Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Living for a Good Purpose



“No pleasure philosophy, no sensuality, no place nor power, no material success can for a moment give such inner satisfaction as the sense of living for good purposes, for maintenance of integrity, for the preservation of self-approval.”

Minot Simons


I write this relaxing in the beautiful Grand Hyatt in Roppongi, Tokyo. Last night in a conversation with a Japanese friend she was lamenting what she described as a Japanese trait of determining ones identity based on the approval of others. After some thought, I shared that I believe this tendency is not exclusively Japanese.

My leadership seminars stress the central role of purpose in our lives and how an awareness of purpose and an ability to articulate it to others increases our effectiveness. I’m reminded by the late Reverend Simons that it is directly related to our sense of satisfaction with our lives.

With love and respect,

Robert

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Are You Ready to Learn?

"Personally, I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught."

Winston Churchill

Ahhhh Sir Winnie, your wit and wisdom always seem to touch me at the heart level …. and your words often make me a bit uncomfortable with their inherent truth.

I know it’s my ego, my identity as a “know-it-all” that gets in the way; yet that bit of self knowledge doesn’t seem adequate to disappear my resistance to “being taught.”

These times of rapidly accelerating changes in families, careers and the economy call for constant learning, for constant re-invention. What’s your take on why we sometimes resist being taught? True confessions (and hopefully some insight) can be shared by commenting. I look forward to the dialogue!

With love and respect,

Robert

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Wisdom from Duane Elgin



“To live more voluntarily is to live more deliberately, intentionally and purposefully -- in short, it is to live more consciously. We cannot be deliberate when we are distracted from life. We cannot be intentional when we are not paying attention. We cannot be purposeful when we are not being present.”

Duane Elgin

I was going to write this myself but Duane Elgin beat me to it. (my attempt at some jealousy disguised as humor)

I believe this quote is from his 1981 book “Voluntary Simplicity : toward a way of life that is outwardly simple, inwardly rich” Great title, great book and great quote.

The argument here seems to support prayer and meditation as tools for creating an extraordinary experience of life. I agree. Do you? Let us know with your comments!

With love and respect,

Robert

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Seven Deadly Sins


"The seven deadly sins are wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, business without morality, science without humanity, worship without sacrifice, and politics without principle."

Gandhi

Growing up in an all Catholic neighborhood makes me wary about “sin.” However, ignoring Gandhi-ji’s wisdom seems perilous also.

It occurs to me that you can read his words ten times and get ten insights. Perhaps that’s enough for now – just read them several times and draw your own conclusions!

And ….. share with all of us. I look forward to interacting with your thoughts and feelings.

With love and respect,

Robert