. Then develop my idea to help people improve their fitness do they can experience life better.
Danny Ross Dickerson

Well, this kinda did happen. At age 57, close enough. So I go after the clients who really appreciate what I’m uniquely gifted to do and don’t want to stay with the high overhead high cost service provider. It will be a trick to make a living out of this initially but I’m sure it’s the right path.
David Perkins

Gigolo for immediate cash and no taxes. Then teaching people to invest better, fix their finances, save money, earn more money from their investments, work with small business owners to strategically plan and fulfill their true aspirations; help people with calling;
Tresaca – Teen Turnaround Specialist

To deliver immediate high value services I would use my copywriting and website development skills to help businesses.
Scott Moore

Revolt!

Or, perhaps, pick up my guitar and go play on the streets downtown for spare change.
Jennifer Harshman

Transcription, websites, and proofreading/editing through HarshmanServices.com would be the highest value that I can deliver immediately.
Mark Koekemoer

Screw the branding. Let me at least do something I’ll enjoy a bit… Mac tech consulting!
Michael Wright

Just learned how to twist balloon animals and having a ball doing it. Introducing Mic the Clown for all local parties, events, fairs, etc. That’s what I’d do TODAY.
Eric Haselhorst

Just kicked off a blog http://nobrattycatholic.wordpress.com/category/churchy-stuff/ I ratchet this up and work hard to do as many speaking gigs as I could. Also, kick up selling stuff on ebay.
Jeanette Sue Sheetz

Helping women feel better about themselves and helping special needs young adults
Carol Corp

I would work with grandparents who are raising grandkids like myself! I would work with the grandkids that are displaced often times in stressful and sometimes dangerous situations. Some of these kids have never met their grandparents they are going to live with.
Calvin Richardson

I love to use the CB radio were I work so I would love to find a way to employ that. I have done impersonations since I was young but usually just do them when I’m by myself. I like to write stories but don’t do it much. I write some comedy but find it very tough to come up with fresh idea’s.
Mowing yard’s is actually a good business unless you live in a area were grass doesn’t grow much. It’s great exercise and I do it part time now. I could also do carpentry or painting. I will probably be doing carpentry part time this winter. So I could do handyman work right away.
I hope this is enough info and if not I’ll start on my book tomorrow.

Brainstorming biz possibilities for Jacob’s idea

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:22:01 +0000

Jacob Woldstad live in Durand, WI, married for 12 years and had two kids. He’s employed full time at a nearby hospital in their IT department and also runs a computer consulting business.

He’s a member in Free Agent Academy and cites his reason for joining as, “I want to make a quick transition back to free agency, but I want to do it on my terms. My wife and I want to be free to travel more, so I need to develop a location-independent business. I need to find work that makes me feel like I am living on purpose. I am not motivated externally by money, and I know I am not living up to my potential.”

He’s nearing the end of our third course, ‘Idea’, and applied for our Possibilities class to brainstorm his top 5 ideas.

In this show, Idea guru Jonathan Pool and I get pretty amped, as Jacob’s primary idea was right up our alley. You’ll get inspired and your own ideas flowing from this show.

Free Agent Underground Show – “Brainstorming biz possibilities for Jacob’s idea”

Now, will you serve in your conviction?

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 21:19:27 +0000

This week I asked you to share your convictions, and over 60 of you did. Thank you. Thanks for being bold, being honest and risking offense (and some of you offended!). You wrote your burdens, frustrations, angers and pains. I have a few things for you:

- Picture explained at the bottom of this post -

#1 Topics brought up

If you didn’t read the initial post, or haven’t gone back and read the comments, or didn’t catch the live show I did to discuss it, go back and check it all out - “I dare you to post a conviction“. The comments are profound and sparked a wide array of responses. Here is just a sampling of some of the topics discussed:

Parenting
Daycare
Church on many levels
Negative people
TV hate
Medical community
Pharmaceutical companies
Church music
Debt
Financial security
Obesity
Men as head of household
Modern biz practices
Modern school teachings
Men providing only money
Being a victim
‘Christians’ bashing politicians
Responsibility to care for widows and orphans and elderly
Disrespect
Praying couples
Abortion
Politicians
Pedophiles
Bullies
Filthy rich Christians
Luck
Sin
Marketing
Catholics
Contraception

…and that’s as far as I’ve gotten so far, there are more

#2 Follow up additions and show

With so much activity on this post, I did a follow-up show on Wednesday to read more comments, showcase some videos on conviction that are just killer (poet Taylor Mali) and included more on the topic regarding ‘Being bold’ and Mr. Conviction Himself, Jesus Christ. Here is the audio for this show:

Free Agent Underground Show – “Now, will you serve in your conviction?”

