Zac Parsons

In case you missed the breakfast in Birmingham a couple of weeks ago, TPI’s own Ron Medved presented the Leadership Innovation Award to Alabama football coach Nick Saban for his team’s incredible championship season this year.  This nine minute clip below shows some of the highlights from the event.

If you are a coach, athletic director, or even an athlete looking for a every ethical edge you can get, maybe you should check out our PX2 program and see if The Pacific Institute can help you and your team to do more of the things you know you are capable of.

Congratulations again coach.  You definitely deserve it.

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In 1994, Brad Jacobsen was hanging out with some friends along the bank of a river in the Pacific Northwest.  Someone decided to break out a frisbee, and a spirited game began.  At some point, when someone threw a frisbee near to one side of him, like he did with so many other things in his life, Brad went all out.  With a few steps in the water and a quick, spry jump that was always natural for the athletic young man from British Columbia, he tried to leap into the water.  But his foot slipped on the sand.  Thinking that part of the river was deeper (and trying to avoid an embarrassing bellyflop), he tried to roll as he hit the water.  Sadly, it wasn’t.  It would be the last time he would ever have the use of his legs.  Brad’s spinal cord was irreparably injured.

Since that day, Brad has persevered from the life-altering accident to become a man more focused than ever on having a positive impact on this world and a high quality of life.  He also happens to be a VJ for The Pacific Institute’s “Discovering the Power in Me“.  Brad has an incredible sense of self-efficacy.  He continues to be an avid outdoorsman and has hiked the physically and mentally exhausting Pacific Trail.  He is producing a documentary of the journey he and nine friends took on the trail.  Check out the preview below.  If you would like to be a part of financially supporting the completion of his movie, you can contact Brad at poobala@hotmail.com.

His body may be seated, but his spirit is standing.

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If you are a college football fan, you know that the Bowl game match-ups were decided this week, and that the BCS title game will feature the University of Alabama and the University of Texas.  Both teams are undefeated, and there is little debate that both teams deserve to be there.  What you may not know is that the University of Alabama is a client of The Pacific Institute.

There is an entire section of this website dedicated to the implementation of TPI’s program for youth “PX2″.  There is also a subsection for the implementation of this program in sports, featuring an video introduction by Pete Carroll.  Within that, there is a page dedicated to our clients on the football field.  Alabama’s participation in the PX2 program is chronicled there, with some links to outside news and sports agencies regarding our partnership.

Former NFL players Antowaine Richardson and Nesby Glasgow, who are trained as PX2 facilitators, took the players through each of the 12 units during training camp for the last two years.  Tailoring the program for application on the football field, the players identified areas in their own skill sets and roles on the team where their were underperforming to their potential.

One of the first questions asked of PX2 participants is “Who’s in control?”.  Basically, the question is trying to discover whether it is external or internal forces that drive our behaviors.  Truly, it is a mix of both.  But, in order for us to be responsible for our behavior, we have to acknowledge that we are in control of our lives.  If this is true, then as a result, we ourselves are the biggest limiters of our effectiveness and performance.

If at times you feel like a victim, then you may be able to alter this belief with a greater understanding of how much control you really have.  While we can’t control everything that happens to us, we can often control how we respond and react.  By removing the victim-mentality, we can see outside influence in a different light.  Either it is imagined, or we cannot change it.  Either way, our focus should remain on that which we can effect.

Alabama set a goal to win the SEC championship this year.  Why not the BCS national championship?  Maybe because the last three SEC championship winners have gone on to win the BCS national championship.  It’s clear that the next goal is to win the game against Texas in January.  No one for Alabama is hoping for referees, weather, luck, fate, or anything else outside of them to work in their favor.  When it’s time to play, these guys know “Who’s in control.”

Send me an email if you are interesting in hearing Lou Tice and Nick Saban speak in Alabama on January 25.

Roll Tide.

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The Pacific Institute just released a new promotional video for the Discovering The Power In Me program.  Although initially designed for people suffering from spinal cord injuries, it has been incredibly useful for people dealing with all sorts of trauma.

For more information about Discovering The Power In Me (DPM) please visit my page on this program here.

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For whatever reason, the phrase “Tuesday Newsday” just sounds a little too corny to be proud of inventing.  I searched around online and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that it has been used and enjoyed by others for quite some time now.  So, instead of being corny for inventing it, I will just be corny for borrowing it.

I’ve been reading a lot of different blogs online and I’ve enjoyed bringing in some guest bloggers to this site.  Sometimes though, I find a cool news article and I want to do more to it than just “Digg” it.  Starting on August 11, 2009, I will have a new weekly feature of discussing some sort of topic in the news that seems relevant to the idea of “what it means to be human”.  It will be called “Tuesday Newsday” and I’ll try to have it up early on Tuesday morning each week.

