Grand Canyon Preparation

I'm hiking down the Grand Canyon (GC) with a group of friends this fall.  I've done it multiple times before, but my friends are all rookies when it comes to the GC.  I was doing a little GC research on the web when I came across a nice little article on preparing for a GC rafting trip.  Many of the ideas are great and are applicable to hiking as well.  I've deleted some that were obviously rafting only and added a few of my own GC preparation tips.

• One week before the trip, have a yard of sand delivered to your home.
• Sprinkle liberally in your bed, dresser drawers, and on kitchen and bathroom counters. 
• Fill your saltshaker, sugar bowl and cereal boxes with sand and use them as usual.
• Place garbage can lids of sand in front of your fans and run them continuously at maximum speed.
• After renting a projection TV, illuminate the walls and ceiling of your bedroom with old horror movies, especially the snake, spider, lizard, mice and bat infested scenes. 
• Line your sandals with sandpaper and spend two hours per day on a Stairmaster.
• Drape the allotted contents of your brown grocery bag on the bushes and rocks in your back yard.
• Twice a day, practice changing while your neighbors watch.
• Practice relieving your self on a bush next to a jogging or biking trail.  Say hi to anyone who passes by.  (Necessary on the corridor trails)

Other helpful hints:

• Practice cooking and eating meals with one utensil and no dish or plate. 
• Always answer, "no?' to the question 'Does anyone want to go on a evening hike.

For summer season hikes do the following:

• For 2 hours each day, place your head in front of (or over) the fan on the condenser unit of your home air conditioner.

And for those dry summers on back country trails when water may be in short supply

• Pee in a baggy, pump it through your filter, then drink while warm.

Influencer: A new recommended read

Two weeks ago I had a class at work called "Influencer" based on the book "Influencer, The Power to Change Anything."  I started reading the book yesterday and continued reading it today.  It's an interesting book and builds on topics that were addressed in the earlier classes "Crucial Conversations" and "Crucial Confrontations."  I've already added it to my list of "recommended reading."

One item that stood out for me today was a statement concerning altering behavior.  The authors stated "When it comes to altering behavior, you need to help others answer only two questions.  First:  Is it worth it? (If not, why waste the effort?) And second:  Can they do this thing? (If not, why try?) ...If you want to change behavior, change one or both of these expectations."

The focus on the book is how to influence others, but one of the statements said that by studying the concepts, you could apply them to yourself.  So, I've been thinking about it throughout the day.  Can I influence myself to change myself into something better.  I'll have to do some serious thinking on this one because I know of several things that I'd like to improve.