Archive | January, 2005

Less Can Be More

by on January 22, 2005 in Career, Life

I’m a big fan of the work performed by the Center for Creative Leadership. This month’s Leading Effectively e-newsletter focuses on balance. While I’m not the biggest proponent of the concept of balance, I found one of the articles offered some good ideas for reclaiming effectiveness in our work.

Enjoy!

Less Can Be More

Don’t assume that putting in fewer hours on the job will cause your work to suffer. In fact, time and energy spent off-the-job can enhance your productivity and your capacity to deal with work challenges. Shifting the mix of work and non-work hours can teach you:

Strength in vulnerability. Recognize that you can’t do everything and learn to ask for help. Leaders who successfully balance competing demands in all aspects of their lives freely admit their vulnerabilities and frequently are admired and respected for doing so. It makes them seem more human and more approachable.

The upside of limits. When facing a tough challenge or a huge to-do list, human nature urges you to push harder and work more hours. While it may seem counterintuitive to stop, ease back or even shift focus, that’s exactly what you may need to do. If you’re working late at the office – fourteen hours a day, day in and day out – you are tricked into thinking that your efficiency is being maximized by your intense work efforts. In fact, leaving early a few nights a week or delegating more may be the better solution. By setting limits, you are better able to distinguish when you really do need to push and when to step back and regroup.

The benefit of recharging. Our capacity to work is not boundless, although we sometimes appear to believe otherwise. Building in enough time to relax and recharge as we work is critical for clear and creative thinking, strong relationships and good health.

Here’s the full article

Your Life As A Variety Show

by on January 21, 2005 in Career, Creative, Life

The idea of creating balance in our lives is a popular one, but for the most part, I think it is unsustainable and unrealistic. It’s not a balancing act between just two variables of "work" and "life" – it’s far more complex than that. Rather than a teeter-totter image, think about a circus performer who tries to balance themselves on top of a giant ball. The ball can go in any direction and it takes an immense amount of concentration and energy to remain centered on top.

But, there are other models for us to consider.

It used to be that TV had solid lineups of variety shows. Remember Milton Berle, Ed Sullivan, and Jack Benny? What about Sonny and Cher and the Muppets? What made them great and interesting was that you always had a wide selection of entertainment. There was usually some singing, some comedy, and some stunts (like guys jugggling chainsaws on fire) in each episode. The different acts kept the show engaging and viewers wondering what would come next.

What would happen if we think of our lives as a variety show with each of our roles as different acts? Each day’s episode can contain…
professional acts – ladies and gentlemen, look as he puts out fires with his bare hands


parent acts – watch as he solves multiple interpersonal conflicts with the greatest of ease


friend acts – observe as he enjoys a dinner with people he loves

and the possibilities are endless…

Don’t be afraid to add variety to your life. If your day is dominated by professional acts, think about ways to squeeze in some other acts. Watching the same act over and over gets boring not only to the folks around you, but to you, as well.

When Your Creative Partner is a Duck

by on January 18, 2005 in Creative

(From Ross and Strategize) I found this idea to be an interesting way to brainstorm and work through problems.

You see, I’m a notorious "self-talker." We’re the folks you walk by and notice we’re passionately carrying on a conversation with ourselves. In dull, conformist environments, this is perceived as a mental difficulty worthy of a few chuckles. But for us self-talkers, its our way of processing information, trying on ideas, working through all the variables.

Now the question is: Is it weirder to talk to yourself or an inanimate object? For me, the answer is: WHO CARES! Better to be the eccentric guy or gal who keeps coming up with incredible and creative ideas. And who knows…it might actually catch on. Imagine everyone in the organization having conversations with life-sized cardboard cutouts of Darth Vader (so Darth, what do you think we should do about that new marketing plan?) or Homer Simpson (so Homer, what should I call the next version of our software?). Now that I think about it, I’m on my way out the door right now to find myself a cutout of Jennifer Garner.

More Than A Dream: MLK’s Call to Action

by on January 17, 2005 in Creative, Work

More than just a U.S. Federal holiday or a day off from work, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is an opportunity for us to deeply consider critical social and political issues. What’s disturbing is how Dr. King’s words still describe the world we live in today, even though they were written and spoken nearly 40 years ago. For instance, consider his sermon titled "Beyond Vietnam," delivered on April 4, 1967, in New York City’s Riverside Church:

The Western arrogance of feeling that it has everything to teach others and nothing to learn from them is not just. A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war: "This way of settling differences is not just." This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation’s homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of people normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love. A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.

Yet, more than just considering these words, our challenge is to choose our path carefully and take action. What change do you want to see? Start in your home and move outward: "Think Globally, Act Locally."

For more excerpts from Dr. King’s speeches, visit: MLK Jr. In His Own Words

Allowing for Serendipity

by on January 15, 2005 in Creative, Life, Media

It’s funny how events sometimes happen in our lives, almost as if they have been planned and directed by someone else. Sort of like being in our own Truman Show. For instance: You sit down for a cup of coffee at Starbucks expecting to just be with yourself, but joyfully, you’re pulled into an amazing set of conversations that entertain, inform, even alter your worldview. It’s serendipity and when you’re open to all that the universe has to offer, it can lead to really great stuff.

As an aside, when I looked up the word serendipity at dictionary.com to make sure my spelling was accurate, I discovered the word’s origin:

We are indebted to the English author Horace Walpole for the word serendipity, which he coined in one of the 3,000 or more letters on which his literary reputation primarily rests. In a letter of January 28, 1754, Walpole says that “this discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word.” Walpole formed the word on an old name for Sri Lanka, Serendip. He explained that this name was part of the title of “a silly fairy tale, called The Three Princes of Serendip: as their highnesses traveled, they were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of….”

I like that…making unexpected discoveries through accident and sagacity. Here’s an idea for allowing serendipity into your life:

Ditch the script. Some of us have an easier time living spontaneously than others. That’s okay; we’re all made up differently. But, we all have the capacity to be spontaneous. If you find surprises and the unexpected scary, find the place where you are comfortable and hang out there. Notice what it’s like, what you are feeling and sensing. Then take a step toward discomfort (sort of like that first step into a cold pool of water). Again, be aware of what’s going on inside you and what’s going on outside. Take your time, but resist the urge to immediately go back to comfort. True growth occurs in places of discomfort.

What else has worked for you? Where else have you experienced a moment of serendipity in your life? Here’s hoping you make another accidental discovery today.