Life is about choices; we make choices every day that affect not only the immediate subject, but also those around us and our future.
Sometimes we don’t even notice the choices we make, but that doesn’t change the size of their effect.
The following is a teaching fable that has been around in various forms for years.
An old man told his grandson about the battle that goes on inside people.
He said, “The battle is between the two animals that live inside us all.

One is Evil—it is made of anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false …read more

What do you talk about in your life?
What do you go to bed thinking about; what dominates your dreams; what do you ponder during the day?
Your aches and pains; the gray hair you found; the new outfit you bought, but aren’t sure is right?
Do you dwell on the words or email that may be a slight—or not?
The colleague you’re not sure likes you; the boss who seems OK, but…?
It’s more than a matter of the glass being half full or half empty.
Like the dog that worries a bone, constantly thinking and talking about anything focuses you on it; prioritizes it …read more

I probably shouldn’t say this, but I do get tired of having managers ask, how to get workers to think/do/work “outside-the-box.”
For decades they’ve been exploring a plethora of business books, articles, seminars, coaching, consulting, discussions, etc., on the subject—some good, some not so good—and are still searching for how to lead their workers out of that dreaded box.
I hear, “How do we get the team to think differently?” “What incentives work best?” “How do we engage our people?”
What I don’t hear is “What do I need to change in me [to make it happen]?”
What annoys is the assumption that the …read more

Every day we make choices and, as kids, learning to make wise ones is one on the most important things that should happen as we grow.
But it doesn’t always happen.
The great thing is that you can change and learn to make good choices at any time in your life—it is an integral part of leading yourself.
One of the most important choices anyone makes is found in the people they choose to have as part of their life.
Although I could write my own ideas of what that means, I’d like to share something I received from a friend. I can’t find …read more

Much will be done today to commemorate the lives lost on September 11, 2001. The story I’m going to share has a different focus than most and one I believe is worth your time.
Among those who died that day was the husband of a woman I knew casually and because our acquaintance was casual I was surprised when she called nearly six months later.
I’ll call her “Kerry” and we talked for hours, but the kernel I want to share is this.
She needed support to move; not just move on, it was too early for that, but to physically move.
Kerry said …read more

“The past is the present, isn’t it? It’s the future, too.” Long Day’s Journey Into Night, Eugene O’Neill
I recently ran across this quote; it’s been years since I read the play, but that poignant line, with its message that what has been is and irrevocably will be has always left me feeling depressed and angry.
Depressed because it revokes hope.
Angry because it’s the antithesis of everything I believe.
It proclaims that we, whether individuals, organizations or countries, can’t change; that we are locked on our trajectory with no rudder and an endless supply of fuel.
That thought represents a type of MAP (mindset, …read more

Last week’s discussion about the difference between busy and productive featured a comment from Jim Gordon. In a follow-up comment he expanded how he deals with this problem when teammates complain, whether by word or look, that he’s goofing off because he isn’t ‘busy’.
“One strategy I used in my groups was to map out every single task we were doing, have the team agree that it is a fair and balanced, distributed workload, and completed the tasks on my terms. By doing this, I was able to finish everything quickly. In fact, on multiple occasions I gave myself MORE work …read more

I’ve always thought of life as a corridor with dozens of doors opening, each one representing an opportunity.
You may open one or pass them by—it’s your choice.
Each time you do open one and enter that door closes forever and you move down a new corridor full of doors.
The door you entered is sealed because whatever lay behind it changed you, so you can’t go backwards, only forward.
Some people to through life opening as few doors as possible, changing as little as possible and staying as safe as possible.
Others launch themselves through the most interesting doors with gusto, taking advantage of …read more

It’s always your choice!
Your comments—priceless
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Image credit: flickr