A new world of chain reactions

September 21, 2014 By
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Paying it ForwardOne of the ideas that has intrigued me recently is how we as a society have adopted and are participating in activities designed to create a chain reaction. It’s really not a new concept but for a very long time, unless we were talking about a domino game it wasn’t something we intentionally set out to create.

And yet today we do.

Whether it’s paying it forward at a Starbucks window, taking on an ice water bucket challenge in support of ALS awareness or inviting friends and families to create gratitude posts on Facebook as examples, we as a society are actively looking for ways to join with a cause and make our world a better place.

What is creating this force of good? From what I have observed, it stems from three fundamental shifts that have impacted all of us. First is the  increased recognition that regardless of how different we may be, as a human race, we universally share the same hopes and dreams, and yes, even fears. Technology has created more than a global economy. It has also created a global neighborhood.  Instead of being limited to watching life go by from our front porches we are seeing it from the pages and screens of social media platforms and digital communities. This brings us together in ways we might never have imagined and allows us to appeal to each other’s basic humanity in ways we would never have dreamed possible.

The second part of this is that we’re able to readily see and share what happens when we take those steps to join in. That serves to fuel the fire for more. Imagine that if you just paid it forward at the Starbucks window and never found out you were number 498 in an ultimate line of over 700 as happened recently in St. Petersburg, Florida. You would still take satisfaction from having contributed to that one person but now you can know that you didn’t just impact one person, you were part of a movement in a single day that touched over 700 lives. That can be some pretty heady and “hearty” stuff. It also means that the next time you pull up, you might even be number 1 in an ultimate line of over 700 instead of number 498. We like being a part of good things.

The third component of this is that it gives legs to our hope that there is good in our world. The news is filled with so much heartache.  We need to know about that, too because we are a part of that as well. But when we have the chance to catch sight of that flame of hope for the good in all of us, it is rejuvenating. We can pause amidst the clutter and chaos and take in a moment that is really just about doing some good. Those moments can even serve to stop the chain reaction of some of the heartache.

How incredibly powerful it is to know that we can create good with such simple acts not just in the moment, but within the moments to come as our actions and examples create the genesis of so many more. The video in today’s post is a story board of this. As each person witnesses a kindness, they are inspired to create one of their own. And in the end, the world is a better place. All because someone cared enough to drop the first domino.

How about it? Let’s start some chain reactions in our lives and with our lives beginning today.

Live today like you want tomorrow to be.

Live well.

Filed Under: Personal thoughts & insights, Success & Significance, Winds of Change Tagged With: , , , ,

Live today like you want tomorrow to be

August 3, 2014 By
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CompassThe title of today’s post has become my mantra over the past two years and forms the core of my coaching programs. I had always been goal oriented and personally driven, my eye to the future. That’s not a bad thing. Unfortunately though, it meant that I was always working toward something instead of being able to enjoy where I was in the process. Once I realized that the best tomorrows result from living them today my life became much richer.

I frequently check-in and re-affirm my connection and commitment to my personal manifesto that resulted from this shift in my centering. It is a reflection of my core values and the principles that guide my life.  As I’m continuing to enhance our coaching programs, I’ve been reminded again of the importance of having this level of personal awareness and commitment at the forefront.

  1. I aspire always to honor God in my thoughts, words and deeds.
  2. I have a responsibility to take care of myself and to live well.
  3. I am here to make a difference and enrich the lives of others.
  4. I recognize that what I do today is forming my tomorrow. I do not think about what might have been. I act on what will be.
  5. A curious nature is my most valuable trait. My most powerful tool for myself and others is the right question.
  6. I acknowledge that time is my ultimate resource. I do not try to manage my time. I set priorities and they determine how, where and why my time is invested.
  7. I do not think in terms of failure. I think in terms of effort and experience.
  8. I appreciate that a change of place is often the best way to change my perspective.
  9. Outside of universal laws, the only rules that apply to me are those that I have accepted. By accepting (or not accepting) any guidelines, I am also accepting responsibility for my choices.
  10. I understand that fear is not a bad thing. Fear is a healthy thing. It is the ultimate expression of respect for what I am undertaking.

No matter where we are in the journey, we must live today like we want tomorrow to be. It is in fact the only way to achieve it.

Live well. Live today.

 

Filed Under: Learning & Growth, Personal thoughts & insights, Possibilities & Perspective, Winds of Change Tagged With: , , ,

Encore: Lessons from the repair of an old photograph

July 23, 2014 By
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In January of 2014 this encore post was published for the first time. The video re-surfaced this week and once again, the lessons spoke to me. Life lessons are all around us. We only have to look and be willing to see. I’m grateful for that gift. I hope that the insights are meaningful for you. #12 remains my favorite. Enjoy.

