Looking out over the beautiful blue Pacific ocean from Nepenthe, a restaurant in Big Sur, CA, is one of my places in the world (well, of the places I've seen so far).
Where's that little bit of heaven place for you?
Working toward a big goal, milestone, or can't-miss deadline?
If so, consider what typically works best for you to motivate you over, around or through any barriers you may find on your way to the finish line.
Is your best motivator:
Push, the fear about the imagined (or actual) awful things that might happen if you miss the goal?
Pull, being inspired by the great things your customers, manager, colleagues will say, the way they look at you and exclaim enthusiastically about how much better you've made some part of their work or lives. Is it being inspired by the way you'll feel when you've succeeded in meeting this challenge, perhaps even more than you now envision and hope you will?
Or are you motivated most by a little bit of both, push and pull?
Whatever your answer use the power of push and pull to help you meet your next big goal.
Looking out over the beautiful blue Pacific ocean from Nepenthe, a restaurant in Big Sur, CA, is one of my places in the world (well, of the places I've seen so far).
Where's that little bit of heaven place for you?
Inspiration is guaranteed each and every Olympics.
Watching the best in the world compete in so many sports is a powerful reminder of what it takes to excel.
It reminds us, as well, that if you're pursuing excellence of any type, being able to push over, around, or through the barriers you inevitably find somewhere on the road to your goal is an important part of success.
Here are a few pursuit of excellence thoughts from others who knew the path, too:
I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.
Thomas Edison
Nothing at all will be attempted if all possible objections must first be overcome.
Samuel Johnson
A man who suffers before it is necessary, suffers more than is necessary.
Seneca
We will either find a way, or make one.
Hannibal
Some differences count in the final outcome.
And some differences don't.
I had no idea that eggs come in so many different colors - including light blue - but they do.
And if I want eggs for a photo, it's the visual interest of either strong differences or great symmetry that I want.
But if I'm making an omelet where the inside of the egg is what counts, then any of these fresh eggs will do.
What decisions do you have to make soon?
Which differences count in your final outcome, and which ones don't?
Watching the Olympics drives the lesson home:
You make many of your own opportunities, and for others, adapting well to whatever happens is the best course.
Here's what a few others have to say about opportunities and growth:
You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.
Henry Ford
Life is not advancement. It is growth. It does not move upward, but expands outward, in all directions.
Russell G. Alexander
A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.
Sir Francis Bacon
Gifts can come in many different shapes and sizes over the course of life.
Some of the best ones have no wrapping at all.
They're the gift of a moment, a sight, a shared laugh, story or thought.
Like a beautiful cloud, they can be subtle, rapidly created, suddenly here, and just as suddenly, gone.
Such moments are ones you could miss if you don't see them for what they are...one of life's best, brightest, sweetest presents.
This is the view - a gift itself - that our son, a high school senior, and I shared during a leisurely lunch as we drove north up the California coast, returning home after college visits.
I knew when I took this photo that it was capturing a glorious day at one of the world's most beautiful spots.
But I knew even more as I caught it that this photo was recording an experience I felt very thankful for, Matt's and my shared lunch. Those opportunities will soon be more limited when he goes to college in the fall.
Catch the gift and be thankful for the beautiful, often fleeting, perfect moments that life offers.
They're so quickly here, and just as quickly gone.
It's easy to forget how energizing time with good friends can be.
We spent much of Saturday with friends we hadn't seen in a very long time in the "stretch out, relax, refresh" way we shared.
As one friend noted, in recent times when we've been together it was usually for organized events and celebrations of life milestones. There were in each case many guests, formal clothes, ceremonies, schedules to maintain, and little time for more than a hug, a smile, a "good to see you!" exchange of good wishes.
Those were times we were very glad to share with them. Yet they were not times to really talk, laugh, or catch up in any substantial way.
This time was like the long January beach weekend we used to share each year as our children grew from babies to teenagers.
It was an oasis of creative chatter and laughter and really catching up, a perfect counterpoint to the sometimes-rough-and-tumble of life.
Times like this with good friends refresh, renew, build a reservoir of great memories and create energy for life's challenges ahead.
Make time, take time for the oasis of good friends.
Turn the corner - any corner - and what will you see?
What you expect? A standard sidewalk perhaps.
Or something unexpected? Here, an otherworldly scene of surprise and wonder met us as we made our way to an evening event.
Have a problem to solve? Or one you're trying to avoid?
How you approach a problem has a lot to do with how the problem-solving goes.
Here are perspectives from others on problem-solving...or not:
The problems of victory are more agreeable than those of defeat, but they are no less difficult.
Winston Churchill
Most people spend more time and energy going around problems than in trying to solve them.
Henry Ford
Don't get involved in partial problems, but always take flight to where there is a free view over the whole single great problem, even if this view is still not a clear one.
Ludwig Wittgenstein
There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few that we can solve by ourselves.
Lyndon B. Johnson
When solving problems, dig at the roots instead of just hacking at the leaves.
Anthony J. D'Angelo
A problem - a puddle - becomes a source of beauty - a mirror reflecting the beautiful blue sky, fluffy white clouds, and stark winter trees above.
