“You’ve Got a Friend.”

Posted on by

“You’ve Got a Friend”

-Carole King, Grammy Award-winning American singer/songwriter

Friends-007

Friends:
·         Fight for you
·         Respect you
·         Include you
·         Encourage you
·         Need you
·         Deserve you
·         Stand by you

Someone once said that friends are the family we choose for ourselves. How large a family do you have based on the criteria above? How well do you demonstrate the same qualities?

EXERCISE:

In what ways and with whom can you be the kind of friend that people like Carole King writes and sings about? For a bit of extra credit, Google songs about friends to find a lot more to sing about.

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

Posted on by

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

—Maya Angelou, American poet, novelist, speaker, actress

Maya Angelou, who passed away in May 2014, was an American author, poet, dancer, and singer. Her first, and perhaps most noteworthy autobiographies, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, published in the late 1960s, tells of her life up to the age of 17, and brought her world-wide recognition.

I came to know of her through her appearances on the Oprah Winfrey show. Her courage, wit, and the vulnerability she shared in her stories inspired and mesmerized Oprah and her vast audience.

Maya Angelou’s life included roles such as civil rights activist, playwright, actress, professor, and film producer – all giving her a platform for sharing her messages with the world.  Two highlights of her career were reciting her poem, On the Pulse of Morning at President Bill Clinton’s January 1993 inauguration, and receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.

EXERCISE:

Explore the possibility of writing your autobiography, and how fully you express the life you’ve lived so far.

Should you discover that to one degree or another, your voice and authentic self are muted, commit to shift that agony into an ecstasy of living life out loud from this point forward.

“Appeasement is feeding the alligator and hoping he eats you last.”

Posted on by

“Appeasement is feeding the alligator and hoping he eats you last.”

—Sir Winston Churchill, Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Photo from Flickr by Tamable the Jaguar

Photo from Flickr by Tamable the Jaguar

The political definition of appeasement is “a diplomatic policy of making various forms of concessions to an enemy power in order to avoid conflict.” A notable example was between Great Britain and Nazi Germany in the late 1930s.

A more general definition involves yielding or conceding to the demands of a nation, group or person in a conciliatory effort, sometimes at the expense of justice or other principles.

Today, I suggest that you examine where and at what potential benefit or cost do you see examples of appeasement in your professional or personal lives.

EXERCISE:

Determine where you are simply feeding the alligators in your world, hoping they will eat you last. In what situations would a courageous, principled stance be the way to go?

Inspiration comes

Posted on by

“Inspiration usually comes during work, not before it.”

—Madeline L’Engle, American 20th Century Author

Photo from Flickr by Hector Alejandro

Photo from Flickr by Hector Alejandro

Consider these three definitions of the word “inspiration”:

  • Divine Intervention
  • An instance of breathing in
  • That which brings about creativity or perseverance

I suggest we blend the three together. My reasons will be more readily apparent through the following example:

Imagine you wake up one morning and you are not particularly inspired to go to your health club and work out. The exercise gods simply haven’t infused you with enough energy to leap out of bed and into your sneakers.

In spite of not “feeling it,” you garner the discipline to just do it, and minutes later you are on a bike, a treadmill, or an elliptical machine. You notice your breath growing faster and more pronounced, which increases your mental and physical state, and gives you the energy and momentum you need to gain all the good that comes from rigorous exercise.

EXERCISE:

How can you simply begin a project, motivated or not, and let the effort and engagement of the first few steps energize you so that you keep it up and finish more inspired than you ever imagined?

“Don’t try to teach a whole course in one lesson.”

Posted on by

“Don’t try to teach a whole course in one lesson.”

—Kathryn Murray, Ballroom Dancer

Photo from Flickr by Shaver Ross

Photo from Flickr by Shaver Ross

Two months into the new year and already I see a large number of people frustrated, slowed down, or completely stopped in the pursuit of their personal and/or professional goals.

One of the most common reasons for setbacks is the desire and attempt to do too much too quickly, which results in being overwhelmed, losing focus, and of course, a lack of the anticipated results.

It is appropriate, in such situations, to regroup and establish a new course of action with far fewer steps and far more finite and reasonable expectations.

EXERCISE:

Select one – and only one – important professional or personal project that is not going as you desire where you have tried to do too much too quickly.

Break this project into smaller, more digestible nuggets and spread them out over a longer time frame, to achieve the results you wanted the first time.

