Sage Leadership Blog

Re-Creating Yourself: Eat, Pray, Love is Not a Fad for Me

Susan Shaner — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 02:56:05 +0000

By this I mean recreation, not reinventing your career. I mean having real downtime so you can come back to your problems and challenges with renewed energy and different insight. AND ENJOY your life – AND the PROCESS of your life.

Yesterday was my birthday so I took the day off. I usually do on this day. If you can’t take it off on your birthday, then when can you? Afterall, if you can’t celebrate you, how can you expect anyone else to?

What did I do? In modern, American terms: NOTHING. NO-THING.

Nothing PRODUCTIVE.

I slept in, lounged around while my husband serenaded me on guitar. I picked up my bongo drum and joined in. I meditated, did yoga, wrote in my journal, and got my family (teenagers, sans electronics) to go for a hike in the woods with me. Sounds very hippish? It was a heavy dose of taking in and reflection. And then I topped it off with a high calorie, decadent dinner out – lava cake and all!

No, I am not recreating the movie Eat, Pray, Love. I’ve been doing this on my birthday all my life. The key is to periodically do this throughout the year. I work hard and am a driver by nature plunked down into a culture that reinforces these attirbutes. So, if I don’t manage myself – who will? The rewards are integration and renewal… and living from a full versus depleted cup.

Pick a day in the week where you are intentionally NOT productive and do all the things you love. Experiencing productivity withdrawal? Guilt? Then start small and pick at least an hour or 30 minutes. This nothing thing is actually productive. I dare ya. Try it.

Sage Leaders Understand the Importance of Failure

Susan Shaner — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 17:56:53 +0000

“Failure is the tuition you pay for success.” ~Walter Brunell

It doesn’t matter that you fail at anything. What matters is that you don’t repeat the same failure by capturing your learnings. This will help ensure success next time. If all you have are successes, how can you really strengthen your perseverance and tenacity muscles needed for these challenging times?

And no one can succeed all the time, so there is no point in hiding it. Reflect, learn, forgive yourself and others, master and move on. This is how we grow. Each step carries with it it’s own unique challenges and rewards.

Planting Positive Seeds Harvests Great Rewards

Susan Shaner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 16:26:53 +0000

It was Buddha who said, “Wherever you go, there you are.” What you experience outside yourself is a reflection of your relationship to yourself.

: Fertile Seeds Sprout Positive Growth

With a lot of fear and negativity circulating on the planet these days, I have been aware of strengthening my positivity muscle.

Recently, my daughter and I took a trip to Stowe, Vermont, for a girls vacation. On the drive back to Connecticut, we stopped at restroom in a gas station. We’ve all had occasion to visit some of these seedy locations. I was pleasantly surprised at how supplied and sparkling clean it was.

When I returned the key, I made a point of saying loudly how wonderfully clean and pleasant the restroom was – that, indeed, it was the best I’d ever experienced.

You should have seen the look on the cashier’s face, “Really? Wow. Thank you. I just cleaned it.”

“Well, it’s a joy.”

“Wow. Thanks.”

By acknowledging a largely thankless job I noticed a visceral shift in the body language of not only the cashier, but everyone else waiting in line.

It’s too easy to point out what doesn’t work. Try - just for today – to acknowledge what does work and where others add value. You might just sprout something new.

Here’s to Carrying Cats By The Tail – and Not Suffering

Susan Shaner — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 21:28:51 +0000

Mark Twain once said: “A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn no other way.”

We all have been there – many days, months or years later, we say, “that was the best learning experience I ever had.”… but while we are going through it, we are cursing the day this person or situation came into our lives.

Here’s to appreciating the gift of the painful lessons. I suggest not shying away from whatever it is that seems distasteful to you, especially when you know there are high rewards – if you can “suffer through it.”

Suffering is so overrated. Let’s skip that part – just for today. Carry the cat anyway.

“Experience is the name everyone gives his mistakes.”

Susan Shaner — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:45:59 +0000

~Oscar Wilde, Lady Windemere’s fan, 1896

We seem to only pay attention and really get the learnings when we make mistakes. Is it possible to garner great experience and start learning with grace and ease – without having to make mistakes?

And when you make mistakes do you take the time to reflect on what the learnings are?

The Sage Leader Cleans Out and Reboots

Susan Shaner — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:05:34 +0000

“If experience was so important, we’d never have anyone walk on the moon.” (By Doug Rader)

Sometimes you just have to trust your intuition. We are living in times where old structures, identities – what we have known to be true - are falling away or dying – because they don’t work. You can’t lie to yourself anymore about who you are or what your purpose is. Companies can’t cut corners on integrity anymore.

The times are calling for new vision, courage and the bold audacity to reinvent yourself or your business.

It’s time to clean out and reboot.

…And lean into the wind of possibility.

“Experience is what you got by not having it when you need it.”

Susan Shaner — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:58:56 +0000

This is the ultimate paradox of life. Sometimes you just have to throw yourself into the wind and know you’ll land on your feet.

To live is to risk.

To risk is to live.

Go for it.

“No physician is really good before he has killed one or two patients.”

Susan Shaner — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:07:28 +0000

-Hindu Proverb

“To lead people walk behind them.”

Susan Shaner — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 12:25:39 +0000

- Lao Tzu

Leadership Lessons from Bastille Day

Susan Shaner — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 20:58:30 +0000

Today, France celebrates it’s independence with fireworks, as we in the U.S. did, just 10 days ago.

The storming of the Bastille is the symbol of the victory of the French people against the Monarchy. What started as a revolt became a Revolution that changed the face of France’s policy forever.

France put in place a Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen, defining a set of individual and collective rights for all the people, regardless of their estate. This is very similar to what happened in the United States, however the U.S. was being ruled at a distance by the King of England. Interesting that our declarations occured just 13 years apart from each other in the 18th century.

Both stories are inspirational in that they show, it is possible, even when your head thinks you are “out numbered,” to fight for what you believe in – and win, against all odds. And the energy and committment of small numbers of people can be more powerful than weapons and large numbers.

We need to remember this as we continue to hold the flame for enforcing basic human rights around the world. Many other countries are not as fortunate as France and the U.S. And, we all still need to stay vigilant with how our elected officials govern, particularly in these turbulent times.

Anything is possible.