Category Archives: Inspiration

Each small step forward matters

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Each small step forward matters.

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by NASA

Who isn’t familiar with Neil Armstrong’s famous quote, That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind?

Hearing those words never ceases to inspire me with hope for a better future.

Although we all wish to take giant leaps in our lives, those moments are rare. If, however, we focus on how our small steps lead to bigger things, we can all climb steadily to the peaks of our lives and reach for the stars.

EXERCISE:

How can you more fully recognize and acknowledge the small steps you and others take each day?

How can even your atomic efforts result in quantum leaps of achievement and life satisfaction?

Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow

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“Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow, it inspires new ideas, it sharpens perspective and illuminates connections.”

—Ryan Holiday, American author, and host of the podcast The Daily Stoic

Image from Unsplash by Mario Doberman

Being still seems like such a passive thing to do. How could the lack of movement get us where we want to go and accomplish the things we desire?

Without a careful aim we certainly miss our targets.

Without new ideas we are destined to keep circling back to the ones whose time has passed.

Without greater perspective we are unlikely to pursue paths meant for today and our future.

Without our connections and communities, we are left as lone rangers, isolated and alone.

EXERCISE:

How could you squeeze greater benefits out of stillness in your life?

Where can it act as a quiet place to reflect and improve your world in so many ways?

How can you incorporate note taking into your daily habits?

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How can you incorporate note taking into your daily habits?

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Cathryn Lavery

When I consider the topic of note taking my initial thoughts go back to my school days. Listening intently to my teachers in grade school and my professors in college was paramount to getting the “A’s” I was seeking. Capturing what was said and giving it back to them seemed to be the secret recipe for success.

Following my formal schooling the extent of my note taking focused on grocery shopping and the occasional list of questions for doctor visits. Like many others, I felt my note taking days were over. There didn’t seem to be much need to remember a bunch of stuff that wasn’t going to be on the test.

These days, getting ahead and staying ahead is as important as ever. Capturing new ideas and valuable insights and keeping them to use now or in the future is essential to progress in our increasingly complex and fast-moving lives.

EXERCISE:

Purchase a small notebook or use a note-taking app on your phone to capture more of the nuggets of wisdom that cross your path each day. My friend Sam Horn uses a catchy quote “Ink it when You think It” that can help you remember to apply this important skill.

Please let me know how this practice helps you ace your actual life.

Compassion compounds, giving grows, when you put positive energy into the world

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“Compassion compounds, giving grows, when you put positive energy into the world, you inspire others to pay it forward.”

—Jay Shetty, Purpose Coach, Former Monk, NYT Bestselling Author

Image from Amazon

During my pharmaceutical career with The Upjohn Company between 1981 and 1992, we went through a TQM (Total Quality Management) initiative. As part of our efforts, we were requested/required to read the book Zapp — The lightning of Empowerment by William C Byham PhD and Jeff Cox. The intent was to inspire and create a culture of quality, productivity, and exceptional employee engagement.

The fictitious company in the book produced a product called a normalator, with which we are amusingly introduced to all sorts of Zapping (positive) and Sapping (negative) behaviors that uplift or squash people’s spirits.

EXERCISE:

Notice the zapping and sapping energies and behaviors that occur throughout your day in your personal and professional efforts.

Where and how can you pay forward the positive qualities that energize and inspire others to do the same?

”Each of us is born with a box of matches inside us but we can’t strike them all by ourselves.”

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”Each of us is born with a box of matches inside us but we can’t strike them all by ourselves.”

—Laura Esquivel, Mexican novelist, screenwriter and politician

Image from Unsplash by Georg Eiermann

Just like a single hand is unable to clap without another, we all need assistance from time to time to have our inner spark ignite and keep burning.

Consider your relationships with close friends, parents, teachers, mentors, coaches, and other individuals. How have they sparked ideas and helped you stay motivated and in action to see things through?

Most images of match boxes show only a limited number of matches inside, with somewhere between 20 and 32 matches. I did, however, find a jumbo box with a count of 300 and numerous multi box options!

EXERCISE:

How many matches have you used so far? How many are left? Who are the current individuals who partner with you so that you can burn brightly and perhaps shed light on others? Where and with whom are you the flint to help others spark their unique gifts and talent?

“Measure wealth not by the thing you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money.”

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“Measure wealth not by the thing you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money.”

—Author Unknown

Image from abcnews.go.com

It was the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games that inspired me to become a coach. Here were some of the best athletes in the world, and they all worked with a coach to pursue and achieve excellence in their chosen sport.

Where are you currently pursuing personal or professional excellence?

Did you know that based on current market prices, a 2016 Gold Medal is worth about $587, given that it is composed of 494 grams of silver and 6 grams of gold?

What do you think these symbols of extraordinary effort and achievement are worth to these remarkable athletes? What would you imagine is the intrinsic value of the Olympic experience?

EXERCISE:

In what ways do you live a gold medal life?

What in your life do you consider priceless?

Take some time today to be more fully grateful for all the blessings and riches we sometimes forget.

“Don’t wait for inspiration.”

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“Don’t wait for inspiration.”

—Author Unknown

Image from Unsplash by Alex Sheldon

Waking up this morning, I was not particularly inspired to leap out of my warm, cozy bed to meditate, take my daily walk, or for that matter, begin writing today’s Quotable Coach post.

I did all those things anyway.

Consider counting the times in the past week that you felt the urge to take on a particular task or activity.

Take this little test: On a one-to-ten scale, rate each of the activities on this list as “inspirational”:

  • Making your bed
  • Daily hygiene efforts
  • Preparing (hopefully healthy) meals
  • Household chores such as laundry
  • Mowing the lawn & other yard work
  • Paying bills
  • Daily exercise
  • Going to work

Given your responses, is it a wonder we ever get out of bed at all?

If you have children and ask them to help with some of those activities – or simply to do their homework and clean their rooms – what responses do you get? What seems to mobilize us to action is our commitments and not our comfort.

EXERCISE:

How might a shift from “I have to” to an “I get to” perspective help you achieve a more inspired life?

“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.”

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“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.”

—Emma Goldman, 20th Century Russian-American political activist

Image from Unsplash by César Abner Martínez Aguilar

Did you know that there are planets in our universe that are made of diamond?

These rocky worlds are composed primarily of carbon and the atmospheric pressure is so great, diamonds result.

Although fascinating – and one might consider a future occupation as a space miner – the more prominent focus of planetary scientists and astronomers is the search for life.

For this group, the inspirational possibility and beauty of life takes on far greater importance than any inanimate object, no matter how much it may sparkle.

EXERCISE:

What are the roses in your world? How can and will you more fully appreciate their value and beauty, to live an even more richly rewarding life?

“People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals…”

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“People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals. That is, goals that do not inspire them.”

—Tony Robbins, American self-help Author and speaker

Image of a white coffee cup inscribed "begin"

Image from Unsplash by Danielle MacInnes

Who are the lazy people you know personally or professionally? Where and on what occasions do you, too, have a lazy streak in which you prefer to disengage?

To what degree do you, and they, perk up and find energy to become fully engaged by other interests and abilities?

What are your most exciting and inspiring vocational and avocational interests—the ones where you find yourself “all in” and where time flies?

EXERCISE:

What changes can and will you make to super-charge the potency of goals for yourself and others?

Feel free to reply to this post with the inspired actions you take and the results that occur.