Stuff I Learned Yesterday
About Stuff I Learned Yesterday
Stuff I Learned Yesterday is a podcast that aims to encourage, inspire, challenge, motivate, and improve the lives of those who listen to it. Stuff I Learned Yesterday is released each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Each episode ranges from 5-15 minutes long and contain short stories based on real events and lessons learned by the hosts. Friday episodes are called the Friday Forum and are filled with inspirational and motivational thoughts submitted by Stuff I Learned Yesterday listeners. Submit your story for a Friday Forum episode by calling 304-837-2278, visiting our feedback page, or click on the Send a Voice Message button on the left hand side of this page.
604- Monday Mailbag
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One of my leading desires for SILY is that these stories would bring in sincere questions from listeners that would in turn bring about a deeper understanding of Christianity, the Bible, and what it means to live in this culture as a Christian both for myself and all of those listening. Put another way, I hoped questions would come in that would lead to spiritual growth for both myself and other listeners. Today’s Monday Mailbag episode will be entirely devoted to a question that I received via YouTube from Wishyouwerehere435.
603- Planting Your Tree
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When I started podcasting in 2008, I never once thought that I might one day inspire someone else to become a podcaster. In times like these, I like to play the what if game. The quick version of it goes something like this: What if I’d never started my podcast about Fringe? What if JJ Abrams had never created Fringe? What if Cliff had never started his podcast about the TV show LOST. What if JJ had never been brought in to fix the original script for LOST?
602- There’s No Lone Ranger
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Trusting those you work with and those who work under you is incredibly important. But when they are entrusted to do their job with freedom and exercise their natural gifts, clients benefit, work culture benefits, you benefit, the company benefits, and your industry benefits. Remember, there’s no “I” in team, and even The Lone Ranger wasn’t alone.
601- The Shortening of the Years
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You’ve heard me say it recently because it’s been on my mind a lot, but it’s so painfully true when they say the days are long but the years are short. In future episodes I’ll talk more about Colby moving out of our house and I even have a story about college marching band that I have scheduled for the beginning of football season. But for today, I want to stay focused on the idea of time.
600- Right Handed Secrets
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In my early 20’s I lived in Texas for 3 years. There was also a guy I was associated with that had also moved to Texas from out of state. We’ll call the guy Mike. One day Mike had to go out of town for a few days for business. Apparently there was a meeting at the home office of the company he worked for. He and his wife had family there, so she traveled with him.
599- The Day the Music Died
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As a fully grown adult who loves marching bands and symphonies, I love the sound, size, and shape of the baritone. But as a scrawny middle school boy, I hated it. To me, it was only slightly better than the tuba. The tuba was the worst instrument. Only the fat nerdy kids played tuba and the baritone was its slightly less horrific cousin. I got to play treble clef music like a trumpet instead of bass clef music like a tuba, so that made it tolerable for me.
598- Showing Respect to Authority
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All of us make instant judgments and develop opinions of people the instant we see them before we’ve even met them or heard them utter a word. Respect and authority are a two way street. I firmly believe we should respect those in authority over us. However, only fools think that just because they have authority they must be respected. As a recovering fool, I can testify that true respect is earned, not given. When authority is handled with humility, respect is not only returned, it is accompanied with loyalty.
597- The Circle of Wrenches
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In my family, we have a generational heritage of working on cars. Well, except for my brother. He has no interest in working on cars and has asked me why I do it. He’s been known to buy a car without ever popping the hood to see what the engine bay looks like. It’s okay. He has skills in other areas, so I’ll give him some grace on that. For me, it seems like part of my DNA. I love the satisfaction I get from taking on a new challenge, pushing myself to learn a new kind of repair, taking that post-repair test drive…
596- A Tale of Two Prayers
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So I set aside time every day to pray. While I had no idea where I would end up, God did. While I had no idea what the makeup of my team would be, God did. While I had no idea whether or not I’d take over a new store or an existing store, God did. As I prayed, I asked God to shape me into the leader that my future team would need. I asked him to help me be humble, learn from Sammy the skills I would need, and prepare me for what lay ahead. I prayed for my team. I asked God to help prepare them. I asked him to work in their hearts to give them an attitude of humility and a desire to learn. I asked God to bless them and prepare them for the future we would have together.
595- I am a Blockhead
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I thought the New Kids were amazing. Girls liked the New Kids because they were cute, I liked the New Kids because they were cool. I heard someone once say that girls want to be with the New Kids, and guys want to be the New Kids. That was certainly true for me. I bought magazines of them and hung their pictures on my wall. I studied their wardrobe and tried to find clothes that looked like them. One time while in Walmart I saw a poster of Jordan that I liked. I asked my dad if he would buy the Jordan poster for me. I still remember the look of disappointment on his face when it turned out to be a poster of Jordan Knight instead of Michael Jordan. He didn’t buy me the poster.