Life is like a ten-speed bicycle…”

Posted on by

“Life is like a ten-speed bicycle. Most of us have gears we never use.”

—Charles Schulz, American cartoonist, creator of ‘Peanuts’

Photo from Flickr by Glory Cycles

Photo from Flickr by Glory Cycles

Have you ever ridden a 10-speed bike? What did you experience as you proceeded through the gears? When you were in first gear, how easy was it to pedal? How fast could you go? As you moved through gears 2-5, what effort was required, and what speed was possible?

How often did you use gears beyond #5? How often did you exert the required effort, and how comfortable, exhilarated, or even terrified were you?

EXERCISE:

What gear are you in most often as you travel your personal and professional roads? Notice the terrain, including the twists and turns, the hills and valleys along the way.
What gears will be called for if you wish to climb higher mountains or reach your destination in record time?

If you haven’t tried it, consider attending a spinning class at the local gym, and be open to the instructor pushing you beyond your normal limits.

You Can Do Anything

Posted on by

“You can do anything if you have enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is the yeast that makes your hope rise to the stars.”

—Henry Ford, American Industrialist

Photo from Flickr by Soren

Photo from Flickr by Soren

When I was in my late teens, I worked at the Country Club bakery/restaurant in Philadelphia. My first job was to wash pots and pans in the bakery. It wasn’t such a bad gig, since I got to eat a lot of sweet treats and good food from the restaurant.

I’ve always been motivated and driven, so it didn’t take me long to realize that being a baker was the “cool” job.  With that realization, washing the soiled pots and pans was not in my cards for long.

I made a deal with the bakers. If I could complete my dish washing duties quickly and completely, they would teach me how to bake.

The good news is that it worked, and one of my first duties as a baker’s apprentice was to make what we called water bagels. This meant putting the yeast-filled dough rings into a vat of boiling water to create the rapid rise that makes bagels so tasty and popular.

EXERCISE:

Summon your intense eagerness for an important task or job today. Allow this heated enthusiasm to help you achieve new heights in either your professional or personal worlds.

“If you wish to be out front, act as if…”

Posted on by

“If you wish to be out front, act as if you were behind.”

—Lao Tzu, ancient Chinese poet and philosopher

How competitive are you in your personal or professional life? What factors motivate you to do your very best and achieve remarkable results? Some people are motivated to avoid pain or punishment. Others are goal or future oriented, setting their sights on pursuing and achieving a worthy objective ahead of them.

La Tzu’s coaching is to set our sights on just such an external person or objective, to create a “come from behind” victory, and be out front.

EXERCISE:

Where are you currently behind in the race to achieve some worthy goal or objective? How can you use this position to motivate you to pursue and surpass your highest expectations?

Remember: when you are are out in front, find something else to pursue, or others will quickly be on your heels.

“Life is fragile, handle with prayer.”

Posted on by

“Life is fragile, handle with prayer.”

—Harold B. Lee, eleventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Photo from Flickr by NASA

Photo from Flickr by NASA

I am constantly amazed by life. Here we are, living on our beautiful blue planet with the perfect set of conditions that support an astounding diversity of plant and animal life. From the deepest oceans to the highest mountains, from the frigid cold of the poles to the searing heat of the tropics and deserts, life abounds.

Yet, if we look back in time, we see events that eliminated a wide variety of Earth’s creatures.

People who seem to navigate life better than most have, at their core, a strong sense of spiritual purpose, faith, and a set of beliefs that guide their lives.

EXERCISE:

As one of over seven billion stewards of this world, how can your prayers, positive interventions, and actions support and sustain our beautiful and fragile world?

“Patience is the Companion of Wisdom.”

Posted on by

“Patience is the Companion of Wisdom.”

—St. Augustine, early Christian Theologian

Photo from Flickr by Thomas Mues

Photo from Flickr by Thomas Mues

When was the last time you watched a great leader give an inspiring speech? If you are like me, you occasionally enjoy a provocative TED Talk. The TED tagline is “Ideas Worth Spreading.”

Over the years, I’ve seen that the best leaders and presenters talk a bit more slowly than most. They measure their words carefully, to achieve the impact they desire. As I listen to them, I find myself slowing down, and leaning in to hear every morsel of wisdom they present.

EXERCISE:

Where would greater patience, and slowing down your busy life help you contribute and capture the wisdom of the moment?