#3 A winner

During the live show I asked for people to state convictions that hopefully stepped on MY toes. Offered to send them Free Agent Academy bar of custom, hand made soap made by Brett Traudt, “The Rugged Soapmaker” and owner of www.SmoreOutdoor.com. Nobody stepped on my toes. Which I guess just attests to this crowd being kindred spirits. If anyone had starkly differing views than I did, I imagine they wouldn’t be here reading, eh? So I’m sending the soap to Jason Gary. He posted a conviction about couples coming together to pray, for each other and their family. That ‘convicted me’. It’s not that I don’t do that with my wife, but I know we aren’t doing it enough and harnessing the power and truth that comes with it. So thanks Jason, you’ll have a great smelling package in your mailbox soon.

#4 Serve with your conviction

Now, YOUR CHARGE: How can you take your conviction(s) and serve people? Specifically leading with that conviction, or how can you gain influence with people that allows you a platform?

I’m convicted about people being free from culture and free to fully live out their calling, so I ‘sell self-employment’ because I think it’s THE BEST vehicle for those freedoms.

But let’s say that wasn’t my core conviction and I just knew business and could do it well and make a business (like I have) out of it. And my core conviction was really being a full-time parent. It is a conviction of mine, but not primary. The platform I’ve build doing something I can do well (self-employment) affords me influence with an audience and I can espouse…whatever I want to.

Gary Veynerchuk grew famous for taking what he was good at, tasting, commenting on and selling wine, and used it as a platform to espouse things he cared about, such as people pursuing their passions, and the NY Jets.

Remember, a conviction that you keep to yourself, is robbing humanity. It’s taking a gift and hoarding it. And humanity is slowly becoming more and more sheep with few shepherds.

I’m asking for more thought and ultimately, action. Who do you care about more? You? Or others…

The best resource to help you serve with your conviction? Free Agent Academy membership. Our ‘School for calling and self-employment’. You can go read about it here, or jump straight to our inquiry questionnaire that will help you see what you’d be getting into, and help us see if you’re ready for us. Please, only do this if you are serious about your interest.

*Also, Carolyne Jiminez is a dear friend and member of Free Agent Academy. She had written a blog recently on “What she stands for” and it’s just excellent. I highly recommend you check it out:
- http://redeemingcarolyne.wordpress.com/2011/04/11/hum-what-would-i-stand-for

**Picture at the top is an unknown high school cross country runner that I personally snapped yesterday. My son Caleb was there taking top 20 in the JV race (an incredible feat after having major chest excavation surgery in Feb. and only running now for 7 weeks) and my daughter Autumn ran a great race amidst severe shin-splints. This guy finished last. Last in his race, and last overall, as even the last girl who started 10 minutes behind him had passed him. I don’t know the story, but I guarantee you there are convictions at work. I’d like to think it came from someone who cared about him and shared a conviction that led him to this. It was the most inspiring thing of the day. Who can you help and veritably save…with your convictions?

I dare you to post a conviction

kevin@freeagentacademy.com (Kevin Miller) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 20:09:41 +0000

NOTE: This is a fairly long, intense, controversial message on convictions. The purpose being that convictions are a PRIMARY, necessary ingredient of most successfully self-employed people. If you can handle the personal, invasive nature of what I’m posing below, you’ll come out with possibly THE KEY…for your free agency.

Ready?

This past weekend I had the fortune to spend three days with 15 guys, all fervently pursuing the calling God has on their lives. Defined by…as our lead guide Gary Barkalow (www.TheNobleHeart.com) says, “The affect of who you are on others.” Or paraphrased by me for the sake of this post…how you uniquely impact, influence and serve others. What your heart is for people.

I facilitated one session of the event and felt led to focus on ‘convictions.’ Getting people to have and communicate their convictions…is one of my…convictions. Part of my calling actually. So, here is a quick case for, and a request for…convictions:

A Case For Convictions

DEFINED
Let’s define it really quick – conviction: a fixed or firm belief

Get that? It’s a BELIEF. Not a salvation issue. Not an absolute truth. Not a right or wrong. And in such, there is no place for self-righteousness. My feeling that you should not jump off the roof of my house is not really a conviction (belief), it’s absolute truth. Gravity. If you jump into a pool, getting wet is not a belief, it’s a fact. A truth. As a believer in the Bible, Christ claims He is the Son of God and salvation is through Him. It’s a truth you either accept or reject. No middle ground. Thus it doesn’t fall into mere belief or ‘conviction’.

