Lately, I’ve been revisiting my interpretation of Einstein’s E=mc2, a theory that inspires my hunt.  Energy truly is matter after all, and the power of our thoughts should encourage us all to know that anything is possible. The early months of the summer were challenging, but the tides have turned, and positivity is rolling back with incredible results.

Call it what you want: The Secret or The Law of Attraction; this is what I know to be true: like attracts like.  If you wander the fields thinking you are never going to find a target, or thinking even if you do, you won’t hit it, odds are you are right.  And those same odds play if you think you WILL.

When I find myself slipping away from positivity (because nobody’s perfect, least of all, me), there are a few great tricks that get me right back into the hunting frame of mind:

Look for joy and spend time on the sh*t that matters.  Spend time with family, get your toes in the proverbial sand and focus on what is significant in your life.

Step away from the center of the storm.  Reality gets distorted when you are too close.  In all likelihood, you are making progress.  Take a step back, get in your tree stand and gain some perspective.

Trust the universe. Have a little faith, don’t make radical moves out of fear. Stay consistent and true to your vision and expect a few more green lights to start coming your way.

Check out.  A watched phone doesn’t ring.  Leave the phone at home, spend some time looking at the stars, enjoy a great meal or just take some time and be.

If you put your energy toward the things that matter the most on your hunt, you will be rewarded with results.  You might get discouraged; you might need those tricks I just recommended.  And if you want to argue with Einstein, well, I wish you luck.  Energy equals matter, and you can realize your fondest dreams through hard work, focus, staying above and clear and embracing the power of positivity.  Take it from DFarbz, it works for me.

Today, I offer a list of five things I am grateful for this week in the life of DFarbz:

I am grateful for my wife, my beshert, my one and only Nadine, who I celebrate daily. She is more beautiful than the day we met and I could not ask for a better partner.

I am grateful to be home. After some extended construction, the Farbz Five are back in the ‘hood.  It is good to be home.

I am grateful for July. June was fast and furious and (fingers crossed!),  July will bring some quality family time up north and a bit of peace before the business of fall.

I am grateful for my brother, Andy: his wisdom, his patience, his kick-ass business sense. Which makes me grateful to my parents, Burt and Suzy, for giving me a brother and a best friend all in one.

I am grateful for my sweet, funny, adorable boys who fill my heart with all their little boy craziness. Which brings me right back to my wife, without whom we would all be lost.

What are you grateful for this week?  If you look, it’s easy to find five things EVERY DAY to thank the universe for putting in your path on the hunt we call life.  When things aren’t going your way, seeking out the things that are can put your whole hunt into perspective.  When the going gets tough, the tough get grateful.

XO,

DFarbz

Day before overnight camp drop off:

Sitting there with Hunter on the couch with my arm around him, I kissed his head. I love the smell of his thick brown hair; it’s so Hunter. I got a little choked up and said to my number one son, “Man, you’re going to have so much fun up north at camp. Before you know it we will be hanging again, but I can’t believe we won’t see you for two weeks, maybe four if you stay there longer. I love you, homey.”  Hunter responds “I love you, too Dad. I’ll probably come home after two weeks, and I’ll miss you so much.” I held my man tight with a tear rolling down my face. What can I say, Nadine and I live for those boys, they are our highest purpose.

Next day: Drop off day:

We loaded up the bed of our Chevy Silverado with Hunter’s duffle bags, packed all three boys into the back seat, and off we went to the drop-off spot where the parents watch their children board the busses to camp. While it was a day I knew would eventually come, it was still somewhat surreal. Hunter strolled over to the bus smiling and was super chill about the whole thing which made it a little easier. Some parents weren’t so lucky:  we saw kids throwing up, running away from the bus and some parents had to carry their kids aboard, making my heart sink. Hunter, he just sat there with his boy, Hudson Rosner, front row of the bus cool as could be. I’m not going to lie, I miss that kid, and things seem abnormally quiet in our home, but it’s so great to let him grow up and expand his horizons.

