Great Flames follow little sparks

“A great flame follows a little spark.”

—Dante Alighieri, Late Middle Age Italian Poet

Image of hand flicking a lighter

Image from Flickr by Jeffrey

When was the last time you experienced a spark of genius, or a really good idea?  What happened to this spark once you saw its small but brilliant glow?

Did it go out quickly, or in keeping with today’s quote, did you add more fuel and oxygen until it burst into flame?

EXERCISE:

Examine the projects and the people in your world that represent the sparks of possibility and greater potential.

How can you fan and fuel these projects and people so they can burn brightly and light the way for others?

Friday Review: Creativity

FRIDAY REVIEW: CREATIVITY

What place does creativity have in your life? Here are a few creativity-related posts you may have missed. Click on the link to read the full message.

 

“Great minds like a think.”

 

 

 

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“Criticize by Creating.”

 

 

 

 

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“You don’t get into something to test the waters. You go into things to make waves.”

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!

Image of kids in Halloween Costumes

Image from www.theodysseyonline.com

October 31 marks the ancient Celtic Holiday of Halloween, which later became All Soul’s Day in the Roman Catholic tradition.

For us it marks the final turn from summer to deep autumn, when pumpkins are ripe, trees are colorful, and some folks are full of mischief.

EXERCISE:

Consider taking on a new goal that scares you just a bit.

The Art of Happiness

“Happiness is not an accident, it’s an art. You don’t hope for happiness, you plan for happiness. You have to weave happiness like a tapestry.”

—Jim Rohn, American Motivational Author

Image of tapestry on a loom

Image from Flickr by monnibo

My wife Wendy is very creative. She heads several women’s groups focused on crafts, including many forms of needlework.

I admire the time and attention to detail these patient women put into their art, as they literally weave pieces of themselves into their work.

Imagine your life as a quilt, with a wide variety of fabrics that you have worn along your journey. Make sure to capture all of the stand-out, deeply felt memories that have brought you great happiness along the way.

EXERCISE:

Begin today adding more happy experiences to your existing quilt, or start planning what new and beautiful pieces of art you intend to create moving forward.

Museums are the custodians of epiphanies.

“Museums are the custodians of epiphanies.”

—George Lois, American Art Director and Designer

Image of two people walking in the woods

Image from Flickr by Gavin Clarke

How many of your most creative ideas come when you are working diligently at your desk?

Venturing to new and varied places could help you uncover potential incubators of future insights and epiphanies.

Consider a few ideas for places to get out of your “box” and think differently:

  • Take a long shower
  • Take a walk in nature
  • Meditate
  • Practice rhythmic exercise such as Yoga
  • Take a long, scenic drive
  • Visit a museum

EXERCISE:

Where and in what ways can you shift your perspective by shifting your physical position to enhance your creative capacities?

Feel free to reply to this post with your own epiphany-generating strategies.

Create What you Want

“Sometimes you gotta create what you want to be part of.”

-Geri Weitzman, PhD, California Psychologist

BDC Facebook Banner 2015

Doing work I love is one of the greatest joys I know. Who wouldn’t want to wake up each day – especially Mondays – to a vocation or career that utilizes their strengths and unique abilities? Who wouldn’t want a career that makes a meaningful difference in the lives of others and the world around them?

I was inspired by the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games to start my career as a coach. In that ten-day span, 5,000 athletes worked with about 2,000 coaches, producing gold medal performances. I thought I’d bring this idea to the business world to help people pursue even greater levels of performance in their professional and personal lives.

The challenge was that business coaching wasn’t considered a “profession” at that time. Still, the idea seemed to be such a great fit for me, and I had gained a great deal from studying the few people who were beginning to be known as coaches. I resigned from my 12-year career as a pharmaceutical industry sales and marketing professional, and created a coaching career for myself. That was 24 years ago – and the best career decision I ever made!

EXERCISE:

Where in either your personal or professional worlds do you need to create something for yourself so that you can be a part of it?

“You don’t get into something…”

“You don’t get into something to test the waters. You go into things to make waves.”

—Author Unknown

Image from daystarus.org

Image from daystarus.org

When was the last time you went swimming? What approach did you take as you entered the water? Are you a toe-dipper?  A cannon-baller? Something in between?

Many people take a “safety first,” somewhat timid approach as they take on new experiences. This is often a wise move as they explore the risk/reward potential.

When, however, we feel fairly confident that the waters are not shark-infested, today’s quote encourages us to displace as much water as possible.

EXERCISE:

Where and in what professional or personal situations is it time for you to stop testing the waters and take the plunge?

 

“Ignorance killed the cat…”

“Ignorance killed the cat; curiosity was framed!”

—C.J. Cherryh, Speculative Fiction Writer

Image from Flickr by jinterwas

Image from Flickr by jinterwas

Two highly correlated factors to success are life-long learning and, of course, hard work.

Examine the levels of success of people who have dropped out of school, or never cracked a book after graduating from college or university. Formal education is not the only course to pursue success. There is a wide array of true stories in which people who lacked a formal education became extremely successful. These individuals possessed a curious nature, and a desire to learn and grow in support of their passion or purpose.

EXERCISE:

Where could greater curiosity and expanding your learning efforts bring you and those around you a more satisfying and rewarding life?

“Excelling at any job is…”

“Excelling at any job is about doing the things you weren’t asked to do.”

—Mary Egan – founder of Gathering Table and Former Senior VP at Starbucks

Photo from www.soccer-daily.net

Photo from www.soccer-daily.net

What does it take these days to be extraordinary, exceptional, and remarkable? Notice how often you require events in your personal or professional world to meet those definitions in order to gain even a few moments of your valuable attention.

I recently saw a film titled “Dope,” which involved an ambitious, intelligent, and creative main character living in an undesirable Los Angeles neighborhood. He was pursuing his dream of attending Harvard, where straight “A’s” and top SAT/ACT scores are the bare minimum to even be considered.

The audience was taken on an amusing romp in which the character clearly demonstrated his capacity, creativity, and courage to do what was extraordinary, exceptional, and remarkable, and to excel and stand out.

EXERCISE:

How can you and the organization with which you associate foster an environment where people do the things they were not asked to do, to explore new levels of excellence?

“Never judge a book by its movie.”

“Never judge a book by its movie.”

—Don DeLillo, American novelist

image from icezen.com

image from icezen.com

Reading a book takes effort. Watching a movie, not so much. More often than not, many if not most movies fall short of their books.

Tens or hundreds of millions of dollars are invested in movies based on books because the characters and stories amaze readers. It is in these stories and characters that our visions of these works of art are envisioned and portrayed by producers and directors. Unfortunately, even with brilliant actors and special effects, the images on screen rarely capture what our own creativity and imagination can create from the words of a masterful storyteller.

Books allow us to pace ourselves and literally savor each bit of dialogue or image painted, if we choose to do the work the writer intended. Phrases like “I couldn’t put it down,” or “page turner” are familiar to all of us who have been fortunate to get our hands on great books.

These works also tend to have a lasting impact in that their messages and images penetrate deeply, due to the active role the reader must play.

Perhaps a picture does not always paint 1,000 words, and the words found in books allow us to paint more masterful pictures in our hearts and minds.

EXERCISE

Consider reading the book upon which a current film has been made, either before or after attending a screening.

Determine which you enjoyed the most, or felt had the greatest impact.