Randy Cantrell

Randy Cantrell is the founder of Bula Network, LLC, a boutique coaching company specializing in peer groups to help people leverage the power of others. Visit the website at ThePowerOfOthers.com.

Surrounded By Ninnies And The Ninnies Are Winning (May 30, 2018 Quick Hit)

Rosanne Barr got stupid. Again. And the people lost their minds over it. ABC canceled her TV show, which was drawing millions of viewers each week.

A Philly Starbucks called cops on two men. And people lost their minds. Yesterday Starbucks closed for company-wide training, losing $12 million.

The NFL and the national anthem continue to be in the news. And people are still losing their minds about it.

A video shows a cop being rough with a teenager. And people go ballistic.

A sportscaster doesn’t pander to his college alma mater on the air. People go nuts and he’s forced to move his family. To another town.

Just today, there’s this. A story from The Telegraph about people who wear reading glasses.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh analysed the genetic data of more than 44,480 people.
They found that, overall, those who were more intelligent were nearly 30 per cent more likely to have genes indicating they require reading glasses than those who scored poorly.

This is sure to cause riots among non-reading glass wearers who will likely feel bullied, assaulted, victimized by the researchers.

Chris Long, the Philadelphia Eagles player, posted a tweet a few days ago that got some hockey folks riled up.

I’m a serious hockey fan. I’m also a serious unfan of the NBA. But I’m also fond of Chris Long.

I wasn’t offended. Suppose the guy hates hockey and loves basketball. And that affects me how? And I would want to care because…?

The Internet was filled with people who took offense to Long’s tweet, not knowing one thing about what was really happening. Namely, that Chris Long was provoking people knowing full well that hockey players and the NHL is a tough game. It was a joke. And the joke was on the overly sensitive nimrods who reacted. You can read more about it all here. Or just do what many people do. Jump to a conclusion that suits you.

It just goes on. And on. And on. And on.

Right is right. Always.

Wrong is wrong. Always.

The problem is we’ve lost our way. We’d rather jump to conclusions with our knee-jerk reactions so we can harshly judge somebody. Empathy? Who’s got time for it? We’re too busy shouting ugly names at people. Calling people out.

Just about every network seems to have some late night funny person who drones on and on about the government, the White House, the President, or some celebrity who made a foolish move. The sheer number of these shows and the fact they remain on the air proves to me that somebody is watching. Networks are willing to pay these folks for doing what they do because it’s profitable. Which means people tune in. I may be the odd man out because I don’t find very many of them entertaining at all. For me, they’re the canaries in the coal mine of our culture’s lust for crushing people so we can feel better about ourselves.

When I was a kid playing football piling on was a penalty. Later it became known as a late hit. But we’d raze the guy who piled on. The person who wasn’t in the play, but wanted to get in on it anyway. That’s what all this behavior reminds me of. Folks who aren’t involved, but want to be involved. I wonder how much of that is happening. How many people are barking and howling at the moon of foolishness from the behavior of others just so they can get in on the action? And for what reason? So they’ll appear as more righteous? More morally upright?

If a harsh judgment of foolish or poor behavior was the only thing needed for wisdom, then we’d all be as wise as Solomon. Even Solomon veered away from God and in the end, he realized what was important. Reviling in his own bad choices, or the bad choices of others wasn’t the conclusion he reached. You can read his conclusion in Ecclesiastes 12:13, 14.


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I’m One Fat Lip From A Championship 5010

“I’m one fat lip from the championship,
So don’t give up the fight,
And whatever it takes,
I’m going to make everything alright…”

– from “Whatever It Takes” by James Hunter

Back in February a new James Hunter Six record came out, “Whatever It Takes.” The title track had a lyric in the fourth verse that immediately grabbed me. It’s an old-school R&B sound. Magical.

Right away, under the old format of this show, I began crafting a draft for this show. Over the past months, I’ve come at this thing from more angles than a junior high math class protractor.

So many ideas were prompted by that first line – “I’m one fat lip from the championship.” Adversity. Perseverance. Victory.

Adversity. Perseverance. Victory.

Those 3 continued to play on the endless loop in my head. And in that order. I focused on that first one because it’s the only universal one – adversity. We all face it.

But we don’t all exhibit perseverance. Which means we don’t all experience victory.

Whatever it takes. It’s a line we may have said often. Maybe we said it to ourselves, about ourselves. Or maybe we said it to somebody else. It’s one of those great sounding lines we deploy when we’re looking for inspiration. Of course, like so many wise sounding themes, if you dig too deeply you realize how untrue these kinds of things can be. Whatever it takes? Really? What if it means sacrificing your marriage? Your kids? Your convictions? Will you really do WHATEVER it takes? I hope not.

Victory does have a price tag. Part of the problem is it never tells you how much it’ll cost. You have to find out for yourself.

Along the way, you may discover the cost is too high. And you may jettison the fight. Or…

You may figure out as the cost goes up, that you’ll call or even double down. Or fold.

It’s up to you. We each have the power and ability to decide if the price is too high. But that decision doesn’t always appear so rational. Many of us pay prices that are too high given the reward. Others of us don’t pay enough of a price because we may not see the truly high value of the payoff.

It’s Free Form Friday here inside The Yellow Studio. I’ve been noodling this idea since I first heard that song. And that lyric.

Happy Friday!

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