"Endurance," Monday's Warm Cocoa 8.17.2026

“I chose Jensen's comments about persistence and resilience.” -  Andrew Bart   

Endurance

My friend and business partner Andrew’s note began with, Jensen Huang, founder of Nvidia was famously quoted: “If I knew how hard it would be, I probably wouldn't have started NVIDIA.”

“Jensen went on to say that true endurance is the real superpower behind long-term success. Jensen has been NVIDIA's CEO for more than three decades, but I would guess that most of you had not even heard of him until late 2023 or early 2024,” Andrew’s note continued.

I continually pondered and examined this message over the past few days. Concluding that most, if not all, of us could look over our preceding years and make the same statement around, “If I knew how hard it would be, I probably wouldn’t have started. Yet, many of us have continued on, reaping unexpected benefits and lessons of enduring while some allow challenges faced to crush their will and desire to continue on.

Perhaps these thoughts highly impacted me this week as a result of working with my friend John Michael Miller. We spoke while in an office building, in which we are negotiating a lease hold agreement. He talked about the challenges he’s faced during the start and continuation of his law practice and reputation.

“You know the age-old saying, taught to me by my father, it takes a lifetime to build a reputation for being honest and trustworthy, and only one small act to destroy it in an instant," he asked while explaining his constant vigilance and dedication to his law practice and his personal reputation.

Then, he offered another astute observation, “I have found that faced challenges produce valuable benefits for me professionally and personally. I am grateful for them!”

John continued by explaining the relationship between challenge, endurance and profitability, by saying that his approach to enduring trials has shifted over time. He doesn’t wish for difficulties, but he no longer laments them. He fixes his focus by examining each challenge he struggles through. He constantly asks, “what am I learning and gaining because of this?”

This directed focus has made a tremendous difference for John. It changed his perspective from seeing trial endurance as a necessary evil to using it as an enabler for creation. It allows him to anticipate the hope and beauty shortly to be his.

“It’s a reveal-an-unexpected-future-map, guiding me to a future I could have never imagined,” he said, causing me to see a relationship with Andrew’s words, “I chose Jensen's comments about persistence and resilience.”

You and I can choose persistence and resilience as a tool for expectant emergence. If we do, it will serve us to create a grander, unconceived and unexpected future while helping us to endure-well everything we face.

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I’m Lynn Butterfield, Real Estate & Lifestyle Expert and Television Host for American Dream TV. I’ve helped hundreds of Buyers and Sellers, as an Associate Broker with Coldwell Banker, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve what I call Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cyq612ohmd8YUwEa5WXZjA3IWJVDPzOe/view?usp=sharing

"Neighbors" Monday's Warm Cocoa 8.10.2026

“You have great neighbors!” -  Ambulance EMT   

Neighbors

Her morning didn’t begin the way she thought it would; even for a Monday.

“I was feeling ill all weekend and didn’t know if I could get up! I tried anyway,” Laura said.

That try caused her to fall to the floor.

“I passed out! I don’t know for how long. So, as soon as I regained clarity I reached my phone and touched two numbers.”

The first call Laura made was to emergency services. The next was to her across-the-street neighbor.

“As soon as I called, my neighbors came over right over. They arrived about the same time as the Fire Department EMTs.”

The EMTs started their work by talking and assessing. They were gentle and thorough. As were her attending neighbors. The neighbors also answered EMT questions, were supportive in every way possible and sure not to be in the way. They scurried a little further into the background as soon as the ambulance arrived. 

It took quite a bit of maneuvering to roll the gurney from the ambulance through the front door, across the foyer, through a corner of the living room, past an tight angled hallway and into the bedroom. Then, the four fire department care specialists worked carefully to prepare and lift Laura securely onto the gurney before retracing their route out of the house.

As they wheeled out, one of the EMTs said, “You have great neighbors!”

“Yes, I do,” Laura said brightly with a smile. “My neighbors are the best!”

