The penny principle... simple achievement overlooked

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  Big achievements always bring us great gratification.  Yet, like any good thing overdone, the caution to us all is to beware of achievement bubbles.  Like all of the bursting bubbles that we have had to endure in our recent economy, can we be allowing our mindset to be bubble blinded?  Achievement bubbles leave us feeling unfulfilled and insignificant if we aren't continually achieving "great things" relationally and professionally despite the fact that you have achieved much already.   The Penny Principle reminds us to maintain a present-mindedness about ourselves so that we don't overlook the subtle moments and opportunities in front of us that will eventually add up to a life well lived.  How do you practice the penny principle in your daily life? 

Win Today!

Victor

So where do you see yourself in 5 years?

  So where do you see yourself in 5 years?  This is a common interview question that just the other day I myself found regurgitating to a potential hire.  As the words fell out of my mouth almost effort-less like a rehearsed script, I caught myself wondering, "Now why is 5 years the magic number?"

  As someone who manages employees, I like to know what the career plans of my co-workers are so that I can help our time together be one of growth and vision. However, as I look at my personal life, I could have never have answered that question 5 years ago with absolute surety.  From my own experience, life has proven to be more unpredictable than predictable.  The 5 year plan can be a rigid trap if you aren't able to mange the ever-changing moments that we encounter each day.

  Life is happening right now for me and you. In it all, I'm learning that achieving is more about living with a vision in your heart while managing the moment with a present-minded attitude. When I do so, it has allowed me to be in tune with the personal and professional moments of life that eventually adds upon other moments that eventually equal achievement of vision.  In contrast, my regrets in life have more to do with mismanaging the moment, whereby I miss the person in pursuit of the goal. 


  Leonard A. Schlesinger, Charles F. Kiefer, and Paul B. Brown recently published in the Harvard Business Review blog network an article that considered the wonder of the 5 year-plan as it pertains to career planning.  In it they concluded that career planning is more about a "Direction based" vision fulfillment than a detailed plan. They suggest the following guides as a means of "Acting your way into the future you want (HBR, 2012)." I believe this growth-minded list of suggestions can have merit in all aspects of our personal and professional lives.

1. Determine your desire
2. Take a step toward it
3. Incorporate what you learn from taking that step
4. Take another step
5. Learn from that one
6. Repeat until you have a job, your own business, or have achieved your goal

Win Today!

Victor

Derailed by disillusion

A month has already gone by in 2012.  February here we go. By now, many of us have shelved our sincere New Year's resolutions, and or, are frustrated by our lack of achievement.  This is common and unfortunate. Fortunately, there is still hope. Instead of waiting for another new year's day to come as a catalyst for one more personal change journey, let's take a closer look at exactly what we are striving for. Perhaps, the goal we are aiming at is actually one that is unrealistic for anyone

Albert Einstein was keenly aware of the deceptive annoyance of mis-placed standards. As a culture, our targets of personal excellence can be forever moving. We are often judging worth by misguided filters influenced by media market trends, or even by previous personal moments that we are either trying to outgrow or duplicate.

Self-worth, is a motivation for all of us. Who likes not feeling good about themselves?! No one. In our pursuit of happiness, let's take caution to make sure that our limited time and energy isn't being directed towards a red herring.  For example, ABC News recently posted a story titled "Most Models Meet Criteria for Anorexia, Size 6 is Plus Size." In it, ABC reveals the atrocious beauty standards of models in comparison to realistic health standards.  The story is accompanied by a video which reveals pictures of comparison that bring to life the real meaning of stupidity. Self-worth is fleeting when we seek to achieve it through  someone else's unrealistic external standards.  Lets be our best in this life for our own sake. There is only one you, and that in itself is a crucial element for the criteria of "priceless."

2012 is already a busy one

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I don't know about you, but 2012 has jumped on me like a spark on dry grass.  A day hasn't gone by where I'm not juggling more demands than I care to admit. Getting up earlier to find more time in the day has it's limits.  A friend of mine recently told me that there are "24 Hours in the day...then there is the night." While he was joking with me about my attempt to find more time in the day, it makes a sarcastic point when it comes to the short-term productivity spike of just not sleeping.  No sleep only seduces you into thinking you are more productive. So what now? My demands aren't going away, but in actuality are they all really do at the same time? No. The key is to be present minded with each waking moment so that those folks who are depending on you can have your best. So how do we do that?

Information without application just tends to add to the clutter. While great information may trigger us for short-term action, it usually winds up in a fizzle since there isn't any practical planning for the change. Today I came across an article regarding a new book titled "Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life," by Margaret Moore and Harvard psychiatrist Paul Hammerness.  In it, the book outlines a practical plan for de-cluttering our brain for follow-through action.

While we may feel like life has got us boxed in, our brains are still driving us. Having a method of organizing our thoughts, in order to attain a more functional and effective position, is key to managing the moment. Moore and Hammerness have taken the discoveries of neuroscience and created a plan that appears to  the give the reader an action orientated mental map for arriving at a place of mental focus.  After reading the plan, it is apparent to me that the work of neuroscience is maturing to the point of producing applicable and practical information for the real-life tasked and time crunched folks like you and me.  Like any other behavioral adaptation, this plan takes some change equity. However, the cost of reorganizing our thoughts appears worth it after reading the article. See article here.

Win Today!

Victor