Archive for the Big Picture

Now that the real presidential election is over, pretend you are running. The office is “President of [your name here]’s Life”.  Successful candidates paint a vision of what life will be like after they’re in office. You need to create a compelling reason for you to win, an ideal vision for [your name here]’s life.
That’s a problem. Visioning doesn’t […]

Here’s a gift for you:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zErpOnYZZH0 It’s Ben Zander’s 10 minute closing presentation at Davos, and it is inspiring. Zander wrote The Art of Possibility, which is a fantastic book about living into your possibility. Too many good ideas in there for one post. Watch the video.
Waaay back when Fast Company first came out, I loved their “Job Titles […]

Long soccer weekend. My daughter plays on a U-11 travel team. It’s an average team, which isn’t surprising given that they have new players who’ve not played travel before and a contingent of girls who don’t attend practice regularly and miss games due to other sports they play. What really differentiates this team is a parent […]

 
Well, not yet, but jet skiing, aqua bouncing, water sliding and lake swimming. I’ve been on vacation & offline for a week, in the gorgeous Pacific NW. We’re in a rental at Lake Chelan, WA. The unit has a lovely pool, a well-stocked pantry, and comfortable beds, but no wi-fi.  I intended to hit the […]

Is it possible to attend a memorial service without reflecting on how happy you are with your own life? Last night, I went to a service for my neighbor, Jack. He was 79 and died of heart problems at the end of a good day, spent just as he liked it. Jack was the town’s conscience. […]

This morning, the 4th and nearly last day of my daughter, Hanna’s, soccer camp- we couldn’t find the ankle pad for her shin guard. She’s grown out of everything, we’re down to one set of guards, and this one was incomplete. MUCH gnashing of teeth. MUCH grumbling. NEARLY tears. And the car pool approacheth…
We found […]

3 Month Goal Planner
A deadline can be very motivating. Who doesn’t think more about a goal and work harder to achieve it as the deadline approaches? Have you ever been astonished at how much you’ve done in record time to meet a critical deadline?
Use the energy that a deadline gives to your benefit by setting deadlines for […]

Bet the Giants didn’t know they couldn’t win. Bet the Patriots suspected they couldn’t lose. However, there’s a ticker tape parade tomorrow, and it’s in NYC.
Trite but true, and rarely demonstrated so well as last night’s game- it ain’t over til it’s over. If you have doubts about your ability to win the game of […]

2 new books I’ve discovered that crystallize why we don’t do what we know we should, and what to do about it:

Change or Die, by Alan Deutchman, you can read about it at Fast Company  http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/94/open_change-or-die.html
Strategy and the Fat Smoker, by David Maister, you can listen to a bit of his podcast and download a […]

“The best kind of giving is thanksgiving.” Chesterton.
My dog is the most thankful creature I know. All I need to do is be with her. If there’s fetching involved, a state of bliss will likely be achieved. Wanda doesn’t hold a grudge, either. She forgets that I’m the one who takes her to the dreaded groomer, […]