Uncategorized - Chris Clayson

Green Lights

On December 30, 2023

“Greenlights” by Matthew McConaughey: A Roadmap to Embracing Positivity and Seizing Life’s Opportunities

“Greenlights” by Matthew McConaughey is a refreshing journey through the highs and lows of life, wrapped in the insightful musings and experiences of the acclaimed actor. More than just a memoir, this book serves as a guide for embracing the unpredictability of life, navigating challenges, and finding the “greenlights” that propel us forward.

McConaughey’s narrative is both captivating and inspiring. He candidly shares pivotal moments from his life, detailing how he transformed obstacles into opportunities by embracing the “greenlights” – moments of alignment, growth, and success. His storytelling is filled with wisdom, humor, and raw honesty, making it relatable to readers from all walks of life.

One of the most compelling aspects of “Greenlights” is its emphasis on positivity. McConaughey encourages readers to adopt a mindset focused on the positives, urging them to see obstacles as opportunities in disguise. He beautifully illustrates how reframing setbacks can lead to personal growth and unexpected blessings.

The book is not just about success; it’s about embracing authenticity. McConaughey’s authenticity shines through as he shares personal anecdotes, unconventional wisdom, and thought-provoking philosophies. He encourages readers to be true to themselves, to chase their dreams, and to live boldly without fear of failure.

What sets “Greenlights” apart is its actionable advice. McConaughey doesn’t just share his life story; he provides practical takeaways that readers can apply to their own lives. Whether it’s the importance of gratitude, the power of perseverance, or the value of taking risks, his insights serve as a roadmap for personal growth and fulfillment.

Reading “Greenlights” is a motivational experience. It challenges the reader to reassess their approach to life, encouraging them to seek out their own “greenlights” and embrace the unexpected twists and turns. The book is a reminder that life’s challenges can be turned into opportunities and that a positive mindset can pave the way for a fulfilling existence.

The personal thing I took away from this book is being able to identify success in life and filtering out the distractions. The notion of “Green Lights” is to identify the good in life and holding onto it and utilizing it as motivation. Very insightful book.

October Sky – Life changing rocketry

By chrisclayson

On January 31, 2023

In Uncategorized

I’m sure there a 1000 blogs and book reviews on October Sky (1998). But most of my reviews tend a little dive deeper than the surface of the book but more how it’s impactful on your mind body and motivations in life. October Sky is probably my favorite book of all time because it taught me one simple truth in life:

Anyone can be a rocket scientist

It’s the 1950’s and Homer Hickman is a high school student living in the small coal mining town in West Virginia. In this town, becoming a man requires throwing a football or swinging a pick axe. Homer is a standard under achiever. In fact, their is nothing special about this kid and he seems to be destined to work in a dying coal mine. But like all young kids, he likes to blow stuff up. His interested begins with fireworks and even accidentally blows up his highly judgmental fathers white picket fence. He brings together a rag tag group of misfit that follow him down the path of amateur rocket design. As a hobby that’s unheard of in their little town, they are viewed as outcast in the community and contested at every turn. Yet they beg borrow and steal everything they can and with intrinsic dedication, ingenuity and trial and error they begin to produce functional rockets.

Homer Hickman was not special. In fact he was below special and barely squeezed by in Algebra. He was born into a society with expectations to become a coal miner. But he wanted to exceed expectations in life. He found a small thread of interest in his life and began to follow it.

The life changing theme for this book is it teaches people that you don’t have to be born an extraordinary human being to be exceptional. It even teaches you that you can be born into terrible confined circumstances and still succeed in life.

Another beautiful theme of the book was the father son relationship. Of course, the father was more than apprehensive about Homer’s trajectory in life and was extremely enthusiastic when Homer worked in the mine with him for a short period of time. But Homer snubbed the idea of working long term in the mine and continued to pursue his dream of amateur rocketry. This caused conflict between the two but a very nice touching moment happened between father and son at the end of the book.

Homer, his friends and family all show up to their remote launch pad to launch the last of their rockets. In fact, the whole town shows up to show their support. To Homers disbelief, his father shows up. He asks his father if he would launch the final rocket and his father agrees.

When Homers father launches the final rocket into the sky, Homers father gazes into the sky in disbelief. He proudly places a hand on Homers back and gives him a smile of approval.

The book was very symbolic for a person trying to escape their personal ordained design in life and fly to places that you’ve only dreamed of. When people are in a rut and don’t believe in themselves, or when they lack courage, fortitude or confidence, I often recommend this book as a gentle nudge to them to let them know, anything in life is possible. Cheers!