Driving Away:

I thought to myself as we pulled away, how wild it is that we’ve fought many fights in business that have little effect other than an occasional curse word. With what’s quickly moving to three decades of hardened business experience in several industries, I’ve become calmer, more patient, tougher, smarter, and much less emotional about it. You learn that business is a game in the end. You work hard to leave nothing on the court, to fight your best fight. Then you get to go home, and that is where life begins. Rarely do I allow business to shake me up, yet two days packing up and dropping Hunter at camp had me in a whirlwind of emotions. Funny how that works.

You might be asking yourself “What’s the big takeaway D Farbz”? Well, I think it goes something like this…

You can work as hard as you want and accomplish all sorts of success, whatever that looks like for you. You’re going to have wins, and you’ll have losses. You’re going to have career days that seem like the end of the world. News flash, they’re not. They are just bad days. That sun will rise again the next morning.  What matters is family.

My takeaway for you is to get real with family, mend the wounds, say the things that must be said. Don’t hold back in your expressions of love to those that mean the most to you. You never know when The Bus from above is coming. I assure you that when it does arrive for you or someone close to you, you won’t be talking about that shitty day in business. And from my family to yours, have an amazing Fourth of July in the greatest country in the world!

#familyrocks

EvolutionLast night, sitting at an anniversary dinner with my wife, it struck me that I am not the man my wife ma

Last night, sitting at an anniversary dinner with my wife, it struck me that I am not the man my wife married ten years ago.  That guy, a young, bright-eyed DFarbz, is just a shadow (though a slightly less wrinkled one) of the man I am today.  And part of that evolution is due, in part, to the continuous and consistent love and support of my amazing wife, Nadine.  She has given me three beautiful boys, a home of light and laughter and a resounding reason to continue on this path of evolution.

I am not the man that transitioned the leadership of Farbman Group to my much more able, best friend, brother, and partner Andy Farbman so I could diversify our family into new ventures.   Farbman Group has celebrated 40 years of success and remains the anchor of our families’ business and knowing Andy is at the helm is a great source of pride for the entire family (and that’s what it’s all about, family)!

I am not the man that started Carbon Media Group on a wing and a prayer and a lifetime of real estate experience.  That guy, a slightly older, mildly battered DFarbz, was on a quest to restore his business partners’ investments, repair his reputation and grow a business around his passion: hunting and the outdoors.  Carbon Media Group has grown along with me, now advancing streaming programming through Carbon TV and creating a bright future for hunting and the outdoors that captures the beauty, adventure, and exhilaration we hunters treasure.

I am not the man that wrote (the New York Times best seller) The Hunt.  That guy, a revitalized, restored DFarbz, found inspiration in a tree stand and sat down to write a handbook so others could understand how hunting and the outdoors shaped my path; how each deer I hunted, each arrow I released was a part of my journey.  The Hunt created a new path for me, a vehicle for getting my message out to a bigger community and an opportunity to help others on their hunt.

I am not the man that started HealthRise Solutions just a few years ago.  That guy, a savvy DFarbz looking for a pivot, spotted an opportunity in an industry that needed a strong dose of service, relationship building and a shot of ingenuity.  HealthRise started with building a team of smart, intelligent, like-minded people who wanted to improve the world of revenue cycle.  We are driven by that same goal every day.  I learn more about this world every day, and it continues to be a fascination, like no other industry.  HealthRise forces me to stretch my wings and skills to new lengths as we grow.

We, as hunters, never stop learning new techniques, following new paths, trying new things in our quest to hit our targets.  Part of being a hunter is being ready to evolve and change, while remaining true to our roots.  We learn to sway with the wind and turn our faces to the sun; we shed the old leaves of the past, look forward to the first snow and wait anxiously for spring.  The key to life and hunting is constantly evolving and appreciating the changes that come with time.   When I look back at that DFarbz from 10 years ago, it is with a smile and immense love for the man who was smart enough to marry the incredible woman I am lucky to call “Wife.”

