We’re stopped on the path behind our house watching a red-winged blackbird perched on a dried-out cattail from last season.

Bird chirps have combined with the trill of a variety of insects and toads croaking to create an enthusiastic background melody. The air is pink with the filtered rays of the sun peaking out from behind last night’s storm cloud cover.

It’s a lovely morning, but I can’t help it. I look down at my watch and start to get impatient. I’m no longer paying attention to what’s in front of me, but rather thinking about all the things that need to be done before my first call.

“Come on, Pete, let’s get going,” I say. He looks at me, looks back at the bird and holds his ground…

I did eventually make it back home and to my first meeting of the day on time. But later, I found myself wishing I had taken time to enjoy the moment with Pete. I’m reminded again how many life and work lessons we can learn from our canine companions.

When I look past my irritation with the slow and halting walk, I can see through Pete’s eyes the wonder of leaves rustling in the wind, poofs of dandelions gone to seed and the occasional airplane flying over. Lesson #1 is to stop and watch the birds.

How much better prepared for the day could we be if we took a cue from Pete and willingly paused to observe and appreciate the beauty of the world around us?

My husband and I lost our senior dog in early January. Shep was bred for herding and though I loved him, oof was that dog a lot of work! So, of course, despite my plan to get a nice docile mixed breed to join the family this time around, we ended up rescuing a pure-bred…Border collie…puppy.

If you know anything about the breed, you understand they, and really, puppies in general, are much more tolerable when they get regular exercise. So, lesson #2 is to exercise every day, preferably outside and in the morning.

I’m not a morning person. But I’ve discovered if I don’t start my day with movement, it’s too easy to put it off. Why outside? Well, there are many physical and mental health benefits to both moving and getting outside daily. Research shows sunlight can help improve your mood and that fresh air can spur better concentration, creativity and clarity.

Podcaster and author Gretchen Rubin feels strongly enough about it, she posed a “go outside 23 in 23” challenge to her followers last year. The idea was to spend just 23 minutes outside each day of the year and watch the progress toward a happier you. You can read about the challenge and evidence for the practice of going outside here.

Lesson #3 from Pete is there’s no shame in taking a time-out. In puppy training they teach you to discourage bad behavior (stop. chewing. on. my. rugs. Mr. Pete!) by first distracting them with a toy. If that doesn’t work, you practice some tricks, reinforcing good behavior, like sitting, with treats. If that STILL doesn’t work, you put your puppy in time out.

The key? It’s not a punishment and it doesn’t have to last long. You’re simply giving yourself (err, your puppy) permission to spend time cooling off in a safe, quiet space. I can think of a few choice moments in my career when I wish I would have taken a time out instead of charging into a situation with my emotions running high.

Anybody else? Anybody?! Well regardless, I like to imagine a world where we give ourselves the gift of space and time to calm down before engaging when things get crazy in life or work.

I didn’t think I wanted a herding dog, but honestly, I probably wouldn’t be learning as much if he was easier going. My dad has always said that for some reason, I seem to like to learn things the hard way. And in this case, it’s going to take discipline and consistency to build some new healthy habits for Mr. Pete (and me) to be successful.

Mr. Pete teaches patience

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