With an eye toward the future, these young entrepreneurs are changing the world and making a profit with work fueled by purpose. In many cases they have addressed everyday problems by creating unique solutions. What can we learn from these wise young ones?
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Today’s Quote: Think Big When Doing Small
“You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction.” Alvin Toffler
Hats off to Creative Inspiration!
You may never want to make (or even wear) a hat, but what this video and article reflect is how inspiration can strike by accident! In this case, a chance encounter ignited a passion which led to a unique business based on deep reverence for a craft. Is there an idea burning deep within you, just waiting to be discovered and brought out?
Today’s Quote: Advancing In Another Direction
“We are not retreating – we are advancing in another direction.” Douglas MacArthur
Today’s Quote: Explore. Dream. Discover.
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” Mark Twain
Create Space; Do You? Why Should You?
It happened again.
I went to yoga and was inspired to share a distinction that could be useful. Again, the instruction was about the yoga poses, and it also made so much sense for life.
The teacher was encouraging the students in the room while we were all in a one-legged pose spreading the rest of our bodies into a pose that looked like we were flying.
She said: “Create space between the joints. Create space instead of worrying about how you look. This is not ‘look-at-me’ time. This is time to create space. Mental, physical, emotional, spiritual.”
In that moment, it made so much sense to me as a way to get the most from the pose, and it also resonated as a career concept. What are you in the game for? Are your career goals ‘look-at-me’ goals or are they goals for ‘creating space.’
It would help to clarify what I mean by creating space. Are you pursuing something that allows you to be and do all you are capable of? Does your work style or leadership style give other people room to grow or shine?
Does the product you provide (if applicable) help people expand or improve their world or circumstance? These would be ways that represent creating space and there could be more.
Certain stages of a career might require a healthy dose of ‘look-at-me’ behavior as you build your reputation. However, I would argue that you could easily be noticed or celebrated for being someone who creates space at every stage of the game, too.
For example, Dave was competitive and combative upon getting his second promotion at his company. He had gotten his previous promotion for being a cooperative can-do-er. He was awarded the new promotion on merit, as well, but he started to compete with others in a rush to climb the ladder.
He saw it as protecting his turf. When he didn’t get the next promotion in the time frame he’d hoped for and it went to someone else, he hired me to help him figure out what had gone wrong.
After six months, he was back on track and in good favor with leadership.
He also understood that if he had gotten the promotion in question, he had created enough bad will that he may have had difficulty having buy in, cooperation, and good team dynamics with the people he would have been managing.
He ultimately saw that not giving anyone else space had ironically hurt his chances to move ahead. As his reviews improved, he was ultimately promoted the next time around, and now he understood the kind of leadership that would be rewarded and fulfill him.
Do you ‘create space?’
If you do, how so and how can you do more?
If you don’t yet, where can you start to do so?
How does this apply to your home life? Your friends? Your primary relationship?