Service is the rent we pay

“Service is the rent we pay for living on this earth. It is the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time.”

Those words were spoken by Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children’s Defense Fund.

Make clarity your first goal

From a newsletter by David Allen:

"If you aren't yet at the point of clarity, then make that your first goal. It's a big waste of time to go through life being unclear about what you want. Most people wallow way too long in the state of "I don't know what to do." They wait for some external force to provide them with clarity, never realizing that clarity is self-created. The universe is waiting on you, not the other way around, and it's going to keep waiting until you finally make up your mind. Waiting for clarity is like being a sculptor staring at a piece of marble, waiting for the statue within to cast off the unneeded pieces. Do not wait for clarity to spontaneously materialize—grab a chisel and get busy!"

-Steve Pavlina

Manopause - A Definition

Manopause - The male counterpart to menopause:

A mental condition typically found in men in their mid to late 50's brought on by the realization that old age is just around the corner. Symptoms include: frequent reminiscing about the “good ol’ days”, cranky judgmental attitude and a closed minded approach to anything new. Usually punctuated by the chronic need to play a lot golf and vote republican. (copied from www.urbandictionary.com)

Fortunately I'm not affected - yet. Feel free to do an intervention if any symptoms start to appear though.

Quote of the Day

Quote of the day: "Here is the ultimate paradox of the Great Health Care Showdown: Congress will divide along partisan lines to pass a Republican version of health care reform, and Republicans will vote against it." - E.J. Dionne

Sometimes you just have to laugh at American politics.

Two Wolves

Your attitude is your choice. Chosing optimism is an empowering political act.
A good friend of mine sent me an email with the following story.


TWO WOLVES

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil - It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good - It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

"Live as if this may be your last day

Thought for the day:

"Live as if this may be your last day, and people will judge you based on it."

- Author unknown

How far can you go before giving up?

I find that when I've gone about as far as I think I can go, I'm usually about half way there.

- From a good friend of mine, Stan Goldstein

Thought for the Day - Before we can lead

Thoughts for the day ---

We must be silent before we can listen.

We must listen before we can learn.

We must learn before we can prepare.

We must prepare before we can serve.

We must serve before we can lead.

~William Arthur Ward

Showing up, and Generating Opportunities

It’s been a while since I posted – I had three major presentations to give in a four week period, plus attending college graduation ceremonies for my son. Giving these presentations was a big step forward with my career goals, and these opportunities all came about because of efforts I made at giving previous minor presentations. Woody Allen used to say that “Eighty percent of success is showing up”. In a way it was true in my case. If you show up at gatherings and make yourself known as someone who has something to say about a topic, opportunities will start emerging. As a result of these most recent presentations, I was invited to review an article, review a book, and give a presentation at a conference in Beijing. (Unfortunately I had to turn down the Beijing presentation because my company wouldn’t pay for it). The more you show up and make the effort, the more opportunities present themselves.

This gets me to my son’s graduation from college. I was trying to decide what words of wisdom I could give him at this transition point in his life. I came up with the following thoughts:

You know those quotes about “opportunity knocking”? Well, it doesn’t really work that way. Opportunity doesn’t knock on your door, but it does hang around the area for a while. You have to go out and do a little exploring to find it. And sometimes what you find are the pieces that you have to put together yourself.

No One But Us

This was recently sent to me by a good friend. I found it a very empowering poem, especially if you feel inadequate because of past failures and mistakes.

No One But Us
by Annie Dillard

There is no one but us.
There is no one to send,
Nor a clean hand,
Nor a pure heart
On the face of the earth,
Nor in the earth
But only us,
A generation comforting ourselves
With the notion
That we have come at an awkward time,
That our innocent fathers are all dead –
As if innocence has ever been –
And our children busy and troubled,
And we ourselves unfit, not yet ready,
Having each of us chosen wrongly,
Made a false start, failed,
Yielded to impulse
And the tangled comfort of pleasures,
And grown exhausted,
Unable to seek the thread,
Weak, and involved.
But there is no one but us.
There never has been.

From the book Holy the Firm by Annie Dillard

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.
    

Wondering what they will do

"Some people wonder what they will do when they grow up. I'm wondering more about what I'll do when my children grow up." - Martha Carleton

Thought for the Day - Life as a mission

Thought for the day:

"Life is a mission, not a career" - Stephen R. Covey,

from The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

Thoughts for the coming year

Some thoughts for the coming year:

May you get what you want, and not what you deserve.

May the good guys win.