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Old photosI remember as a girl spending time working picture puzzles.  Find the hidden pieces. What is wrong with this picture? Find the differences in these pictures. And so on.  My analyst genes were already showing and these were some of my favorite games to play.  I loved searching to find and studying to analyze.  Even as a young girl.

That early interest stayed with me and is now part of my core strengths. Working with business data for many years and being able to see the story it told and then use that information to once again “find the hidden pieces”, determine “what’s wrong with this picture” and even see differences and find best practices and other fundamentals remained some of my favorite games to play.

Working as an author, this has become even more present for me in the way that I see things and assimilate them. A picture, a sound, or the arrangement of them can and does become a writing prompt because of the thoughts that they inspire. It isn’t so much a “moral of the story” as it is the “meaning of the moment” for me, although often there is a moral in there. I’m sure you have experienced the same thing yourself. Have you ever gone to the theatre with friends and watched a movie that you thought would be just entertainment and come away changed? Or read a book that moved you to another dimension you didn’t even know you had in you? Those experiences are very much in the same vein as those games because we are looking and experiencing beyond the surface activity. We are allowing ourselves to experience something deeper.

Today’s offering includes a video that is a time lapse recording of a master at work. The subject is the repairing and colorization of an old photograph. As I watched it the first time, I was completely captivated with the science and the art of what was unfolding.  As I watched it a second time, the sub-text began writing itself for me as lessons we could learn from the repair and colorization of a damaged photo. And I knew that my muse was with me.

These observations on my part will make much greater sense to you if you watch the video first and then re-watch it after reading the list.  Then after watching and reading my list, look for what your lessons might be. What would you add to the list?

I hope that this inspires you to recognize that so often what we need to see is in fact hidden within the picture.  That sometimes things just need to get put into their proper place (perspective) and often, the most subtle differences make the biggest impact.  Enjoy!

  1. Clear the way for the subject to shine (clean up the context first)
  2. Frame the focus (get the boundaries right)
  3. To check yourself, you’ll have to zoom in and zoom out (get the perspective right)
  4. Be patient (mastery takes time)
  5. Repair before you enhance (the color happens last)
  6. There is always a part of the process that’s harder (don’t give up)
  7. Some adjustments may be required (the first approach may not work, another one will)
  8. Once you’ve done it once, it’s easier (re-use the work and the lessons)
  9. Shadows create depth (why do we always forget this one?)
  10. Sometimes what appears to be an imperfection is just a stroke away from perfection (time can take its toll but it cannot erase the beauty)
  11. Mastery is what makes it look easier than it is (talent may begin it, but skill finishes it)
  12. Leave what you touch better than you found it (don’t settle for just fixing it, make It better)

Filed Under: Inspiration & Creativity, Possibilities & Perspective, Winds of Change Tagged With: , , ,

Power M&M’s: Motivation & Momentum

July 21, 2014 By
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Motivation ConceptDeciding what you want, even how to get it is only part of getting you to where you want to be.  To be successful there is another element required: Knowing why we are doing what we plan to do.

Without understanding why – we will lack the motivation needed to sustain us through to success.  If we can’t keep going – we’ll soon stop going. Knowing why we are doing something is the glue that holds everything together.

How does motivation work? While there are many illustrations, it comes down to these 5 essential principals:

  1. Sometimes the work is hard. It’s really that simple. Sometimes the work is hard. And we need to be certain we can stick with it. Jim Rohn taught that when the promise is clear, the price is easy. When the price begins to get hard, the promise is what pulls us through.
  2. Sometimes the work takes time. The emotion of the moment when we committed to something can and will fade over time if we don’t bring it back, even if not at the same sensory level. I was recently reminded that there is very little that is action dependent that does not require some constancy, even daily re-commitment to that action. Whether it’s our health, money, work or relationships. Our motivation (why) is what creates the power we need to keep making the commitment over time.
  3. Sometimes the work needs to change. This is an important one to think about. Sometimes the method we choose to do something doesn’t bring us the result we wanted. That’s not failure. That’s experience. Without knowing why we were doing it in the first place, we don’t have the ultimate creative pool to work from for finding our next strategy and getting it in place. The why keeps us focused in the RIGHT direction, even if we change the vehicle we’re riding to reach the destination.
  4. Sometimes the work requires help. When we are clear about why we are doing something our enthusiasm and passion are evident and infectious. Others will not only respond to requests for help – they will volunteer! There is nothing more binding and bonding than a shared desire to transform something for good. Even if they don’t know, like and trust you yet, if your why is clear and they can align to that, it can actually be the catalyst for the best relationships.
  5. Sometimes the work requires a choice. This point goes beyond the first one where we talked about work being hard at times. This is about sacrifice. This is about choice. If you do THIS (something that honors your why) then you cannot do THAT (something you really want to do!). The promise being clear is still part of the rationale on this but it goes deeper because you are making a conscious choice to not only have something, but also to give something up. If the value equation isn’t clear, those choices can get very difficult.