If you are interested in subscribing to my blog feed, just click on the button to the right that says: and choose your favorite reader or (if you’re not sure what a reader is) the email option.

Thank you for checking out my site and please feel free to forward my contact information to any friends or colleagues of yours that might be interested in reading along (by clicking the + Share/Save button below).  You can link to a posting on your Facebook account with the button as well.  It’s pretty cool.  If you have any questions about  using TPI’s programs, just click the appropriate tab in the menu bar above or send me an email at zparsons@pac-inst.com.

What do you think of the new look?

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The Pacific Institute is launching a new 15 unit program in the next week.  It is designed to be a shorter version of the 5 day Investment in Excellence program to fit in better with busier schedules and smaller budgets.  Pricing details will be released at the launch, but it is going to be at a lower price than the full IIE program.  Here is a promo video released yesterday:

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One of my associates at The Pacific Institute, Angela Nesbitt, is working with the Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City to help with some of their juvenile offenders.  Instead of strict incarceration, they had 24 youth go through the PX2 program and are now tracking the youth with regular follow up.  The hope is that these young people not only turn from a pattern of criminal behavior, but that they become responsible and active members of the community in a positive manner.

Angela’s passion for the program grew to a new level after her daughter went through it in February.  She loved the program for youth aimed at helping them succeed at their goals and dreams, but watching it bring new focus to her daughter was a proud and powerful testimony for her.

The different settings in which PX2 has shown to be an appropriate program is surprising a lot of people.  It’s application reaches beyond the world of sports and leadership training.  If your group of young people would like more information about PX2 and how it can be implemented, please contact me at zparsons@pac-inst.com, or click on the PX2 link in the header of this page.

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Self taken photo of Kathy in 2009.

A few short months ago, I was “accidentally” introduced to Kathy Grimes.  She facilitated a training seminar at my new company, The Pacific Institute.  I say “accidentally”, because she was called in at the last minute due to a scheduling conflict with the original facilitator.  The next three days would find us closely discussing our past, present, and future.  We had a strong spiritual connection, and she encouraged me often.  From there, it grew to a business partnership and quickly a familial friendship.

After lots of phone calls and emails about develping a business plan together, she invited us into her home to be closer.  That is exactly what happened.  Although we spent most of our days on growing our business, our nights were filled with great food, better conversation, and tons of laughter.  One night, after a particularly good meal, I commented to Kathy that the food was so good that I wanted to “sew my ass shut”.  It was a quote from a TV show, but it was an especially appropriate time to quote it.  We laughed until we cried and tried to figure out a way to work that phrase into our business plan.  Fortunately, we were unsuccessful.

On Monday, March 23, 2009, Kathy laid down to take a nap, and never woke up.  She died of a massive heart attack without any signs o struggle.  She was 62.  She taught me so much about loving family and loving life in a tragically short amount of time.  I know that our business will soar with her spirit guiding us.  At her memorial today, Sean read an email that Kathy had shared with her husband just the week before.  It was a breakdown of the word “guidance”.  Life often times feels like dancing with God.  When life us good, it is as if we are dancing in His rhythm.  The “g” stands for “God”, the “u” stands for “you”, and the “i” stands for “I”.  Together, that word paints a picture of God, you, and I dancing.  It was beautiful.  So was Kathy.  Thank You God for blessing me with so many real moments with her.

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Today I got to spend some time with Aaron Blackstone.  Aaron is an associate of The Pacific Institute and lives in West Seattle.

When he was a teenager, he was a top athlete in his school in soccer, wrestling, and track.  He also was highly involved in competitive horseback riding year round.  A car accident changed all of that.  He experienced significant brain trauma and spent 13 weeks in a coma.  He lost the use of many of his normal bodily functions.  He needed to re-learn how to read, eat, speak, bathe, etc.  His life was significantly different than it was before the accident.

What I was struck by most about Aaron, who has now lived more of his life with the injury than before it, was his glow.  He is an absolutely positive person.  His days aren’t “good”, they are “great”.  He lights up a room when he walks in and does even more when he opens his mouth.  Everything about who Aaron is now is for the good of the world.  He wants to and is changing people’s lives with his perspective on life.  It may have been having a near death experience, or it may just have been the supportive family that stood by him and lifted him up, year after year.  Aaron has all of the maturity of someone who has gone through difficult life experiences, but very little of the bitterness that can be associated with that.

He has kept a journal for over 15 years that is now over 2,000 pages long.  In it, he takes the principles of life that he picks up along the way, and personally applies them to his life.  He uses the words “I” and “me” as he builds affirmations about himself.  He looks at his accident as a gift.  It has changed the course of his life in a way that he would not want to take back if he could.

If anyone could claim to be a victim in life, it would be Aaron, but fortunately, he does not choose to.  I make the same choice today as well.

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This is a short clip that was filmed during a facilitation of the Investment in Excellence curriculum in February 2009.

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