• Crank up Your Chainsaw

  When the chainsaw was first developed, a salesman traveled through the great logging territories of the northwestern, so the story goes, selling one or two saws at each of the camps.  This was to create demand for greater sales on a future trip.  One month later he retraced his steps and sales were going through the roof at each of the camps because the loggers were completely replacing their old methods and buying chainsaws for everyone.  Then he came to one camp where the new saws were not in evidence; the old manual methods of cross cut saws and axes were still in use. This was a completely different experience than every other camp.  He was mystified. He asked the leader of the camp if he did not find the saws to be a great multiplier of productivity. The leader answered that no, they actually slowed the productivity and his men preferred the old methods.  He asked if they had a chainsaw handy and the leader produced one.  The salesman quickly checked it for fuel and oil.  Everything was in order so he flicked the switch and pulled the handle, thus cranking up the loud engine.  The leader and his men looked at each other and said, “What’s that noise?”

  While we can understand that an uncranked chainsaw is not as efficient as a manual tool that is designed for that use, and although the story is funny it does beg the question, what are each of us capable of doing that we have not accessed… not really even tried… not considered what we could do?  Each of us is capable of so much more than we ever access.  At a deep level, we know it is true.  A commitment to courageously process and analyze what we are capable of and what would motivate us to reach much deeper, hold ourselves more accountable, become more disciplined and to honestly revisit our progress in the efforts with regularity can propel beneficial change that begins to feed on itself.  Few have the “guts” to do it, but the ones who do bless us all.  Crank your chainsaw in some way this week.

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  Tags: commitment, Life, progress

• Getting a Whiff of Balance and Its Benefits

  Up until a few years ago, tobacco smoke was a constant in virtually every indoor space.  It hung in the air, permeated fabrics and porous building material and placed a “grey haze” on almost everything.  Even non-smoker’s homes did not escape because many more people smoked and did so wherever they went.  It was so pervasive that indicating you preferred for someone to not smoke in your home or office would have been considered inhospitable.  Hard to believe now, isn’t it?

  In the late 1970’s non-tobacco users began to assert their desires and non-smoking spaces began to appear, slowly at first.  The air did not clear immediately so the remarkable difference between smoke filled and non-smoking spaces were not immediately discernible to all, but as new construction was completed and interior space that had never been exposed to smoke began to be occupied, the movement really took off.   At that point the great difference between smoke saturated and truly fresh air in enclosed rooms was clear and there was no turning back.

  Today, with so many of us living in a highly distracted and challenged mode that I have come to call Imbalanced, it feels like low energy, behind the 8 ball, confused, frustrated, unsatisfied, inefficient, burdensome living with high potential for burnout and wasted effort.  We each have so many files open in our heads that it is difficult to do a really good job on any one task for all the distraction of the work we are NOT doing.  Sound familiar?  I see it in most people around me including young and old, male and female, executive and blue collar.  A couple of nights ago the father of twin high school seniors girls told me one of his daughters has dropped out of her long love affair with dancing so as to pursue better grades and a more impressive array of activities to go on her resume for college and beyond.  He was sad about it as you are only a kid once.

  We are a nation of sleep deprived, caffeine fueled, out of shape, frantically busy people who live with feelings of guilt for not doing better and little knowledge of true joy and almost no personal satisfaction and peace.  Like the smoke filled rooms of a few years ago, it is the same to varying degrees for almost everyone around us, so we don’t detect the fact that there is a different way to go.  If we can ever get a little balance in our lives, the improved feelings, increased productivity, and joy of living more of each day aligned with our authentic purpose will give us a deep craving for much more of this sanity balance and focus offers us.

  How can we improve our balance?  Start by staking out some time to think through what is happening to us.  How are we really spending our time and how are those choices determined?  How does our actual time use compare with what is really important to us?  Such a review can begin the process and once we pay more attention to the relatively simple principles that drive progress and well being, physically our energy and self confidence increase providing real encouragement we can do the same in the other important aspects of our being.  But rather than seeing the analysis and planning step being proposed here as one more task to add to the list, it should be seen as a multiplier of your personal power, too important to ignore.  Put some time on the calendar this week.  Refer to www.ImprovingYourBalance.com for some more help.

