To Be Or Not To Be, Is Not a Question

BE AWESOME

2010-10-26T17:26:00.003-06:00

The thing is, people are awesome. We all have our own special gifts and talents and no matter how crazy or big or small or useful or fun — they are the fabric of life. This post is dedicated to one of the best values to which I want us all to own up to: being awesome. Enjoy!

BE PROMOTIVE

2010-09-21T16:38:00.002-06:00

We are all human beings on this huge planet. Over the years, we have become competitive, divisive, and opportunistic, when our underlying driver is to simply belong. I can imagine how different and amazing our world could be if we could tear down the walls we have built and truly have empathy for all our fellow human beings. It's bizarre we build castles and palaces for billions and let 20,000 children starve to death every day. Or we have effective treatments for diseases, but "big pharma" prices them out of the reach of those that need them most. This video does an amazing job at speaking to the power and possibility of "empathy." I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

BE AWARE OF THE POSSIBLE

2010-08-05T14:42:00.000-06:00

When 47-year-old Susan Boyle landed on Britain's Got Talent, it only took Simon Cowell, the show's founder and lead skeptic to stereotype and make fun of Susan, causing the entire audience to laugh at the insanity and audacity of this obvious non-model to represent at a talent show. In less than 10 seconds, the audience was stunned with most moved to tears after discovering our "human condition" of being skeptics. Why do we shut ourselves down so often and not stand in the possibility of everything and anything. Watch the video (the link is below) that now over 30,000,000 shocked and moved people have watched and then ask yourself in what areas of your life does not being aware of the possible hold you back? What dreams have you put on the back burner or written off altogether? Go ahead and be more like Susan Boyle. Go for it! Certainly you will have at least accomplished trying.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPZh4AnWyk

BE LOVING

2010-07-15T19:54:00.003-06:00

There is a lot that could be said about the value of being loving, but as they say, a picture is worth 1,000 words. Love is such an amazing indulgence and a gift. Be love. Be loving. Be loved.

BE ACCOUNTABLE

2010-06-10T13:22:00.001-06:00

This incredible music machine was built as a collaborative effort between the Robert M Trammell Music Conservatory and the Sharon Wick School of Engineering at the University of Iowa. It took the team over 13,000 hours of setup, alignment, calibration, and testing to create a single successful video effort. Every piece had to do EXACTLY what it was intended. Imagine, if as human beings, we always kept our word. Everyone always did exactly what they said they would do. Imagine how amazing the world would be. In fact, if you think about it, when something isn't working, it can almost always be traced back to an agreement that wasn't kept. In business, the value of accountability and the practice of it can make a huge difference. Imagine when a meeting was called for 3PM if all 10 people were there to start exactly on time. Imagine the cost of a delayed meeting when you have the payroll of 10 people going on. How happy would your customers be if you always did for them what you said you would do? Accountability. It works. Look at how accountability (or lack of it) most impacts your life, and as a starting place — take actions to fix that. Start with yourself. Always be your word. Be conscious of your agreements and make a point of following through. It's amazing how much that will show up in a world that has largely accepted accountability as an exception, rather than the rule.

FantasticMachine sélectionné dans Film d'animation

P.S. If you were too amazed at the "accountability" of each bearing, you can thank the magic of animation. This video circulated the Internet to millions before the illusion was discovered. :)

BE CANDID

2010-04-12T13:14:00.000-06:00

Really? The Hug-E-Gram? This is quite possibly one of the dumbest ideas to ever hit commerce. No, this is not a spoof. Real people are paying real money to produce the advertising and sell Hug-E-Grams...until they go out of business, that is!

BE DETACHED

2010-01-10T17:05:00.000-07:00

Being detached can be one of the more difficult values to grasp, but once you get it and got it and do it, it can be the single-most powerful practice in your life. Being detached, means you are able to separate your thoughts and feelings from your circumstances. Your body can have cancer, but you don't have to be "sick." Someone can hit your car, and you don't have to react like they hit you. The super-bonus about being detached is that you can also do it while being fully involved. So being detached doesn't mean you are aloof or in denial or "out of touch." Once again in the cancer example.. you can be totally committed to conquering cancer and and passionate about doing so, while not letting it ruin your life. Stress is a good example of not being detached. Stress is even bad for our health. Stress is the manifestation of worry and angst. But at the end of the day, all the "worry" in the world changes nothing. If you're broke and can't pay rent and are going to get kicked out of your apartment. Worry doesn't help. It usually hurts because you can't think straight and are even physically sick. If you can learn to detach, you can shake the bad side effects of worthless emotions and deal more effectively with your situation. I can't say enough about how powerful it is in business to be detached. In dealmaking, it's amazing because you can "be" in the moment totally OK with not having the deal, which gives you the upper hand (you have nothing to lose.). People can give you feedback or insults and you can actually not get upset. You can objectively listen and decide if you will change or not from the feedback. As human beings, we are so often our money, our house, our cars, our image. And when anything happens to any of those, it dramatically affects us. Learn to detach and you will learn a freedom and a lesson that will be absolutely invaluable to the quality of your life. This funny video shows how a little boy is dealing with the learning that he is not his body. LOL

