“To do the useful thing, to say the courageous thing, to contemplate the beautiful thing: that is enough for one man’s life.”

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“To do the useful thing, to say the courageous thing, to contemplate the beautiful thing: that is enough for one man’s life.”

T.S. Elliot, 20th Century poet, essayist, playwright, literary critic and editor

Image from Unsplash by Patrick Tomasso

What makes a good day a good day? What makes a good life a good life?

Take some time to filter a typical day through the lenses of being useful, showing courage, and contemplating beauty.

If you do, you will likely feel a sense of wholeness and warmth inside. I’d bet that you may also be smiling and have a twinkle in your eyes upon this reflection.

EXERCISE:

Today’s quote was shared by Tim Ferris as a nugget of wisdom he was recently pondering.  Consider exploring other works by Tim and T.S. Elliot to enrich your life.

Rewind and review the game tapes of your life

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Rewind and review the game tapes of your life to improve your future efforts.

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Andy Benham

In professional sports it’s common practice to review game tapes of past performances to get ready for upcoming games. Most teams also evaluate their competition to create strategies for winning based on the strengths and weaknesses of their next opponent.

How can your magnificent mind play back your own personal and professional efforts? How good is your memory at capturing the specific moments where breakthrough insights were offered?

Unfortunately, the game tapes of our lives can be distorted by time. Things become blurred or erased completely over the years unless we find a more permanent way of recording our observations.

EXERCISE:

How could you use a journal, notebook, cell phone, or an alternative tech tool to review your days?

Consider doing weekly, monthly and yearly reviews to capture more of the knowledge and wisdom offered by life.

Friday Review: Sharing

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Friday Review: Sharing

How open are you to sharing your life, your possessions, your wisdom, and your pain? Here are a few related posts you may have missed.

“Leave a little behind.”

 

 

 

 

“If you are really thankful, what do you do? You share.”

 

 

 

 

“Ideas, bread, and books are all the same. They’re better when they are shared.”

 

 

 

 

 

Gratitude can transform common days into Thanksgivings

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“Gratitude can transform common days into Thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.”

—William Arthur Ward, 20th Century American motivational writer

Image from Unsplash by Simon Maage

As we enter the holiday season, my gratitude goes to all of you for being loyal readers of The Quotable Coach.

Thanksgiving is more than a holiday—it’s a reminder to appreciate the abundance in our lives.

Please take the opportunity to reflect on the people and experiences that have made you rich.

In the spirit of thankfulness, I hope that you will spread kindness, love, and positivity throughout your communities, and that it resonates and takes root throughout the world.

 

“Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”

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“Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”

—Thomas Edison, 19th Century American inventor and businessman

Image from Unsplash by Shane

For some of us a new definition of happy hour as we get older is a good nap.

In my most active working years, I always admired the hard driving folks who often boasted about how little sleep they needed.

While coaching top performing professionals over the years, I, however, came to notice that these individuals often suffered in other areas of life without the wondrous restorative effects of adequate sleep.

Without going into all the science, we can rest confidently in the fact that sleep clears out the clutter in both our bodies and minds.

We need and deserve it to step into each new day to realize our full potential.

EXERCISE:

What requests will you invite into your subconscious as you turn in for the night?

What might you invent with a refreshed and renewed mind and body once you awaken?

Discover the right balance between effort and ease

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“Discover the right balance between effort and ease.”

—Author Unknown

Image from Unsplash by Gustavo Torres

Create a list of your favorite sports. Do you or have you played any of those mentioned here? Consider what it takes to perform optimally in each of them.

Baseball Bowling Cricket Football
Golf Gymnastics Hockey Rugby
Soccer Shuffleboard Swimming Tennis

To what degree do you see the dance between effort and ease in these and other sports?

How are each of these qualities essential to play at a masterful level?

EXERCISE:

Where in your life is there too much effort or ease being applied?

How can you re-balance these qualities to perform even better moving forward?

Take off the armor of adulthood and re-discover the joy of your inner child.

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Take off the armor of adulthood and re-discover the joy of your inner child.

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Luca Di Giovine

The holiday season is special. Whatever holidays you celebrate, take a trip down memory lane to reflect on some of your most precious moments from your youth.

How did you celebrate these occasions and who were the people that joined in on the fun?

Although many people and organizations put their heads down to finish the year strong, this is also often a time when we extend our days off with those we’ve saved.

With these extended blocks of time, we can more easily remove our armor of adulthood and play like we did as kids.

EXERCISE:

How and in what ways will you shed the armor of adulthood this holiday season?

What joyful activities will help you re-discover your playful side?

If some help is needed, look to the little ones in your life for some coaching.

Opportunities multiply as they are seized

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“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.”

—Sun Tzu, ancient Chinese military general, strategist, philosopher

Image from Unsplash by Showboat Chowdhury

It is said that a rolling stone gathers no moss.

What if instead of a stone we considered opportunities to be tightly packed snowballs?

With winter approaching, many a child will be wishing for snow days with hopes of building a few Frosties.

How and in what ways do you capitalize on the momentum of your efforts?  How do you keep the ball rolling and keep your hot streaks going?

EXERCISE:

What opportunities are currently within your grasp?

Once you grab them, how do you keep things going to find other opportunities often inches away to seize?

Muddy water is best cleaned by leaving it alone

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“Muddy water is best cleaned by leaving it alone.”

—Alan Watts, English writer who interpreted Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu philosophy for a Western audience

Image from Unsplash by Josh Calabrese

Where in your life are you experiencing muddy waters and can’t see your way forward?

Where have things become turbulent with diverse issues and heated emotions where things are murky and messy?

If you were a scuba diver, heading to the surface to see the light of day and gain some perspective would be a reasonable first step.

Pausing and letting things settle before diving back in seems wise as well.

When you and others finally do dive back in, how would slower and more thoughtful efforts help you see more clearly to swim to the other side of your issues?

EXERCISE:

Where in your life would leaving things alone help clear things up to see a new way forward?