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  Tags: balance, benefits, Life

• The Common Denominator to All Your Relationships and Transactions

  A basic law of physics is that no matter where you go, you are there.  The one thing none of us can escape is our self.  That clear articulation of the obvious leads to at least two beneficial conclusions.  First, any time and effort we put into a program of personal growth is likely to be an investment with payoff in many, many places.  And secondly, if we don’t like the trend of results we are getting at any point in time, the first place to look to make change is inside our self.  Whether in our profession, family, community, or close friendships, we are half of all transactions throughout each and every day and night.

  Personal growth is like other significant human endeavors in that developing some type of plan is beneficial.  To accomplish any plan, we need to get really clear on the objective, identify the path and processes to use getting to that objective, break down the overall into manageable parts, identify the people and resources (including know-how) we will need, establish realistic time/milestone targets, and then execute the plan with a commitment to monitor our progress and adjust as needed.    Getting clear on the personal traits we want to claim as our own and being courageously realistic about the gap between that desired end point and where we are now is probably the hardest part of this process.  This gap analysis is also the step with the biggest payoff if we do it well.  Some really good news is that we don’t have to improve every aspect of our person at once and the goal is progress, not perfection.

  Realizing that we are one-half of our relationships of all types, each transaction or exchange we conduct with others, is actually encouraging.  It is a natural element of the human condition to spend much time analyzing the actions and behaviors of other people in our lives and wishing “they” would be or behave differently.  But what is the chance you can actually change “them?”  Not too great, huh?  You know because you have tried and know that is not a good use of time.  In fact, it usually causes stress in the relationship.  Not good.  Well, give it up and look instead to yourself.  There is much you can do differently almost always.  In fact, you can usually do anything and everything differently.  So, the question becomes…what is driving me?  How do I behave and present myself so that “they” want to engage productively and positively with me?  Spinning the pointer from “them” to you will create amazing results over time.

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  Tags: Life, relationships

• Is Having the Top Job Worth the Effort?

  Unless your family name is on the front door of your office complex, it will probably take much effort over a protracted period of time to become the big boss.  Why do it?  Or said another way, what motivations will help you keep up the focused and perhaps extreme effort for the time required?

  Having the best office, more compensation, being able to call the shots, more control over your schedule, your jokes being funnier, and always being seated at the head table are a few of the nice trimmings of CEO, but consistently putting forth the effort to get the top job will require more and deeper perceived benefits than that for most.  Where do you look for the more sustaining motivations?

  Notice that the benefits on the short list above are self-focused.  The more sustainable motives are focused on other people.  Taking care of and offering value to customers, helping your team members be effective, assuring profit and progress for the business owners, being responsible members of the marketplace and communities where you operate are great examples of the higher calling that not only will call you to better internal choices, but will appeal to those who work with you.  Of course over time your associates will see your thought processes unfold whether good or bad.  When views like these guide your thinking and internal motivation, it is easier to access your extra capacity and sustain the drive to find the right innovations, improved efficiency, and thought leadership that will lead ever upward to your goal.

  A definite side benefit of this other-focus is that you enjoy the trip more and wherever this approach leads you…to the top job or somewhere close, it is more satisfying.  Others first, then me!

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  Tags: family, focus, Jobs, Life, motivation, salary

• Fool’s Game Series…Focusing on Injustices

  Humans are imperfect. We disappoint, fall short, and hurt each other. In our darker times we mean to hurt others, usually the harm is unintentional. Often we don’t realize our effect or don’t care. It goes with the territory. Since we are all both perpetrators and victims in this arena, why do we so quickly cover over and forget our own short falls, but long remember and dwell on the injustices done to us?

  It is appropriate to review our experiences and learn from them. If we were treated poorly in the past, we likely had some role to play, small or large. We do not want to repeat behaviors that invite being disadvantaged, but part of the human experience is that it is so tempting to dwell on those experiences when we were “done wrong,” playing the tapes with different responses by us that might have caused a different outcome. Worse yet, it is tempting to dwell on new action we might take that could even the score…how sweet that might be, we are tempted to think. Truth is, it would not be very sweet for very long. Spending time thinking these thoughts is taking the low road and leads to a disappointing destination. What is the high road? Forgive and move forward. FORGIVE?!? But you don’t know what THEY did to me! Right, but I do know the greater the injustice the greater its power to suck the life out of your potential future.

