Donald Shampine

  365 Days – A Rundown Today I hit my goal! Last year I decided to try and accomplish a running streak that would last a full year. In order to meet that goal I had to run at least one mile every day. I set the mileage at one mile to allow me to run even if I was sick or injured, but I wanted to run longer than that on average. I was able to average just under 2.8 miles per day for the year. I covered a lot of miles and I learned a few things along the way. I Made Time. There were many days that it was not convenient for me to run. I ran anyway. I ran at 3:00 am. I ran at 11:00 pm. I ran when it was cold, when it was raining, when the wind was against me, both ways. To be honest, my motivation was gone just after the midway point. It was only my discipline that allowed me to continue to make time to run every day. The excuses were abundant, but I still made time. I Don’t Like to Run. Running has never been my passion. My wife loves to run, and she loves to run long distances....

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I am not a runner. Well let me clarify, I run and run often, and sometimes even long distances. Yet, it’s not a passion for me as much as it is for many of the people I run with. I run for health. I run because my spouse is a runner. I also run because I really like to eat, whatever I want, whenever I want, so I must burn off calories. So, this non-runner decided to attempt a marathon and embark on a journey that taught me a lot about the sport, the activity, the participants and most importantly about myself. They are very welcoming I don’t know if it is because runners are nicer than most or if it is simply a misery loves company mentality and they are willing to bring in anyone ready to suffer with them. Regardless, they will greet you when you are new, reassure you when you struggle with the speed or miles, keep you company when you might feel slower than the rest, support you and encourage you, and introduce you to other runners that will fit your running style and training ...

T he N ew Year is upon us. As we cast off 2021 and look toward a fresh 2022 many of you will start the year with a resolution. Maybe it is to lose weight, read more, exercise, quit smoking, or whatever is driving you to be become a better version of yourself. Yet, a resolution without a plan is often destined to fail. In fact, less than 10% of New Years resolutions are actually achieved, and most fail within the first month. People fail at achieving their resolutions not because they lack desire, they simply lack a plan on how to achieve their goal. You cannot make a resolution or life goal and expect to achieve it without creating steps that help you realize your success.  Create your goal, build steps to make that goal part of your daily routine, write it down and then look at it daily. Creating a plan of action to support your resolution will help increase the odds of success. If it's truly something you want to change in the coming year take a little time really thinking about...

Some of the frustrations of running a small business are the tedious tasks that have nothing to do with your trade or profession. Yet, they are equally important and can often trip you up, stifle your growth, or possibly close you down. Knowing the potential ramifications for not addressing these tasks should make them a priority, but I still find many businesses ignoring them until they grow from a small task to a large problem. For example, in Michigan you have to file your business or corporation paperwork on an annual basis. This Annual Report comes with a $25 filing fee and is due by February 15 for your LLC and PLLC and by May 15 for your Corporation or PC. Late fees and reinstatement fees can be added if these are not addressed in a timely manner. The reminder letter and paperwork are sent to you automatically each year or you can file online at the LARA corporation’s division website. This is a tedious distraction but necessary to operate your business. Failu...

I generally do not use social media or restaurant review sites as the basis for my decisions on where to eat. The sites and information can often be misleading, inaccurate, and generally unhelpful. People feel they are qualified to serve as a critic for the simple reason that they eat food. Yet, most people lack basic kitchen knowledge, let alone the culinary expertise needed to truly be a restaurant critic.    Even a good review can be misleading as they often don’t give enough information to help you make an informed decision. Without a clear definition of the customers’ expectations and then a clear description of the product and how it met or failed to meet the definition, the reviews often lack substance on which to base an informed decision as to whether you should eat at the restaurant. Occasionally there are helpful reviews, but you must be careful on how you use them to base your eating decisions. Look to the quality of the review, the relevance to you...

Recently I watched the live birth of a giraffe. I was not a follower of the protracted pregnancy of April, although I was aware of it. And I do like giraffe’s, it just did not grab my interest. Yet, on the day of the calf’s birth I happened to be online at the right moment and I gave up 5 minutes of my time to watch the little giraffe being born. This was an event that was followed by many, for months, and viewed by millions that day, and following the event. It was a shared collective experience that was brought up online as well as real life conversations. It brought people together. It spurned discussions. I think mostly it was a welcome distraction from all of the other hard things going on locally, the political divide, the world conflicts, as well as the personal struggles we all face. I applaud Animal Adventure Park for sharing this experience with everyone. Understand this is not an endorsement of or a conviction of the idea of animals in captivity, simply an appreciati...