Cam Taylor

Be inspired. Be focused. Be tenacious.

10 Essential Traits Needed to Survive Adversity

There is an essential quality you need if you plan on surviving trauma, set-backs, and the storms that come in life. It’s not just what I believe, it’s backed up by research. The quality I’m talking about is resilience. What is resilience? The dictionary defines it as… “The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness…the […]

What 1,800 Miles Taught One Man About True Happiness

Life is a journey, not a destination. — Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson’s quote in theory sounds so solid. In practice, however, making life about the journey is hard, especially for people who enjoy setting and reaching goals and getting things done! Thankfully, there are people who can inspire us to help keep us on track. […]

Discipline – GIYC part 5

Discipline is discipline is discipline is discipline!!! If you have discipline in sports, you’re well on your way to winning games, and if you have discipline in your life, you’re well on your way to success. In sports and in life, discipline can’t be an occasional thing — it has to be an all-the-time thing. […]

Optimism – GIYC part 3

The third quality you need to have GIYC (grit in your craw), is optimism. Without it, you give up more easily, are difficult to be around, and miss out on all that life has to offer. This is the third quality of the eight required to digest the tough stuff life throws at us. The […]

Tenacity – GIYC part 2

Without GIYC (grit in your craw), you are unable to digest life’s challenges. With GIYC, you rise every time you fall, keep going when tempted to quit, and maintain hope when circumstances overwhelm. In this post, we look at GIYC quality #2 — tenacity. The eight qualities (as described by Robert Luckadoo*) are diligence, tenacity, […]

Diligence – GIYC part 1

Since birds have no teeth, they need a way to digest their food which is why they have a “craw” or gizzard in their throat. They fill it with grit – small stones, grain and sand which serves to grind up food before it reaches the stomach. In life, we need grit in our craw […]

How to Maintain Optimism in a Dream Crushing World

An experiment conducted in 1967 resulted in a fascinating discovery. The experiment placed five monkeys in a cage with a bunch of bananas hanging high out of reach. Up against the wall, however, was a ladder could be used to climb up and reach the bananas. It didn’t take long for the monkeys to spot […]

Viktor Frankl’s Keys to Happiness

“Happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue.”* If you go looking for happiness you won’t find it. It’s a by product of the pursuit of something else. Viktor Frankl taught and more importantly lived, in a way that personified the ability to find meaning in life when faced with unimaginable suffering. There were three principles […]

The Secret of Oaks and Diamonds

Do you ever wonder if your life is making a difference? Are you busy waiting for something that hasn’t yet come? Are you in a stormy season that keeps you from “feeling” productive and useful? These questions, for me, have been answered many times with a “yes.” To be honest, I’m unwilling to settle for […]

How to Fan Compassion’s Flame

While out riding my mountain bike this week (an exciting new hobby I was cleared to pursue!), I ran into an old friend I got to know while riding my scooter around the neighborhood over the past 3 years. He also rides a scooter. My friend deals on a daily basis with advanced Parkinson’s but […]