  Forgiving does not have to involve the party that wronged us directly. They may never know. Nor does forgiving them mean that you will ever have any other dealings with them necessarily. Forgiving is simply the process of working your way to feelings of neutrality about the wrong and the person(s) who wronged you. It is largely a mental versus emotional process; at least it is lead by the intellect, not the heart. It begins with the recognition that animosity or anger works like an acid. Acid first eats the vessel that holds it. If you nurse the wound and the hate, you are eating up your own insides. Figure out how to pour out the acid and you will be the first to benefit. Forgive and you are the first and primary one to gain.

  The best revenge is to live well. That is harder to do if you are focused on events of the past and experiencing negative emotions about them. So to improve your chances to live well, make a determination to let it go and move on. If you use your head to lead that process with dogged determination, eventually your heart will follow.

  Last tip: When you think of the past and it is painful or makes you angry, just force yourself to smile. That will have an immediate effect on your feelings and confuse others. Try it.

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  Tags: Forgive, Life, Truth

• Trusting Others

  This is the age of specialization and we must increasingly rely on each other to manage. So, answering the question, “Who can I trust?”, is an ever-present tape playing in the background of our minds most of each day.

  I suggest you look at the question of trust in two parts:
  1. Do I trust this person’s motives?
  2. Do I trust this person’s knowledge, ability, and judgement?

  To have real trust you must answer YES to each. If you cannot be confident that someone’s motives are aligned with your own, there is and should be a limit as to how much you will rely on their suggestions or perspective. You may continue the conversation, but you need to ask many more questions and be more inclined to verify what you are being told with another or other sources. On the other hand, if you are confident that the other person has your best interests at heart, you can move on quickly to the second question which may not be totally black and white, but is usually easier to answer.

  Long relationships matter. If you have known and observed another for a longer period you get to know them at a level not achievable otherwise. That can build your confidence in your views of them on the two-part trust question. Relationships are worth the investment.

  Final thought: Others are viewing you through these same lenses. Be careful to serve others well by thinking about their best interests and any perspectives you offer.

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  Tags: Life, people, trust

• Information, knowledge or wisdom?

  The world we live in brings us tons of information on many channels. There is little time to see the flow just on the few subjects of greatest interest to us, much less time to be discerning about the source and reliability of the views and claims. Yet we must try for we are information driven beings and there is great potential power in even a slightly changed paradigm.

  Life is full of choices good and bad. In fact, being human is about making choices continuously, moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day.

  EXAMPLE: Let’s say we decide we want and need to lose weight, but we love Krispy Kreme doughnuts. (If you have ever had one of these little fat balls hot, right off the belt, you better understand the addictive power of crack cocaine.) Even worse let’s say there is a Krispy Kreme shop on your main route of travel and you must pass it several times a day, each time feeling the tug to stop and have “just 3?, especially when the red HOT NOW light is illuminated in the front window. That light seems to be directly connected to your steering wheel. On some trips by the store when you are feeling strong and your belt is especially tight you can pass by , but too often you yield and steer right in. Then, some how you get exposed to the idea that you can make ONE DECISION versus MANY. This notion is new and is just information at this point, but you ponder the point and begin to see the value in deciding to completely stop eating donuts until you reach your desired weight. That’s one decision with benefits to you. You contemplate it over a bit of time and remember it, embracing the truth of the concept. The idea of implementing ONE DECISION and stopping the donut flow has become KNOWLEDGE (defined as truth remembered), but nothing good has happened yet because there has been no ACTION.

  WISDOM is a word with an action component. Our lives are made up of the actions we actually take…..not what we want, what we intend, what we ought to do and should do, not what we could have done……life is what we DO. So, we decide to really stop eating donuts for a time (one decision) and we then contemplate how to implement the concept. We look at the maps and figure out alternate routes to avoid going by the donut store all the time. Voila, beneficial action. WISDOM and benefit.