It’s also not PERSONAL TASTE or OPINION. I live in an area where it doesn’t rain much, because I don’t like rain. No belief or soapbox. I don’t drink beer because I don’t like the taste. I wish I did actually. But…I don’t. Just me, nothing more. I prefer wood furnishing over metal. I have nothing invested in this, it’s just something I like and choose.

POISONED
In our culture today, the only thing people stand for is…nothing. To have a belief, value, soapbox and conviction on anything personally and to share it is viewed as intolerant, narrow-minded, naive, self-righteous, judgmental…

Much of the reason is that convictions have been abused by people with a heart for themselves more than for others. Last night while on a date with my wife Teri in downtown Colorado Springs, there was a street ~~menace~~ preacher. Some poor soul on a street corner loudly speaking things of God and faith. It was abhorrent. And the truth is, he wasn’t ‘preaching’ to serve God or anyone around. He was doing it for himself. He was serving his own desire and errant attempt to earn a star in his heavenly cap or pay his penance. I don’t know which, but it was one of the saddest things I’ve seen in a long time.

Point being, he had a conviction to make a joke of himself on a street corner and the purpose was NOT to serve others. It was to serve himself.

Second problem, we have two cultures of the dreaded self-righteous that have done near irreparable harm to convictions:

The church
The enlightened

The church. ‘Christians’. I don’t think I need to dive into that dead sea to make my point. Self-righteousness flourishes and is as far removed from the Christ they claim to serve than a hotdog is from the next bunch.

The ‘enlightened’. These are the main critics of the former group, and just as abounding in self-righteousness in their intellect and self-realization. These folks eat healthy, live clean, have a wealth of knowledge on many subjects, well educated, affluent, question the norm…

They are both sickening in their own right and I sadly fit into BOTH groups. Their arrogance and misused authority are the primary poisons that have destroyed the beauty and necessity of true convictions.

Again folks, I have been a primary perpetrator of self-righteousness, and I’m ashamed of it. My wife was the second woman I respected who flat out, in sincerity, said I was an, and I quote, “Arrogant ass.” There is just no good way of looking at that. I apologize to all who I’ve poisoned during my 40 years. And I’m still not totally free from my tendency toward AAness.

OFFENSIVE
Convictions WILL step on toes, because they do in essence force you to state a claim for what you believe to be healthier and against what you believe to be unhealthy, and you undoubtedly have folks who believe in what you see as unhealthy. That’s the rub. To have a conviction that can help someone, you have to risk offending someone. I believe TV is overall unhealthy. Point blank, end of story. I love a great story, I like to be entertained, I have 7 kids that would enjoy it. But, we’ve never had TV, never will and we maybe watch one movie per week. I believe it’s best to be a character in life, not a spectator. And I don’t want media pumped into and influencing my home. Now there you go. Some will read this, it will CONVICT them, and they’ll lessen their TV watching to get rid of their TV. They’ll spend more time with family and working on their dreams and exercising and choosing activities that are healthier. Others will feel offended, judged, guilty…

That’s just the nature. But you can’t help some, if you don’t offend others. I wish it were easier, but it’s not. So stay safe and ineffective, or be dangerous and of worth.

Remember that guy…Jesus Christ? He spent his ministry sharing His convictions. It saved people. And got Him killed. You can’t do this safely. So what are you called to? Saving your own butt and keeping it clean? Are you a Christian and you nod your head in church when they speak of ‘persecution’ and say you’d die for your faith? You wouldn’t deny your Lord even if threatened with death? What if Christ has called you to share a conviction in an effort to help another? What if it doesn’t go well and you are persecuted? Hmmm….

Though you can help the persecution with this:

LET THEM KNOW YOU CARE
Everyone’s heard it, “People don’t care how much [or what] you know, till the know how much you care.” If you take your conviction and hit people over the head right away like the dreaded street preacher I mentioned, you’re pissin’ in the wind. Don’t bother. You have to do the work of proving your care for someone before your convictions will have merit. Which again is what dilutes the efforts of the 3 Musketeers I mentioned above; the ‘self-serving’, the ‘church’ and the ‘enlightened.’

You share convictions to serve, and you do it out of love.

NECESSARY
Convictions are necessary and glorious. They are needed more than the air we breath. Show me a movement that made the world a better place and gave health to the unhealthy, and I’ll show you one person who stood on that conviction out of a true heart to serve and love others.

