Category Archives: Values

“Your fierce spirit and efforts will, in time, transform those boulders in your path into pebbles in the sand.”

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“Your fierce spirit and efforts will, in time, transform those boulders in your path into pebbles in the sand.”

—Peg Streep, American author

Image from Unsplash by John Salzarulo

A respected fellow blogger, Rohan Ravi, who writes A Learning a Day, recently wrote a short commentary on the subject of values and virtues. His perspective was that although many of us espouse our values and heartfelt beliefs, quite often our actions do not fulfill these standards and become actual virtues.

EXERCISE:

Where is it most important for you to combine your fierce spirit with courageous actions in order to transform the boulders in your path into pebbles?

Who are the friends, colleagues, mentors, family members, or coaches that can support you in these efforts?

“Sometimes changing the game is as simple as finding a few people who play by the same rules you do.”

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“Sometimes changing the game is as simple as finding a few people who play by the same rules you do.”

—Curtis Tyrone Jones, Author of Guru in the Glass

Image from Unsplash by Christopher Paul High

Imagine you are about to play a new board game. Although you want to begin playing immediately, you must first read the rules.

What if your current life was actually a board game in which the rules – and even the players – were already established without your knowledge? How much do you enjoy playing your current game, and how often do you experience that winning feeling?

Upon opening the box to your new game, you are surprised to see that instead of being highly detailed and specific, the rule sheet offers a number of provocative questions for you to create your own set of rules.

You have the power to guide your play and who you invite to join in the fun.

EXERCISE:

What questions could you ask yourself to reveal a set of rules that would most fully resonate with your most closely held values and guiding principles?

Which people in your world that live by these rules can and will you invite to take their turn rolling the dice?

“Is the work people pay for the work you want to do?”

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“Is the work people pay for the work you want to do?”

—Bernadette Jiwa, global authority on business philosophy

Image of Bernadette Jiwa from thestoryoftelling.com

Today’s quote comes from a blog post Bernadette Jiwa wrote on August 21, titled “The Value Shift.” Check out her insightful work and website.

What is your answer to the question posed in today’s quote?

Are you a yes, a no, or a sometimes? What would it take to be a Hell Yes!?

Yes, we all have our responsibilities and commitments we sometimes feel we have to do, instead of want to do. But overall, to what degree is the work you actually do what you want to do?

EXERCISE:

What bold, courageous, and creative actions would it take to move the “no” or “sometimes” far closer to the “yes” you deeply desire?

Feel free to reply to this post with the actions you will take to have a far more rewarding life.

“Set your course by the stars, not by the light of every passing ship.”

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“Set your course by the stars, not by the light of every passing ship.”

—Omar N. Bradley, 20th Century American Military General

Image from harborfreight.com

Historically, sailors used a device called a sextant to determine their position in the ocean, and to chart their course.

Given the fixed positions of various stars, including Polaris (The North Star), and other commonly seen constellations, they were surprisingly successful in finding their way.

With today’s GPS technology, only a few sailors continue to use the sextant — although many a masterful sailor uses it as a backup in case technology fails.

With the volume of cruise ships, container vessels, and other boats on our oceans, it would be foolhardy to try to navigate strictly by watching every passing ship.

EXERCISE:

Consider your core values and guiding principles as fixed stars that guide your life. Which do you cherish the most? How do they help you navigate life’s rough seas?

The one thing I love most

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“Sometimes I think that the one thing I love most about being an adult is the right to buy candy whenever and wherever I want.”

—Ryan Gosling, Canadian Actor and Musician

Image of a bowl of Halloween candy

mage from Flickr by Sean Freese

 

Looking back to my childhood, Halloween was perhaps my favorite holiday. The process of selecting our costumes to be hand-made by mom, and the pillow cases we used to collect our booty, still brings a fond smile.

In those years, we went out early and stayed out pretty late, and it was common to head home to drop off a load of the sweet stuff and head back out for more. That night, and for a few short weeks after, we had the freedom to eat our fill and not hear “No!” too often.