Having the right motivation makes a difference getting started and staying started, because we can and will have more than one start along the way.

Choose one area of your life (health, finances, work, relationships, community) where you struggle staying on track with your goal and action settings. Go through a series of questions focused on the word why to get to your core reason for what you are doing. That is the promise. Don’t take your first response. Why? Because chances are fairly high that it is not your real reason. Don’t be surprised if it takes you a number of times to get to your true motivator. In the words of Pat Riley, “A champion needs a motivation above and beyond winning.” You’ll know you are there when you can take that reason and ask yourself these questions:

  1. Is this reason strong enough to keep me going when it’s hard?
  2. Is this reason strong enough to keep me going when this takes a long time?
  3. Is this reason strong enough to challenge me to always find a way?
  4. Is this reason strong enough to allow others to see the value in the work?
  5. Is this reason strong enough to support the right choices along the way, even when it means a sacrifice?

When you get to five yeses – you are there! More importantly, you know you’re going to be able to begin and experience the journey to go to your desired place of achievement with joy and ease.

Live well. Live today like you want tomorrow to be.

Filed Under: Learning & Growth, Possibilities & Perspective, Winds of Change Tagged With: , , , ,

Cleaning up our view: 4 Ways to Repair Your Lens

July 17, 2014 By
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hand with window cleaning toolOften, when we’re looking for a breakthrough in our lives, we find that the magic moment isn’t generated based on getting something NEW.  Instead, the breakthrough happens more often based on getting to a place where we are willing to get go of something OLD.   That could be a belief about ourselves or others; negative emotions like guilt, blame, resentment or anger; or any other practice or influence within our daily life that is preventing us from moving forward.

Being stubborn about holding on to something that isn’t serving us may not be something we readily recognize in ourselves.  All too often we feel justified in our beliefs and feelings without even recognizing their cost.  If you think in terms of our personal perspectives as the window through which we see everything in our world it can get easier to see how hanging on is distorting our view.

Imagine that window to the world.  Now imagine that every feeling of anger, guilt, hurt, or resentment is like being in a car that is driving through mud puddles.  At first – you can barely see but eventually the water evaporates and you’re just left with the debris.  Some of it will blow away but what remains creates blind spots all over the windshield.  You no longer have a clear, unrestricted view of everything that is available to you.

We struggle letting go most often when it means we’re going to need to forgive or accept something about ourselves or others.  If you are facing this, here are some points for you to remember that may help make letting go an easier exercise:

  1. We often believe that we are punishing someone else with our hurt.  But the reality is that whatever we are holding onto – it’s most likely hurting us far more than the other person.  We’re allowing the cost to compound.  Stop investing where the interest is negative!
  2. It’s important to understand that acceptance or forgiveness does NOT mean condoning the act.  It just means we release ourselves from its continued burden of carrying it with us.  Reclaiming lost energy going to negative emotion is one of the best gifts we can give ourselves.
  3.  You don’t need to know how you’re going to let go.  This is really simple.  You just have to be willing to let go and make that decision.  You’re not going to change the past.  Even as we learn from it – it doesn’t change it.  So let it go.  That’s all you need to do.
  4. Whatever seems the most difficult for you to forget is probably what is hurting you the most.  Does this sound familiar?  I can forgive a lot of things, but I cannot forgive: ____!  Why not?  When we make it the most important part of our view, we allow everything in our world to be distorted by something that is going to continue to hurt us and ultimately those we serve.

A good exercise to go through is to ask what we need to release in terms of belief and emotion about ourselves (self-forgiveness is first!) and then others.  Then when we have our list, we can ask how we are benefiting ourselves by holding on to that belief or emotion.

The #1 answer to the question in group sessions has been that by hanging on (not forgetting!) we are somehow controlling it from happening again.  We need to ask ourselves if that is really true; because it’s not.  We need to shift our perspective and ask how we can learn from the experience and grow from it vs. letting it limit our future. So clear your view! And clear your way to a brighter future and richer life.

Filed Under: Learning & Growth, Resilience, Winds of Change Tagged With: , , ,
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