A Perspective or Two
Tuesday July 21st 2009, 10:11 am
Filed under: Perspectives in Brief
Summer is here and many are slowing down the pace to absorb the wonder of having more time with kids and families and exploring new places whether around the corner or far away. It’s amazing how it often takes our kids being off from school to force us to slow down at work. 

Why is that exactly?  Why do we need others to help us put on the brakes even when we know we have to for our own well being?

I’m as guilty of that as the next one.   How often have I heard myself and others say “Sounds great!  Maybe tomorrow or next week but now I have this deadline and that meeting etc. etc. etc.” 

If not now, when?

One of my dear friends and colleagues is so overwhelmed with volumes of work that he’s working 7 days a week for at least 15 hours if not more.  He’s about to embark on yet another project.  When we spoke about it I asked “What are you going to give up?” knowing it would be next to impossible for him to drop any of his work or responsibilities home or otherwise.  That is still an open question but one we will revisit .  We are all up to our ears in stuff….work, home, relationships, projects, hobbies, sports.  We often look at them as separate entities but they all take a piece of you in time and energy.  So, if you find you have way too much on your plate, ask yourself “What am I going to give up?  What do I absolutely have to NOT do? ” and “How can I free up space in my life so I can enjoy life?” 

I can just see some of you wanting to hit the delete button on this broadcast because it might hit home. Take a moment for a personal status check.  Does that sound like you?  Are you running in all directions with little direction?

“Well-being is not a state of mind or even of body.  It is a state of grace” - Sally Brampton
Choose self-care.  In doing so you will have so much more to give to your world.  Remember your future isn’t something that happens later.  It happens with every choice, thought, decision and step you take right now!

A couple of things

For those of you who want to have conversations that you’ve been dying to have but haven’t found the right people to have them with, the question and answer service and groups on LinkedIn is a great place to have them and start them!  Let me know if you link up to the service.  It’s been an amazing journey for me in meeting and collaborating with new people.
For those of you looking for an easy and free tool to plan a family reunion, select dates for an event, meeting, get opinions on something etc, go to www.doodle.com .  It’s a terrific site!

And just to let you know, as of mid-August we’ll be morphing how we do some of our work, contracting and interventions so we can serve more people in a cost effective way.  Stay tuned for more in our next letter.  If you’re wondering about the easy tone of this email, just like life I believe there should be an ebb and flow of what’s shared.  Even in the world of executives and politicians, they find a way to look at life outside their work and as I work with leaders I must be mindful of the whole of their lives, not just the professional side.  I encourage you to do the same.

I wish you a wonderful couple of weeks.  Enjoy whatever you choose to do and make it be great!

Best to you!
Donna Karlin
Founder and Principal
A Better Perspective
http://www.abetterperspective.com

ISSN 1913-6307



Succeeding in a Challenged Economy
Wednesday July 08th 2009, 10:36 am
Filed under: Perspectives in Brief

How do you succeed in a challenged economy?

You stop thinking about the challenged economy

H. Jackson Brown Jr. once wrote, “Your mind can only hold one thought at a time, so  make it a positive and constructive one.”  

That goes for the economy, someone you’re having difficulty with…even a toothache.

OK, I know that might sound like a ridiculous example but think for a moment to the last time you had a toothache .  Your tongue continually goes there to press on it so you make the pain lessen.  Are you thinking about anything else at the moment?  Or when you get a mosquito bite and it’s itching like crazy, is your mind able to completely focus on anything else?

Same goes for the economic environment.  I have been listening to clients in the corporate world talk incessantly about the economy to the exclusion of everything else…leaders in government who only talk about cutbacks and what they can’t do because of them and coaches, creative and other solopreneurs talk about how people are cutting back.

Let’s face it.  We always have parameters within which we have to do our work.  Change how you do it. Build something great in spite of it.  Figure out what’s amazing with what you have right now.  Make it be great!  Make your thoughts be great and share them. 

I’ll leave you with this amazing quote to think about, perhaps to shift your thinking:

“Conversation is a meeting of minds with different memories and habits. When minds meet, they don’t just exchange facts: they transform them, reshape them, draw different implications from them, engage in new trains of thought. Conversation doesn’t just reshuffle the cards: it creates new cards.” - Theodore Zeldin.

With deepest respect,

Donna Karlin

Founder and Principal
A Better Perspective
ISSN 1913-6307