Water The Bamboo : Blog

Greg Bell Interviewed for SUCCESS Media Audio Series

Erica — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 22:08:25 +0000

SUCCESS Media featured Greg Bell in their latest Audio Series. Greg was interviewed on the topic of building teams by Darren Hardy, SUCCESS Magazine’s Publisher & Editorial Director. The interview was produced as an audio CD in the SUCCESS Achiever’s Pack and distributed to subscribers of the monthly SUCCESS Club. Although the full interview is not available for purchase, below is a six-minute clip for you to enjoy.

Water The Bamboo TV Special December Schedule

Erica — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 23:10:13 +0000

The Water The Bamboo^®: Unleashing Your Potential PBS affiliate television pledge special featuring Greg Bell will air in multiple cities throughout December. Mark your calendars! If you’re in another Public Broadcasting market, stay tuned for future viewing dates in your area.

San Diego, CA
Station: KPBS Public Broadcasting
Time(s): Sunday, December 4th @ 6:00 am

Ft. Wayne, IN
Station: WFWA
Time(s): Sunday, December 4th @ 3:30 pm

Biloxi-Gulfport, MS / Columbus-Tupelo, MS / Greenwood-Greenville, MS / Jackson, MS / Meridian, MS
Station: Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB)
Time(s): Sunday, December 11th @2:30 am

Charlotte, NC
Station: WTVI
Time(s): Thursday, December 1st @ 11:30 pm

Cincinnati, OH
Station: CET
Time(s): Monday, December 5th @ 8:00 pm

Cleveland, OH / Youngstown, OH
Station: Western Reserve Public Media
Time(s): Saturday, December 3rd @ 11:30 am

Tulsa, OK
Station: OETA
Time(s): Thursday, December 8th @ 3:00 pm

Medford, OR
Station: Southern Oregon Public Television (SOPTV)
Time(s): Sunday, December 4th @ 10:30 am
Sunday, December 4th @ 10:00 pm
Monday, December 19th @ 6:00 pm
Wednesday, December 21st @ 7:30 pm
Saturday, December 24th @ 9:00 pm
Sunday, December 25th @ 10:30 pm

Seattle, WA
Station: KCTS
Time(s): Monday, December 5th @ 1:20 am

*Air dates and times are subject to change. Check your local television listings for the most up-to-date information.

10 Lessons I Learned from Steve Jobs

Greg — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 18:46:29 +0000

Steve Jobs 1955-2011 (Credit: Apple)

The world has lost one of the greatest bamboo farmers to walk the face of the Earth in Steve Jobs. Jobs has inspired millions of people and organizations to be more innovative and creative, and his legacy will last forever. Here are ten lessons that I learned from him:

A good short life is better than a long, bad life.
Genius is often misunderstood.
Hold yourself to a higher standard.
Prove “them” wrong.
It takes courage to stick up for what you believe in.
Work hard and smart.
It takes more than strength to lead.
Genius needs to be cultivated.
Relish the details.
There is a key to every lock for the persistent, patient bamboo farmer.

What lessons did you learn from Jobs?

R.I.P.

Is Your Perspective Serving You?

Greg — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 19:04:54 +0000

“A little perspective, like a little humor, goes a long way.”
~ Allen Klein

Recently, I got caught up in the storms on the east coast and was inconvenienced by a delayed flight. While we were sitting on the runway, the pilot came on the loud speaker and explained we would be delayed yet another hour. I knew I would miss my connecting flight and my meeting in Toronto.

I took a deep breath and listened to the people around me complain about what they were going to miss. The woman next to me was frustrated because she was going miss a shopping trip.

All of the complaining was put in to perspective when I overheard a woman on her cell phone weeping to her mom how she was not going to make it to her dad’s funeral because of the delayed flight. My missed meeting and the missed shopping trip were immediately put into perspective. No matter how frustrated you get, there are always different ways of looking at your circumstances.

Bamboo Rule: Be flexible like bamboo, it bends in the storm and bounces back.

To learn more about how you can change your perspective, read Chapter 11, Lighten Up in Water The Bamboo^®: Unleashing The Potential Of Teams And Individuals.

Fear of Failure or Fear of Success

Greg — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 22:32:43 +0000

“What could we accomplish if we knew we could not fail?”
~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Recently on Facebook I was asked about Fear of Failure and Fear of Success.

Fear of failure or success has haunted many would-be successful people. To put it bluntly, graveyards are filled with countless intentions that were never acted upon because of fear. Fear is generally about control. People with a fear of flying don’t really have a fear of flying, they have a fear of crashing. The mind is so powerful it can make something seem real that has not yet occurred.