True convictions are communicated and offered with a heart to serve and love. To as I said above, bring health to something unhealthy. Again, don’t get hung up on right or wrong or ‘sin’ or salvation.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY
You have experienced mistakes in your life. You have regrets (or at least you should). You have had an unhealthy area that you became aware of, got counsel on (probably at the hand of someone else’s convictions) and became healthy in. And it’s a huge freakin’ deal! You might have been killing yourself with your diet, you changed it and found healing and new life, and now you have great value to offer someone else who is killing themselves!!

To be in the presence of a person suffering as you were, and keep what you were gifted with to yourself, is akin to being an accomplice to suicide. That’s not an exaggeration. Dwell on it a minute. And again, I’ll own up to my own admission. I’ve seen couples first hand who were killing their marriages with obvious acts of unhealth, where I had been given an gift of awareness, and I said nothing. NOTHING! Why? I LOVED MYSELF MORE THAN I DID THEM. That’s not a belief, that’s absolute truth. I didn’t want them to offend and possibly have ill feelings toward…ME.

How often do we have knowledge that we know could help, and we let folks to straight to hell-in-a-handbasket because we’re too damn pansy to risk an offense. “Hey, Bart is now divorced/in prison/dead, but at least I didn’t say anything offensive and that would possibly have made him upset with ME/ME/ME/ME!”

Isn’t that what we do as a culture? Isn’t that what you do every day? Yeah, me too. Disgusting isn’t it?!

Again, it doesn’t mean you mouth off at every chance you get. You don’t rape people with your convictions. You woo them.

BOLD
Convictions must be communicated boldly and confidently to take root. Not loudly or obnoxiously. It can be quiet and firm. And it should have at least a hint of humility as fertilizer for it to flourish. I can boldly communicate my convictions on nutrition and against the American diet, even as I attest to my own journey and struggle and failing. But it’s not a place for timidity or wishy-washyness. It will merely skip off the surface like a flat stone thrown over water.

KEY TO FREE AGENCY

Go look at your bookshelf, the nonfiction books you think are just killer. Go look at your DVD collection of favorite movies and those that inspire you. Go read Fast Company or Inc. or Entreprenuer magazine that touts all the rock star businesses.

What you’ll find at the heart is…a conviction. A belief.

Yet here go most folks who want to do something great and worthy, be self-employed and free, and they are looking for an opportunity.

They’re looking in the wrong place!

Look to your convictions. We can take your conviction and MAKE an opportunity. A conviction is the fuel that will overcome ANY obstacle put in your way and truly serve others. I’m typing in my office on the second floor of my straw bale house that consists of probably 50 supposed truths that many wise people cited and told me my way WOULD NOT WORK. My convictions saw me through and here I sit.

Again, a conviction is a belief that commits you and can serve people. ‘Serve’ being the operative word. If you are think that ear rings in men are wrong, there is really no serving in there. That’s merely personal taste and opinion. Some of my uber conservative Christian brethren would like to say it’s a sin to pierce ones self. If so, go back up to the definition. They are then stating a supposed truth. Conviction is personal belief in something…healthier. And for the record, my wife thinks my ear ring is sexy, so I’m wearing it. If she thought a sideways ear-to-ear mohawk was sexy, I’d be running to the barber (that’s one of MY convictions).

YOUR CHARGE: GROW SOME COJONES & SPEAK. NOW
SO…right now, let’s do something together. Speak a conviction. Speak 10. I’m pretty sure that many of you have a list of convictions that you live out as a part of your life and your families. But you may have believed them to be ‘personal’ because you didn’t want to ‘judge.’

If you keep your knowledge from me, you are robbing me. And DON’T JUDGE! Be humble and compassionate and caring. And resolute.

Do it out of your care for others, but I’ll affirm that your free agency might very well be riding on this exercise right here.

Remember, you do it in love, but with absolute understanding that you WILL step on toes. As a matter of fact, I’m not posting my own list in the comments until someone steps on my toes!

Note: If you sit back and realize you don’t have any convictions, you are in unfortunate, but good company. Having and sharing convictions is not the norm anymore. Wait as the comments come in here and see if any light a fire under you.

Ready…set…go!

LATE NIGHT UPDATE:

It’s 11pm on the night I posted this. The comments are rolling in and I’m going to further expound on this tomorrow. Below are three things:

The audio of the show I did today on this topic where I read it, expounded and read the first 8 comments that came in (there are 18 at this exact moment),

Free Agent Underground Show – “I dare you to post a conviction”