Classifying people as allies or enemies

I just read an insightful little quote:

"Humans classify people based on whether they are likely to be an ally or enemy."

It was in a Newsweek article about people's voting habits, but it seems to apply to so much more in life. More times than I can count I've experienced situations where showing a little sympathy and letting people know that you're on their side made a world of difference in their attitudes towards me.

By contrast, I recently responded to a technical proposal I read at work by emailing the person making the proposal some pointed questions about things I saw missing or poorly explained. My goal was to help them come up with a better and more reasonable proposal, but they clearly inferred from my comments that I was more likely to be an adversary than an ally for them and their ideas. That's one relationship that really got off on the wrong foot. Fortunately some other allies of mine were able to step in and smooth things over, and we're building a better working relationship now. A little older, a little wiser I guess. I'll now make it a point to present myself as a potential ally to people I meet whenever possible.

Accepting Leadership Roles

One of the characteristics of a mature adult is a willingness to accept roles of responsibilities in the community. Society requires people who are willing to accept such roles. It is said that one of the requirements of a well functioning democracy is a large pool of people willing to accept leadership roles when the situation requires it.

Accepting leadership roles in non-profit community organizations is also recognized as an important part of creating future opportunities for yourself. Not only do you gain experience and make good contacts, but managers of both profit and non-profit organizations look at experiences in community leadership when evaluating whether or not a person has a "leadership disposition".

With that in mind, it was an easy decision for me to accept the position of President of our local Unitarian Universalists congregation when I was recently asked to run for that office. There will be an election later this year, but that is mostly a formality and I will likely run unopposed. It’s a big time commitment and a little scary, but there is no doubt in my mind that the experience will be extremely valuable for anything I decide to do afterwards. I’m also excited about the new ideas and programs I can help introduce and help the organization grow and flourish. It’s a wonderful group of people and a wonderful organization to work with. I believe that a progressive religion such as this can be a real benefit to people’s lives, and an important part of the solutions to some of our world’s problems. It's also an important counterweight to religious fundamentalism. Wish me luck!

21 Suggestions for Success

Here's something I copied down a while ago and recently came across while looking through some old files. I forgot how good it was.

21 Suggestions for Success - by H. Jackson Brown

1. Marry the right person. This one decision will determine 90% of your hapiness or missery
   
2. Work at something you enjoy, and that's worthy of your time and effort.
   
3. Give people more than they expect and do it chearfully
   
4. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
   
5. Be forgiving of yourself and others
   
6. Be generous
   
7. Have a grateful heart
   
8. Persistance, persistance, persistance.
   
9. Discipline yourself to save money even on the most modest income
   
10. Treat everyone you meet like you want ot be treated
    
11. Commit yourself to constant improvement
    
12. Commit yourself to quality
    
13. Understand that happiness is not based on possesions, power, or prestige, but on relationships with people you love and respect.
    
14. Be loyal
    
15. Be honest
    
16. Be a self starter
    
17. Be decisive even if it means you'll sometimes be wrong
    
18. Stop blaming others. Take responsibility for every area of your life.
    
19. Be bold and corageous. Whe you look back at you life you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did.
    
20. Take care of those you love
    
21. Don't do anything that wouldn't make your Mom proud.