November 14, 2013

Sometimes the Best Thing to Do is Nothing at All!

There comes a time in everyone’s life when things start coming at them from all directions. It’s easy to get distracted when you have more than a couple of options from which to choose. The more choices we have, however, the more difficult it is to take the right path. That’s when it is most important to just sit still and take your own sweet time to make a decision. Lots of people say they listen to a still small voice that comes from deep down inside. Some call it intuition. Others merely call it a gut feeling. Many years ago, mythologist and scholar Joseph Campbell put it very succinctly… follow your bliss.

No matter what you call it, everyone will at one time or another reach a point in life when they must do what little children are taught to go through, which is an exercise similar to the steps taught to them when learning to cross the street … stop, think, look, listen, think again and then make your move. Moving too fast or taking a particular action in reaction to a situation or someone else’s opinion of what you should do will almost always lead to disaster.

When faced with lots of choices at one time, the best thing you can do for yourself and the people closest to you – even if they do not agree with your decision – is to step away from the situation. Isolate yourself for a few days if at all possible, and let your conscious be your guide. It may sound trite, but that’s the only way to come to a healthy conclusion.

Listening to your own inner guide is ALWAYS the best way to solve a problem. Allowing your inner guide to take the lead will take you to the place where you are supposed to be in order to be your best and to have the best that life has to offer you. Far too many people are unhappy simply because they are living their lives based upon other people’s needs, wants, desires and beliefs about what they should be doing.

By taking control of your life and following your bliss, we avoid the traps so many people fall into that result in elevated blood pressure, stress related illnesses, depression, substance abuse and an untold number of chronic conditions, all of which could be reduced or eliminated altogether by listening to our guts rather than other people.

November 2, 2013

When Is It Time to Yield?

Has the strong opinion of another persuaded you to change your point of view? The tactics of others can at times alter our position. Yet, when is it appropriate to yield and when do we hold on to what is true for us? This is not an easy question to answer and frankly I'm challenged to do it in just a few short bullets. But here I go. Hold on to your point of view when...

•You have fully listened and remained open to the ideas of others, and your point of view still makes the most sense 
•The persuaded point of view goes against your core values, ethics or morals 
•The losses in the persuaded point of view are far greater than the benefits 

Holding on to our own opinion is important to foster the right moves for ourselves and our companies.  We need to hear everybody's voice and be appropriate and conscious when choosing a direction.