Whale of a Tale

Pull up anchors that hold you back

Dave, who works in Salem, OR for a new home development company told Session 3B of the Leadership Development Lab™ (LDL):

“Seven years ago, this October, I was sailing my newly acquired sailboat, which was moored in Yaquina Bay at Newport. Along were my good friend and sailing mentor Joe, his wife Joanne, and my wife Waynette. That day we were taking the boat across the bar and into the Pacific Ocean for the first time, a world record for me.

“It was a near perfect day for a novice sailor, like me. The sky was mostly clear, and the wind was light. Even though the ocean was a little gray, it was nearly calm. We sailed along at a lazy three to four knots all the way to the whistle buoy, which was a mile and a half offshore.

“We circled the buoy and headed back. The wind died away until we were loafing along at about two knots. The four of us were lounging in the cockpit with cool beverages and quiet conversation with just the sound of the light breeze in the sail and the bow sloshing through the water.

“Suddenly, we heard a ‘Whoosh!’ right off the starboard beam! We all spun to see a huge gray whale had surfaced and blown a column of steam and spray 15 feet into the air. The wind wafted the spray to us, and we could smell the foul fishiness of the whale’s breath. Then a second gray whale surfaced and blew right next to the first. We were so close we could see the ‘wet inner-tube’ skin and white bony barnacles on their backs. No matter how hard we may have tried, there is no way we could’ve planned so well, that we would have this front row seat for a whale of an experience.

“The lesson I learned from this experience is that I must venture out into the deep, leave my comfort zone, if I am going to have the joy, the thrill of nature’s irreplaceable beauty.

“The action I call you to take is to pull up the anchor, of fear or any other anchor that may be holding you back, from the joyful venture that is always just around the corner, when you leave behind the routine of your comfort zone.

“The benefit you will gain is your life will be filled with one world record followed by another.”