This freedom to choose our actions was something I cherished and it has been a core value of mine ever since.

EXERCISE:

How and in what ways can you experience even more of the sweetness of life by embracing and exercising the personal freedoms we sometimes take for granted?

Keep out of the suction

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“Keep out of the suction caused by those who drift backwards.”

—attributed to E. K. Piper

Image of a boat being sucked into a whilrpool

Image from Pinterest

When I was in my early teens, I hung out with friends at the local bowling alley. Beyond pursuing our mastery of bowling, we also rode bikes, played wall ball, stick ball, hand ball, wire ball, and a game called “Chink,” which also included a ball.

Back then, if you had a ball, you were guaranteed entertainment all day.

When some of the older friends started driving and hormones kicked in, things began to shift. Their behaviors and language became unacceptable to the values I was taught by my parents and teachers. I could actually feel the negative backward drifts whenever I was encouraged to behave in similar ways.

EXERCISE:

Where do you currently feel the suction of selected individuals in either your personal or professional communities?

What steps must you take to eliminate this backward draft so you can continue pursuing your best future self?

Friday Review: Values

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Friday Review: Values

What are the values on which you base your choices in life? Here are a few value-related posts you may have missed. Click on the Quote to read the full message:

QC #1026a

“Above all, be true to yourself, and if you cannot put your heart in it, take yourself out of it.” 

 

 

 

 

QC #1026b

“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” 

 

 

 

QC #1026c

“It’s always worthwhile to make others aware of their worth.”

 

 

 

 

 

“It’s always worthwhile to make others…”

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“It’s always worthwhile to make others aware of their worth.”

—Malcom Forbes, publisher of Forbes magazine, promoter of capitalism

Photo from Flickr by Robert Fitzpatrick

Photo from Flickr by Robert Fitzpatrick

Malcom Forbes was perhaps one of the best known capitalists of the 20th century, famous for his namesake magazine and his extravagant lifestyle.

For his 70th birthday, he spent over 2.5 million dollars to charter a Boeing 747, a DC-8, and a Concord, to fly eight hundred of the world’s rich and famous from New York to London for an extraordinary celebration.

EXERCISE:

Think about how you currently acknowledge and reward those around you in your professional and personal life.  How can you enhance these efforts to more fully recognize the worth of these special individuals?

“The trouble with the rat race is…”

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“The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win you’re still a rat.”

-Lily Tomlin, American actress, comedian, writer, and producer

Photo from Flickr by Tim

Photo from Flickr by Tim

One of the unique parts of my work as a coach is that I have significant freedom to work with the people I choose. This freedom of choice has multiple benefits, including better results and far more mutually satisfying relationships.

Before any coaching begins, I utilize a discovery process to weed out the potential rats that are not the best fit to work with me.

I clearly do not wish to offend anyone by calling them a rat, however, we all find some people far easier and more enjoyable to work with due to common values, beliefs, and commitments. The ability to seek out such individuals allows us to not only win more races, but also to enjoy the run regardless of the results.

EXERCISE:

How can you use your values, beliefs, and authentic commitments to partner with others to more fully enjoy more of your professional and personal races?

“Values are critical guides for making decisions. When in doubt, they cut through the fog like a beacon in the night.”

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“Values are critical guides for making decisions. When in doubt, they cut through the fog like a beacon in the night.”

– Robert Townsend (attrib.)

486Image from Flickr by briant87.

I am reading A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Building a Great Business, by Ari Weinzweig. He is the co-owner of Zingerman’s, located near the University of Michigan’s campus in Ann Arbor.

This book contains a wide variety of essays that show how Zingerman’s became what Bo Burlingham from Inc magazine refers to as “the coolest small company in America.”

Townsend’s quote speaks to the very heart of what makes Zingerman’s, with now over 500 employees, a great place to eat and work.

Exercise:

Google Zingerman’s to do a bit of research into how their values guide their decisions and why they are famous for “the Zingerman experience.” You can even use their mail-order business at www.zingerman.com to get a literal taste for yourself.