“We’ll lock your house and check back with you a little later today. We’ve got you,” Laura’s neighbors called out as the fire department lifted and pushed her into position, securing her in the ambulance.

Gratefully, Laura arrived back home later that day. Her daughter-in-law collected her from the hospital and helped her into the house. Laura hobbled along in the medical boot protecting her broken foot. Her across-the-street neighbors brought her dinner that night. 

Others came and visited with her the entire evening, making sure she wasn’t alone. Laura’s friends jumped into action, calling each other and they soon had day-forward meals lined up. They knew it would be difficult for her to stand and cook food by herself. 

As soon as meals were planned, they called Laura’s daughter, living in a different state, to let her know what had happened, while comforting her that her mother was not alone. They’d be there for her.

“They’re always here for me,” Laura said. “Lots of people use the word neighbor to describe someone who lives next door, across the street, or nearby. But, the people living near me live by what my neighbor, Chris Hand, once called, ‘the neighbor code,’ while helping me through a difficulty. Thank goodness I have such neighbors!”

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I’m Lynn Butterfield, Real Estate & Lifestyle Expert and Television Host for American Dream TV. I’ve helped hundreds of Buyers and Sellers, as an Associate Broker with Coldwell Banker, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve what I call Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cyq612ohmd8YUwEa5WXZjA3IWJVDPzOe/view?usp=sharing

"Identity" Monday's Warm Cocoa 8.3.2026

"I had become absorbed by my title! I could no longer see another identity,”  

Identity

The casual dinner conversation turned as soon as Carly made a profound statement.

“When you’re an adult there is no reason to be unhappy in your work!”

The truth of her statement seemed to suck the air out of the entire, iconic restaurant. Of course, her words weren’t suddenly voiced without basis. The preceding conversation was all about the path she and her husband, Phil, had taken in their careers. Neither of their paths had followed a straight-line to prosperity, happiness and fulfillment. Yet happily, they had arrived in such a position.

“I was working a crushing number of hours,” Phil had explained a few moments before Carly’s insightful remark. “The pressure was always on and when a management change occurred, in the form of a new CEO, the culture shifted immediately. It became even more intense!”

His career had followed a corporate path he characterized as “title focused.” And, it took a major shift in workplace pressure, demand and leadership to reveal his plight.

“I had become absorbed by my title! I could no longer see another identity,” he explained.

Carly’s eyes were soft and understanding as he spoke. She had been through every part of this journey with him and had helped him walk a path toward personal and professional re-discovery. They had been through it together and they had uncovered recognizable warning signs while seeking a more joyful and fulfilling life.

Carly became so adept at seeing those cautionary markers that when she saw them in her own workplace she recognized them immediately.

“The people I was working with were unhappy and negative about everything,” she explained. “That negativity was so endemic I knew it wouldn’t change. That’s when I realized that as an adult there is no reason to be unhappy in your work. I could seek other opportunities.”

She looked for a change in employment and atmosphere and soon found it. Now she’s happily working and using her expertise elsewhere, while appreciating the enhanced positivity at work and home. The same has been true for her husband.

“I wake up excited every day now,” Phil said as he described a recent experience he had as part of his work.

His eyes brightened as he spoke. His eyes lifted and sparkled. The inflection sounding in his voice was one of pure joy. His happiness reflected an identity no longer dominated by a job title.

Phil and Carly have claimed their chosen identities. They are fulfilled, happy and contributing to each other and our community as a result.

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I’m Lynn Butterfield, Real Estate & Lifestyle Expert and Television Host for American Dream TV. I’ve helped hundreds of Buyers and Sellers, as an Associate Broker with Coldwell Banker, to discover where and how they want to live and work; to achieve what I call Realesation™. That’s why I bring you American Dream TV, Monday’s Warm Cocoa and Home by Design Magazine to stir your heart and mind. Contact me so I can join you along your own unique path of discovery.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e5_jupxN3vxL53bCgPiPgpA5D6-OFEbZ/view?usp=sharing