These last few weeks have been a whirlwind.  The kids are out of school, my son’s baseball team finished strong this season, and each passing day I find myself facing a jam-packed schedule.  But today I’m on a plane, headed to Kalispell, Montana followed by Denver, Colorado to speak to some of my favorite groups about my favorite thing in the world: hunting!

More specifically, the future of hunting.  Just a few weeks ago, I appeared on CNBC to talk about the business of hunting and how the positive financial news coming out of the outdoors marketplace is a powerful thing.  Outdoor enthusiasts contribute $646 billion to the economy annually.  Billions!  And yet, the future of hunting is still facing controversy.

One of the things I often talk about when speaking to anyone – technology companies, automotive companies, finance, real estate – is FRAMING.  Specifically, framing your message for your intended audience, doing as Henry Ford suggested “seeing the issue from the perspective of the person across the table.”  The frame on hunting is one we, as hunters, can shape to protect and preserve this great human tradition for generations to come.

Framing the future of hunting is something I feel a driving need to contribute to, as I love a good walk in the woods as much as the next person and as a hunter, preserving the land is as important as population control or saving an endangered species.  I don’t think the average non-hunter knows about the contributions of the hunting community to the preservation of nature.  And that is a frame the team at Carbon TV, our producers, videographers, and storytellers are focused on hard-core.

I am a hunter.  I am also a lover of nature, a conservationist and a dedicated (if only figuratively) tree-hugger.  And I am not alone.  My hunting friends are equally as happy to take a walk in the woods as to let an arrow fly.  We love the ever-changing moods of nature, a star-filled sky, spotting a deer in the woods, spying a wild turkey from a car window.  We share these things with the ones we love, creating a new generation of wildlife spotters, morel hunters, tiny tree huggers who will grow up wanting to preserve these things to share with their children.  The future of hunting is bright.  And beautiful.  As hunters, we need to show that to the world.

CMG Founder & Chairman David Farbman Talks Serious Outdoor Business on CNBC

Boy, are we all stressed out.  Packed schedules, with work, family, friends, housework, yard work, homework have everyone from my co-workers to my closest friends feeling the pressure of having it all.  We have all heard the rules for prioritizing, for setting parameters, but it seems like a tidal wave is coming, and we are paddling frantically to stay afloat.

In times like these, I am ever thankful for the presence of Shabbat in my life; it forces me to disconnect with those stressors and reconnect to the love and positive energy of my family.  But on a daily basis, I have a trick that gets me out of the “Judge” frame of mind, where I find my thoughts whirling, to the clear, present mind of the Scout.

This trick involves using your five senses to create an immediate connection to the moment you are in, not trying to predict the future or change the past.  These are the same senses we use when hunting in the fields, the same way we pick up clues and can target and track our goals, whether it’s a trophy buck, a tasty Morel mushroom or just a peaceful spot to reconnect with nature.

Sight: Name one thing in your line of vision.  Notice five details about what you see.   If you find yourself placing judgment, let it go.  Simple observation is what you are after here.

Sound: What do you hear?  (Right now, it’s Maroon 5) Can you identify different elements of what you hear? (Guitar, drums, Adam Levine)

Smell: Take a deep breath through your nose.  What do you smell?  Again, do not pass judgment, just let those olfactory signals reach your brain.

Taste: Take a drink of water, a sip of coffee, a mint.  Savor the flavor, note how the taste transforms as it passes over your tongue.

Touch:  As a kinesthetic person, this is the most grounding sense for me.  Notice how your clothes feel against your skin, how the ground feels beneath your feet.

Our conscious mind can be on only one thing at a time. If we are centered on one sense at a time, our attention isn’t sucked into circling worries or concerns. With practice, those worries and ego constructs begin to lose a bit of their strength. When we stop paying attention to our anxiety, it ceases to exist.

There was a time when all we had were our senses to keep us alive.  And while the world has evolved to a place where that is not necessary, deep down, they are still a mechanism we can rely on when the time comes to take down a target, especially when stress is blocking your bulls-eye.