Email Article Print Article

An Uplifting Example By Some Big Dogs!

By John Dietz - Email Editor

Date : March 17, 2009

Dear Valued Reader,

Imagine a mission with desire and motivation so pure that nothing could stop your goal of advancing to success. You have made the sacrifice of experience, trained and developed the tools and endurance required to succeed. You could be the entrepreneur of the year, or you could be the lead dog in the Iditarod.

The purest analogy of “business in motion” from A to Z is the “Iditarod” Trail Sled Dog Race. It is a race across Alaska from Anchorage to Nome, 1,151 miles (1,852 km) that has taken place on the first Sunday of March since 1973, and it tests the best sled dog “mushers.” The quest of man and dog against nature in Alaska’s wild breeds a passion to win so raw and pure that it could be called the ultimate quest for success on this globe. Hence, the title The Last Great Race on Earth!

This race is the most popular sporting event in Alaska. It doesn’t compare to any other sporting event in the world in terms of difficulty. The race begins with a mission for twelve to sixteen dogs (a company) to pull a sled with a CEO, a “musher,” across trails and mountain passes, in blizzard conditions through tundra and forests, sometimes with a wind-chill of -100 degrees Fahrenheit. Six dogs must finish in the harness to qualify them as a winner. The record was set in 2002, in 8 days, 22 hours, 46 minutes and 2 seconds. This is an incredible feat of accomplishment for a team of dogs; dogs who know no rewards as we humans understand.

The CEO of this company is the key to the entire success. Not only do wrong decisions cause loss, they can also cause death. This is not to say that the race is not well managed; hundreds of thousands of dollars are spend on the race, Wells Fargo is one of the sponsors. There are many rules imposed to protect the dogs (like wearing boots), mandatory rest time and mandatory equipment. In the course of our business journey from A to Z, planning our decisions can be just as significant to achieving the results of achievement or failure.

Every musher has a different philosophy about the entire race. Being a musher is a full time enterprise. These CEOs of sorts make key decisions on strategy, such as what types of dogs to use, how to train them, what they should eat and which dogs will lead (the Alpha) and which dog will be in the back (the Braun) the strongest dog physically, but maybe not the best leader.

During the race, each CEO on the sled makes minute to minute decisions: when to run – day or night, when to rest, how to care for the dogs, resting, water, snacking and feeding, which dogs ride in the basket (resting or injured), which pass has the best footing in the mountains, which snow has the most solid footing in the tundra.

This is a company in motion following their mission. The dogs intuitively understand the training, but the race is driven by the human mind. The human mind drives the dogs from point A to B and C and so on. The second most important thing for any entrepreneur is: A businessperson with any plan that they set out to accomplish must use “benchmarks.” Benchmarks step us from A to B and to C, and so hopefully to Z.

We use the benchmark theory in Asset Protection. The Iditarod has mandatory benchmarks or “check points” that all mushers must stop and check in. This means that the entire company gets a check up and makeover with advice from qualified professionals, veterinarians, medical professionals, weather professionals and race advisors.

These “check points” increase the chances for success. Are we often to busy to pay attention to our mission and our benchmarks on a daily basis? Maybe we should all have dogs working for us with their talent for loyalty and focus, as many humans would fall short here on the rocky mountain terrain. Perhaps it is our fear that inhibits our success.

When it gets tough, we humans often use excuses like, “it’s too complicated.” The Iditarod Race deals with the evolution of technology and faces changes just like our business plans. The dogs are marked with microchip identification and by collar tags. The musher organizes his dogs according to race policies with microchip identification and tag numbers. The dogs racing daily are checked in at “dog drop points”, and then scanned and recorded details are sent to the headquarters in Anchorage.

Martin Buser set the record in 2002 when he crossed the finish line in 8 days, 22 hours, 46 minutes and 2 seconds. However, records are meant to be held by “one” and there are times when finishing alone is success. A red lantern is awarded to the last musher to finish. The longest time for a Red Lantern was 32 days, 15 hours, nine minutes and one second by John Schultz in 1973. Let us not give up on our missions because we fall short on some of our goals.

The 2009 race is likely to end Wednesday morning by 7:30 AM. Visit the champions and see the local results and pictures here.

When it gets tough; take a lesson from the Iditarod dogs. Keep your eye on the trail, even if the wind hits you in the face!

Until next time,

RELATED ARTICLES:

• Protect the equity in your home
• Asset Protection Plans
• C.A.L.M. Introduction
• Get educated on Asset Protection