  This idea of the differences between information, knowledge and wisdom is helpful as we navigate the flow of information coming at us. What are the sources of valid information that we then want to retain and claim as true, and which begins to influence our actions for the better? The volume of information is a great benefit of our era if we approach it with this type of system.

  It is all about that little voice inside. Mastery of it is my goal…a work in process.

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  Tags: information, knowledge, Life, wisdom

• Fired, laid off, downsized, shutdown, bankrupt……..out of work!!

  Many have lost their jobs and many more are at risk. What do you do when it happens to you? Here is some perspective offered from one who has been there.

  1. Grieve the loss. Does that seem too dramatic? Not to the one who has suffered this loss. It hits you where you live, it shakes your confidence, it causes self doubt, it scares you, makes you angry, bewilders you and causes emotions precisely parallel to other significant life losses. You can google “stages of grief” for lots of information, but the most typical discussions list 5 predictable stages: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. As humans we have the rare ability to be going through emotional stages in our heart and observing these same stages in our mind’s eye. It is helpful to see what you are feeling is really quiet normal.

  2. Live in the moment. That does not mean to deny that tomorrow will come and some planning is needed, but you really only can do what you can do “right now” for that is all you have. “Borrowing possible trouble” from tomorrow is not wise, but you will have to exercise mental discipline to stay in the moment.

  Here is some help on how to view time use (turn on sound):
  done

  3. Get a spiral ring notebook and begin writing. Keep at least two sections. The first is thoughts that occur about your options as you develop a plan of action. Personal financial concerns go here as well as steps you can take to address getting your work life going again. It is very helpful to keep a log of all your thoughts as your creative side begins to emerge. Also log conversations with others in your household, in your family and within the community about their ideas. The other section is a personal and confidential journal of your inner most feelings and thoughts as you go through this experience. This is immensely helpful to your self image, it gives feelings of empowerment and it captures the experience for future use. You will endure pain, but also unexpected gifts. Write down what you are feeling.

  4. When the smoke begins to clear a little, take control of the situation with a teeth gritting, dogged determination that you are going to WIN. What others would count as defeat you will turn upside down and emerge from the experience much better. This is a mental state that you assume and maintain. In the book There’s More to Life than the Corner Office that I wrote with Tammy Kling, on page 108 there is an instructive dialogue between Patrick, the 28 year old who was fired by a liar of a boss to cover his own dishonesty, talking with the 60 something and wise, Al, who is pointing out Patrick’s options. Let’s listen in:

  “Al, I still don’t know why you have taken me on as a student, but I am very grateful. I want a black belt.”

  “In time, Patrick. You have all the seeds of greatness. Don’t let others sidetrack you from success by you getting
  angry or emotional. You have a world class opportunity here. What happens to us in life is less important than the way we respond to it. You have two choices. You were fired today. You can decide if it’s an unfair calamity in your life based on lies, or you can decide if it is a wonderful gift. You and only you can make that determination, and it drives the outcome of all this. A victim will determine it’s a calamity and tell his or her life story from that reference point. Heroic people make the decision to evaluate, learn, and push forward to be better than ever.”

  “I plan to be the heroic one,” I said.

  “Good. Not easy, but worth it.”

  5. Communicate well with those close to you in your family and your close friends. Don’t go it alone. That is not necessary, productive or enriching.

  6. If significant changes become necessary due to finances, stay ahead of the process. Plan, know where you stand, keep those affected in your family and your creditors fully informed and sufficiently in advance.

  7. There is always one more thing you can do to move toward a positive outcome. Find it and do it, then move on to the next one. Proper action, one at a time, will bring feelings of progress and eventually real progress.

  8. Examine your life in all its elements. Maintain and improve your physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual well being during this transition with the extra time you have available. The feelings of worth and control of your own life will be amazing in the midst of the strife.

  When the turmoil is over, use what you have learned to help others in similar situations. Don’t waste your hard won lessons and know how.

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  Tags: bankrupt, downsizes, fired, Jobs, laid-off, work

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