Getting It Wrong Before Getting It Right
Really, is there any other option for carving out a path to success?
Doing It Wrong, At First
Remember how learning to ride a bike? If you’re anything like me you learned by doing it wrong, falling off repeatedly, getting up, getting back on and doing it again… and again… and again. Actually, this approach works for lots of things. We learn best by doing something wrong the first time, then a little less wrong the next time and so forth, until we then get it right. Taking the next wrong step – not consciously, or in an [...]
When to Run From a Relationship
If you’re in a relationship – personal, professional, social – where someone continually promises to change something about themselves or their lives and doesn’t, or is telling you that in order for them to change, you have to change, run away at your top speed – and by all means, promise yourself not to look back.
Fake Problems
These are best described as either imagined or arbitrarily elevated to a position far loftier than they deserve. We all have problems before us that deserve high levels of concern and should be viewed through a lens of urgency. But instead of doing this, we opt rather to tackle the low hanging fruit, such as reorganizing photo albums or polishing silverware that won’t be used until Thanksgiving – as a way to distract ourselves from what really deserves our immediate [...]
The Day We Turn Pro
The day or time that we really become professionals is when we take our work seriously but not personally. Being serious about our work is far easier than shedding the personal part of what comes with it. By personal, I mean the inevitable slings, arrows, criticisms, failures and miscalculations that come with the territory. When someone rejects us or a project goes south, valuable lessons are learned when it comes to changing tactics and direction that will serve us better [...]
You’re either with me or against me…
... is not, and never will be a viable problem solving strategy, because problems can be nuanced and sometimes are not so straightforward. And such a strategy draws a line in the sand – creating an indolent way to deal with an issue we don’t care about enough to really understand. Most of all, an either with me or against me approach can give rise to wrath on both sides of the problem, making battle imminent. There’s gotta be a [...]
Identification vs. Resolution
Talk of New Year's Resolutions has evolved to the point where it's no more than fodder for all types of media to keep us cognizant of our flaws, make us eager to launch a campaign of improvements and assume responsibility for positive change. The morning shows like Today, are the best at taking the lead on this, as they're able to attract the early riser eager beavers who can't wait to sweat off a few pounds, begin the task of [...]
Empathy
Empathy is a bridge to appreciating someone else's pain or discomfort. Our ability to bring others along is important because one day the situation will be reversed; and a family member, buddy or maybe even a competitor will be the one to listen and care about us and what we're going through. Remaining silent just closes the door to making a connection. Offering empathy, on the other hand, through the actions of caring conversation and kindness can have quite a [...]
A Surefire Way to Expand Your Reading
If you’d like to expand the range, depth and breadth of your reading, pick up a copy of the Wall Street Journal, Weekend edition. Go to the “Review” section of the paper, and you’ll find several pages of book listings – accompanied by in-depth commentary on the book’s content and the author’s positions. You’ll find publications on science, philosophy, finance, sports, music, history, self-help, aviation, politics and more. And each weekend, a new crop of books appears. Reading voraciously, in [...]
It’s Not a Plot
Yesterday as I driving around town running some errands, I came to a signal light. As the light turned from red to green, the driver of the car directly in front of me began honking his horn incessantly. He was honking at the driver of the car directly in front of him, who had responded rather slowly to “go on green.” The honker then passed the slow mover on the right, lowered his window and flipped off the driver who [...]