Being happy is your essence. Working happy is your purpose. Keeping happy is the adventure of a lifetime. We have so many illusions of happiness and of work, yet there is an undeniable attraction to both. The formula we sell is – work leads to success and success leads to happy. We are incorrect on both counts. What we call work is labor, slave labor. And it has a high personal and general cost. It is a key component of the American dream, which we see crumbling around us. Now is a wonderful time to learn about work and happy—what they are and what they are not.
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Leslie Carver
Happy New Year! We say it every year, briefly, and then let it go. But with a new year, new energy comes roaring through. And we don’t tend to embrace that newness, not really. For new is an energy that commands change. We have to develop the character, the courage and the capacity to hold it, to be it and to embrace it. So we make some silly resolutions but we stay in the same game. New is here to kick our asses. Every fighter knows he must get in shape to face a championship fight. He often has to undertake new training to rise to the current level of engagement because the energy of the now is always new. And as hard as he trains, he must still show up to be present for the fight to get the credit.
And so it goes for each one of us, the new brings change and change is here for all. You can like it, not like it and even call it names. The more we can face the new, the more change we embrace, the more ease we can find through the ride. But make no mistake, when learning is required, there is a ‘going through’ it that takes a tremendous amount of courage. Click to Continue Reading…
America was founded by individuals who were drawn to this land. What drew them? They didn’t come of their own volition; they were drawn by an attraction. They were drawn by a vision, a vision that sustained them through the forging of a nation. That vision pulled and sustained them so they could overcome impossible odds. The people who came here were deeply ingrained in slavery.
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Moving from Impossible to I’m Possible
Leadership is the demonstration of principle that leads people to accomplish that which they thought was beyond their ability. It is based in the power of personal inspiration, a quality few demonstrate. You have to be willing to put yourself on the line, to learn, to do, and to demonstrate. Most of us try to lead in word, not in deed. A lot of the stories that stir us showcase inspirational leadership that achieves wondrous things in the face of impossible odds. In fact, one could say America was established against impossible odds.
George Washington is a great example of an inspirational leader. How did he get shoeless, unpaid, hungry soldiers who hadn’t won a battle in over a year to reenlist? Click to Continue Reading…
In business, as in life, we tend to depend on the people around us and the environments we work and live in for our energy. Great individuals have an ability to focus on and redirect their inner environment, their INvironment, to find balance, ability and productivity. We often speak about balance and alignment. The words come easy. What it takes to be purposeful and balanced regardless of what you’re facing in your outer environment requires a building of character and developing your individuality. One has to learn to connect to a larger energy, something that can pull you out of a difficult situation, like a tow truck can pull your car out of a ditch.
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