BE FUN

2009-10-07T00:50:00.002-06:00

There are many domains of 'being' but one near the top of most people's lives is fun. The Dalai Lama asserts that of the millions of people he has been with —regardless of religion, color, sex, or age—people all share the desire to be happy. The first cousin of being happy is having fun. People love to hang around others who are 'fun' to be around. Also, it takes more muscles to frown than smile. Take a few minutes to replay the last several days, weeks, and months of your life. Are you experiencing fun? Enough fun? Look for ways and make an intention to create more fun in your life. We spend a huge amount of our time at work—what can you do to make your work culture a fun place? Being-based businesses understand the role of fun in a company culture. Less stress. More creativity. More productivity. Less turnover. Makes fun seem like a no-brainer investment. As we grow older it seems like fun is harder to come by. Life just gets more serious. Let the video below serve as a reminder of the kind of fun we deserve create in our lives on a regular basis! Enjoy :)

BE CREATIVE

2009-08-09T20:38:00.000-06:00

For some people, being creative comes naturally. For others, not so much. Regardless, creativity has a place in everyone's bag of tricks and can make a huge difference in how we think, perceive, solve, and experience in work and life. You don't have to work in an advertising agency to be creative, but they do focus extraordinary resources on the value of creativity. The following link has 50 examples of extraordinary creativity applied to communicating messages. Check them, out. Be inspired. But mostly, be creative!

50 Brilliant Creative Advertisements

BE CANDID

2009-06-02T16:06:00.000-06:00

The thought of being candid scares most of us, especially when the communication is difficult. Yet, being candid and speaking the unadulterated truth can be one of the greatest gifts and/or make the biggest difference in someone's life (including your own.) As human beings, especially in work environments, we more often than not do and say things politically. We are afraid of 'rocking the boat' or hurting feelings. We don't want the repurcussions of truly speaking our minds. YET, our insights and truths and experiences, when spoken about and put out there can make the biggest difference. One myth of "being candid" is that its always negative or the "truth hurts." Well, the truth can hurt, but when our commitment to being candid is always combined with a commitment to someone's success (and not from being mean-spirited), that commitment will usually come through. In a work environment, if everyone commits to the value of 'being candid' then that also makes it easier to be candid because the practice is expected and experienced often. Being candid is tricky when we are not in an environment that mutually accepts and embraces the value. For example, telling the supermarket checker her shirt color is unflattering won't go over well, because she has no idea that comment is grounded in a commitment to her success. Instead she could easily be offended. Being candid requires risk-taking and practice. You can start by observing yourself. Notice how many times your thoughts are not congruent with your thinking. Reconcile them and continue to speak what is true for you. Khalil Gibran once said, "Transformation is only possible when we have a profound relationship with what is so." Well, if that is true. We should celebrate truth and authenticity and put it out on the table far more than we do today. MadTV's Leona Campbell is a persona that seems to only know BEING CANDID. Enjoy!

WHY BEING-BASED BUSINESS?

2009-04-02T19:36:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite all-times quotes is:

"I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be compassionate. It is, above all, to matter-- to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all." —Leo Rosten, author

Ever since I can remember, I wanted to contribute in some way. I liked the idea of somehow leaving the planet a better place than when I arrived. Yet making a difference in a truly significant way seemed (and still does) pretty impractical and unrealistic. But I am a believer that it's about the journey, way more than the destination — so huge goals, I believe help us map a different journey. After assessing my skills, gifts, and experiences and challenging myself to specifically define "How I Could Possibly Make the Biggest Difference," I landed on the promise of Being-based Business.

What I discovered in the earliest real "job" of my life, was that a business that was ran with an extraordinary focus on values and who its people were "being" was an amazingly powerful experience that literally changed my life. I fixed broken relationships; I faced personal problems head on; I learned personal growth strategies and techniques that paved the way for an almost completely stress-free, and empowering life; and I adopted values such as accountability and fun and awareness of the possible that I have taken with me through life and into every job I've ever had since. Ironically, this practice of spending an inordinate amount of time and money on people (not doing their tasks) but sculpting who they are "being" also resulted in a wildly successful company (by measure of finances, long-term value, and employee and customer satisfaction). What was most surprising to me, was this was WORK. I thought we spent hard time working to gain the freedoms of things we really wanted and made us feel good!

Bottomline, is this experience sparked my imagination. Why wouldn't EVERY company be 'being-based'—especially if it meant greater profitability and long-term value. So then and now I have taken on the commitment to show that a being-based company (no matter what the sector or size) will be MORE successful and profitable, but most importantly, it would transform the quality of life of its people. After that first "real job" I started my own company and ran it as a "being-based" business. We were happier and by industry standards— more profitable. I sold that company to a bigger one. Most recently, I have started a new company with a renewed purpose in not only demonstrating the power of a being-based business, but exporting and teaching and speaking about it to anyone who will listen.

My audacious life-goal is to "significantly contribute to the quality of life on the planet through the teaching and adoption of being-based business." Why I believe this is possible, is that if you look at the most significant influencers of the world.. many generations ago, religion ruled the world, then industry, then technology, and today it is the economy. Most everyone works in business or is involved with business. I see business as the best "channel" through which to make a difference. I see business owners and managers as being the influencers through whom I can teach and affect.. and in turn, affect millions——hopefully billions. A message of "significantly improving the quality of life for your people and improve your bottom line" is certainly one that will get attention. The question is how will I get this message through to enough leaders in my lifetime. To define the philosophy of "being-based" business in such a way it can be taught in leading business schools. To implement enough case studies and examples to ensure "being-based" gains the traction and momentum needed to carry-on well past my short time left on the planet. That is my journey and my destination. I have a 100-word Aramaic spiritual writing tattooed on my back, that when distilled to its shortest meaning, is quite simply: Be happy.