Recently, a young man told me that he could not get a job and I asked him how many had he applied for. He replied, “none.” I challenged him to get 33 rejection letters or emails in a row, and if he did I would take him to dinner and give him $100 dollars. After checking on him a few months later, he was unable to collect on the bet because he was gainfully employed after only 7 rejections.

Bamboo Rule: Success awaits those who are willing to deal with rejection.

Fearing rejection before you apply for a job is normal. Nobody wants to get rejected but there is no reason to assume the answer is no. What if you went for the rejection? After studying the most successful people I found that they had the ability to recover from failure or rejection. In other words, they kept on watering. In Water The Bamboo® I recommend creating a vision board—I call mine a success board—it inspires me and keeps my vision vivid. I can see it, feel it, even smell it—this helps me stay focused. When I reach a milestone or suffer a setback I am not thrown off my vision.

Bamboo Rule: The turtle only moves when it sticks its neck out.

To learn more about how you can achieve success by pushing through rejection, read Chapter 16, Take Risks in Water The Bamboo^®: Unleashing The Potential Of Teams And Individuals.

Water The Bamboo TV Special Produced by Public Broadcasting Affiliate

Greg — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:57:53 +0000

Oregon Public Broadcasting has produced a television pledge special featuring Greg Bell titled Water The Bamboo^®: Unleashing Your Potential that will air in Oregon on Thursday, September 15, 2011 at 8pm (http://www.opb.org/television/programs/water-the-bamboo-with-greg-bell/). Mark your calendars! If you’re in another Public Broadcasting market, stay tuned for future viewing dates in your area.

Watch the intro:

Motivational Moment™: Reverse Paranoia

Greg — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 21:06:48 +0000

It’s optimism on steroids. Writer J.D. Salinger came up with this idea and a friend recently turned me on to it. Here is my take on it.

Read the blog post on the subject here: http://wp.me/pRPtg-56

Optimism — Catch Reverse Paranoia

Greg — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 20:09:24 +0000

“The point of living, and of being an optimist, is to be foolish enough to believe the best is yet to come.” ~ Peter Ustinov

Last week on my Facebook page I shared that I have a bad case of Reverse Paranoia (frankly, I think I have had it all of my life). The discussion was so lively that I thought I would share it here.

What is Reverse Paranoia?

It’s optimism on steroids. Writer J.D. Salinger came up with this idea and a friend recently turned me on to it. Here is my take on it. In the world there are “opportunities” and “danger” — I am only looking for and focusing on opportunities. It’s much like always seeing cars like yours — you just notice them more. What if you only focus on things that are helpful in your life? Everything else would fade away. Imagine having an overwhelming feeling that everybody is out to help you.

Think about it for a moment, most people learned paranoia early in their lives (i.e. “Don’t talk to strangers”, “There is a boogey man under the bed”). This has taught us to be small and not trust the world. What if you approached your life with the attitude that everyone is just trying to help you? This simple shift in focus could make all the difference. If you catch Reverse Paranoia, brace yourself for all the help coming your way!

Bamboo Rule: Attitude is a choice.

To find out more about how you can use optimism to achieve success, read Chapter 12, Optimism, in Water The Bamboo®: Unleashing The Potential Of Teams And Individuals.

Greg’s TEDxPortland Talk

Erica — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:45:57 +0000

Greg had the honor of being the opening speaker for Portland’s first TEDx event. Water The Bamboo is a philosophy worth spreading.

Stop, Look, and Listen

Greg — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 19:14:06 +0000

“Vision without action is a daydream; Action without vision is a nightmare.”
~ Japanese Proverb

Stop, Look, and Listen is not just for traffic anymore—this advice can help you and your team. Many organizations find themselves doing more with less and have not given themselves or their teams a break for fear of losing ground. But, as Lily Tomlin famously said, “Even if you win the rat race you are still a rat.”

Recently, after a leadership retreat, one of my clients reported significant developments for their team and acknowledged they would not have happened without the retreat; even though they were busier than ever, the benefit of “Stopping, Looking, and Listening” was well worth it. Often down time is viewed as unproductive, but a well-designed retreat can make all the difference for the health and direction of your team. Do you and your team need to “Stop, Look, and Listen”?

Bamboo Rule: You must retreat to advance.

View Greg’s latest Motivational Moment™ video: Retreat to Advance.

Tips to Retreat

Put retreat time (Stop, Look, and Listen) on the calendar.
Make sure your retreat has a purpose (i.e., review how you are doing relative to your vision).
Do not pack the agenda—you want to create time for team interaction too.

For more about vision and retreats, see Chapter 2, Create a Vivid Vision, in Water The Bamboo®: Unleashing The Potential Of Teams And Individuals.