Category Archives: Uncategorized

A simple Hello could lead to a million things

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“A simple ‘Hello’ could lead to a million things.”

—Author Unknown

Image of hands holding up pink balloons spelling "hello"

Image from Unsplash by RawPixel

I see a very kind woman most mornings at my health club. Her name is Pat, and her primary job is to swipe each person’s membership card as they enter the facility.

I know her husband’s name is John, and that she, like me, has a passion for books and reading. Perhaps what is most notable is that she welcomes each person with an authentic ‘Hello!” and a pleasant glance, which in turn generates a reciprocal greeting and kind words from almost everyone.

On days Pat is not at the front desk, the greeting ritual is far less likely, with the front desk person and most of the patrons going through an almost robotic entrance.

EXERCISE:

Where could a few more Hellos, Good Mornings, Pleases, and genuine Thank You’s lead to millions of wonderful things to brighten the day? How can you be more like Pat in your personal and professional communities?

Friday Review of Posts On Virtue

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Friday Review: Virtue

Who are the virtuous people in your life? Here are a few virtue-related posts you may have missed. Click the link to read the full message.

 

“Men’s evil manners live in brass; their virtues we write in water.”

 

 

 

 

“Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practice it will have neighbors.”

 

 

 

“You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lips.”

 

 

 

 

Will you look back on life and say

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“Will you look back on life and say, ’I wish I had,’ or ‘I’m glad I did’?”

—Zig Ziglar, late American author, salesman, and motivational speaker

What percent of the day does the average person seem content, happy, or even joyful? Alternatively, what percent of the day do they go through the motions, feel stuck, or experience regret?

Where do you fit on this spectrum of feelings, day-to-day, week-to-week, or even year-to-year?

Someone once shared the thought that life is a bit like a toilet paper roll. The more life sheets you use, the faster it spins.

EXERCISE:

What steps can and will you take at this point in your life to have many more “I’m glad I did” moments in the years ahead?

My daughter Rachel suggested a wonderful book related to this topic, titled A Million Miles in a Thousand Years – How I Learned to Live a Better Story, by Donald Miller.

Progress is a nice word

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“Progress is a nice word. But change is its motivator, and change has its enemies.”

—Robert F. Kennedy, 64th Attorney General of the United States of America

Immunity to Change book cover

Image from Amazon

Change or die.

What if you were given that choice?

For real.

What if it weren’t just rhetoric that confuses corporate performance, or life success in general, with life or death?

What if your physician said you had to make tough changes to the way you think and act, or your time would end soon?

Could you change?

The scientific studies in Alan Deutschman’s 2005 Fast Company article puts the odds at nine-to-one. That’s nine-to-one against you.

Progress involves leaving where you are to go to a better place ahead. It is a nice word, and does not appear to have much drama. It does, however, still involve change, and there are forces/enemies that slow it down or stop it on many occasions.

EXERCISE:

Consider checking out the Fast Company article, or look into the book Immunity to Change by Robert Kegan and Lisa Kaskow Lahey for greater insights into this fascinating topic.

Friday Review of Ambition

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FRIDAY REVIEW: Ambition

How ambitious are you? Here are a few ambition-related posts you may have missed. Click the link to read the full message.

 

“If there is something to gain and nothing to lose by asking, by all means ask.”

 

 

 

 

“Hard work without talent is a shame, but talent without hard work is a tragedy.”

 

 

 

“The person who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”

 

 

 

 

The one thing I love most

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“Sometimes I think that the one thing I love most about being an adult is the right to buy candy whenever and wherever I want.”

—Ryan Gosling, Canadian Actor and Musician

Image of a bowl of Halloween candy

mage from Flickr by Sean Freese

 

Looking back to my childhood, Halloween was perhaps my favorite holiday. The process of selecting our costumes to be hand-made by mom, and the pillow cases we used to collect our booty, still brings a fond smile.

In those years, we went out early and stayed out pretty late, and it was common to head home to drop off a load of the sweet stuff and head back out for more. That night, and for a few short weeks after, we had the freedom to eat our fill and not hear “No!” too often.

This freedom to choose our actions was something I cherished and it has been a core value of mine ever since.

EXERCISE:

How and in what ways can you experience even more of the sweetness of life by embracing and exercising the personal freedoms we sometimes take for granted?

A prosperity of kindness

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“As much as we need a prosperous economy, we also need a prosperity of kindness and decency.”

—Caroline Kennedy, American author, attorney, and diplomat

Image of a large church towering over a city

Image from Unsplash by Matthew Feeney

In ancient times, and even into the 1800s, the tallest buildings almost anywhere in the world were usually churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, or other spiritual centers.

In his book, The Power of Myth, Joseph Campbell explains that making these buildings the tallest pointed to the society’s priorities and core values, which included fundamental human decency and kindness.

Today, the tallest buildings across the world are almost always business buildings, demonstrating the economic priorities of wealth and material achievement.

EXERCISE:

What does leading a prosperous life mean to you? How would infusing even more kindness and decency benefit you and your personal and professional communities?

Review of posts on Wisdom

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FRIDAY REVIEW: WISDOM

What are your sources of wisdom? Here are a few wisdom-related posts you may have missed. Click the links to read the messages.

 

“Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower.”

 

 

 

 

“The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel.”

 

 

 

 

“A prudent question is one-half of wisdom.”

 

 

 

 

These are the things our souls metabolize

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“These are the things that our souls metabolize to be healthy: we need beauty, we need truth, and we need goodness.”

—John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market

Image of sunrise over a mountain, with today's quote
Did you know that the human body can go for more than three weeks without food? The maximum time we can go without water is about a week.

Protein, carbohydrates, and fats make up our food and nourish our bodies for optimal health.

Today’s quote suggests that feeding our souls requires beauty, truth, and goodness if we are to flourish and thrive.

EXERCISE:

What is it that you hunger for? What do your body and soul need most for optimal health? How would incorporating greater beauty, truth, and goodness in each day enrich and improve your life?

We learn by pushing ourselves

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“We learn by pushing ourselves and finding out what lies at the outer reaches of our abilities.”

—Josh Waitzkin, American chess prodigy and author

Image of a man doing a handstand on the beach

Image from Unsplash by JanFillem

Did you know that only about one in five people meet the total recommended amount of exercise?

Of particular relevance is renewed interest in strength and resistance training. The stretching and stresses on our muscles cause micro-tears in the tissue, which then actually heals and grows even stronger.

This growth and increase in muscle mass has the added benefit of increasing your metabolism by up to 15%. That helps with weight loss, or at least a reduction in body fat.

EXERCISE:

In what areas of interest would a few more cerebral push-ups help you stretch and grow beyond your current perceived abilities?