beBetter 

As we watched the first two episodes of the new season of Yellowstone, you could hear a pin drop. Season three ended on a cliffhanger with multiple lives hanging in the balance and finally, it was time to get some answers. I’m not going to ruin it for those of you who haven’t caught up yet. But if you haven’t seen this series, my advice is to start at the beginning and turn off social media. 

The beach is one of the places that restores my energy and creativity.  

Thanks to some great friends’ hospitality, CeCe and I have enjoyed the beautiful ocean views on 30A near Seagrove Beach, Florida, this year. I decided to work virtually and gaze out of the den to a beautiful white sandy beach and clear ocean waves.

Having the intent for HORNE and myself to make a difference during this time of social unrest, I wanted to share my prayer with you. Only with an intentional sense of belonging that provides each of us the safe place to share will we make the progress we all desire. It’s not one huge step. It’s lots of small steps, prayers and conversations every day that will turn the tide on individual and systemic racism. Together we can #beEvenBetter every day. Let’s not only pray together—let’s make progress together. 

CeCe and I were recently visiting Oxford, MS, to enjoy some Ole Miss baseball and some family time with my parents, Mom and Pop Joe, as well as three of our grandchildren. For me, it doesn’t get much better than watching the Rebels play combined with family time, so I certainly enjoyed the weekend.

In golf, your ability to play the “short game” is the quickest way to lower your score. You cannot shoot low scores in golf if you can’t chip and putt. Obviously, the pros spend hours refining this aspect of the game. And guess what skills go the quickest if you don’t play regularly? For me at least, it’s chipping and putting. This has never been more evident to me than last month ─ my once a year golf outing at Sage Valley. This year, I shot the worst score of my golfing career (108). That fantastic little score included triple bogeys on four holes. It was ugly, really ugly.

CeCe, my wife, has a reputation for making outlandish and sometimes thought-provoking statements (being extremely cautious here) which at times leave us laughing for hours. Recently, our daughter Haley and I were talking about coffee and some of the brands and roasts that we like. 

CeCe, hearing the conversation, spoke up with a statement about her favorite flavored coffee. We explained we were discussing true specialty coffee versus some of the artificially flavored coffee which she enjoys.

What do we mean by these four words and why do we repeat one of them three times? Learn Fast Learn Forward Learn Together has become HORNE’s motto for adjusting to the transformation that is occurring in our profession and in business overall. We are dealing with and facing fast-moving disruption not creeping change.