Hawk or Sparrow…the Choice is Yours!

Running an errand the other day, I found myself stopped at a red light in heavy traffic. As I sat there rummaging through the fthoughts in my mind about the day and week ahead, I noticed a hawk with its shadow soaring over the intersection.

His flight seemed effortless. His wings stretched out embracing the wind as if it were an old friend.

Birds in flight. Wind beneath my wings. Free as a bird. These are all metaphors that have been used for centuries in poems and song. Why? Because they are so appropriate.

This hawk was doing what it was meant to do. He wasn't struggling. He wasn't thinking about the wind or if his tail feathers were in the appropriate position. He was fluid in the flow. It was natural for him. (Okay, I think he was having fun too! And yes, for you realists, he was probably scanning for prey.) Somehow, I imagined that this hawk was happy with who he was and totally content with being a hawk.

How about you? Are you happy with yourself? Are you flailing? Are you muffling that little voice inside that knows the way? From time to time, do you don a mask and try to pass yourself off as someone else? Are you living your life like a hawk or a sparrow?

Marianne Williamson has been heard to say “Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.”

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. reinforces and broadens that message with his words “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

I don’t think that King and Williamson were talking just about famous people, government officials or those high on the corporate org chart. I think they were talking about you and me in our “ordinary” day-to-day individual experiences.

As I share in my presentations and in my book The Offsite: A Leadership Challenge Fable, leadership is a moment-to-moment choice. It is a way of life.

I think it is wise to honor “the what” and “the how” that got you where you are. But to move forward, you must let go of the past that attempts to keep you small… pecking at the crumbs.

Changing your behavior begins with changing the way you think. Changing the way you think changes your actions. This leads to more new behaviors and on and on up the ladder of personal success. It is very cyclic. This is not rocket-science. However, I do understand it is difficult for many people who find themselves caught up in the maelstrom of life.

With that in mind, let me offer a quick tip.

When you wake in the morning, do you create your day or does it create you? In The Offsite, a character named George thinks that the world is crushing him. However, even though unaware, George “soars with the hawk” when doing what he loves. (See pages 69 and 70.) George just needs to see himself more clearly.

Yes, I can hear many of you exclaim, “create my day? I can barely brush my teeth and get to work on time.” I know that especially you moms and dads with little ones certainly have a morning rush with a hectic lifestyle. Been there, done that and have several stained T-shirts as mementos. So, humor me for a minute or two.

Please consider creating a new morning ritual just for you. And, I promise, it only takes a minute and less than that to master.

Before you rise and hit the ground running, take a breath and envision how you want your day to go. In just seconds you can resolve to be truly present with everyone you come into contact with. You can choose to be heard and to listen more intently. You can decide to be action-oriented and to be of service to family, friends and colleagues.

Of course, with time, I would urge you to cfonsider being more specific but just try this quick tip for the next few days and let me know how it goes. I would love to hear your stories. My guess is that you will notice a difference quickly. Send your comments to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Remember, if you keep the hawk’s flight in mind, this new habit will be effortless.

You Never Know

Most every day I receive feedback in a variety of ways: emails, blog comments, phone calls and of course through actual contact. All feedback is appreciated and very useful in providing better information through my presentations, blogs and this newsletter. You folks have a way of keeping me on my toes. I thank you for that.
 
However, this month I want to publicly respond to reader Mike Hopley from Canada as I make a quick point about the ripple effect of gratitude.

Sharing your gratitude is life giving. It's like donating blood. As the commercial used to say, "it brings good things to life."

Just this past month, we moved into a new house in Carlsbad. Moving is never fun and can lead to tons of frustration with moving companies and switching everything from one abode to another. Unless you are a part of the rich and famous and can have everything done for you, I’m sure you have experienced what I am speaking about.

One of the snafus was with the cable company and it was my fault not theirs. I called late and was told our cable/internet wouldn’t be hooked up for four days.

Zowie! I had a newsletter to get out. Blogs to write. Clients to email. Marketing to do. And what about my favorite television shows. I need my fix of The Daily Show and, omigod, football! Couldn’t they make one exception and put ME on the top of their list?

My pleas went unanswered. Four days in the darkness was my punishment.

It wasn’t all-bad I learned. I did have the DVD collection (see my blog) and plenty of books and magazines to read. But I have to share it was very irritating to need to find a hotspot just to check email. (Another great reason to upgrade to an IPhone.)

But I digress in my own shallowness.

As I lost focus and fell more and more behind in my piles of work, I found myself getting more and more stressed out. Yes, even those of us who advise others to focus and not stress out get unfocused and stressed out from time-to-time.

Then the moment I had my home office up and running with my desktop lit up and my Internet humming I got Mike’s email.

It brought me back to life. I was reminded that my troubles were tiny compared with the vast majority of you and our other co-inhabitants on our little ball of dirt.

What did Mike write? He simply said “thanks”. The “Two Second” blog I wrote prior to being put into darkness had made a difference for him. And he just wanted to say thanks. He shared a bit more of the “why”, but that he took the time from his day to complete the circle of gratitude was enough for me.

This led me to an idea. As you may know, I am always encouraging people to send hand-written thank you notes. They are the most powerful.

But, how about we make a pact. What if every time you receive a Leadership Path Newsletter from me that becomes a quick trigger to share your gratitude with someone else. It doesn’t need to be a big, totally thought out stream of prose. Just use the moment to email someone and tell him or her thanks for making a difference. Then ask them to do the same for someone else. That’s it.

Who knows where this ripple might lead? There are now thousands of you reading this newsletter. Let’s drop some pebbles in the pond. You never know.

What I’m Reading

I just finished a great book I want to share with you especially if you are one of those who complain you are not “creative.”

The Creative Habit, by Twyla Tharp is a must read. It is brief, with great practical ideas that you can use right away. I have more dog-eared pages, highlights and yellow-stickies in this tome than in many I have read lately.

Tharp, if you are unaware, is one of our greatest choreographers. She has created more than 130 dances for her company as well as for the Joffrey Ballet, The New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, London’s Royal Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. She has won Emmys, a Tony Award and was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship among other honors.

In other words, she is an expert in the creative process and there is much to learn from her.

From preparation to learning how to fail creatively, Tharp brings us practical information with exercises to increase our luck and harness our memory. Her tips have helped me in countless ways in much of my writing activities.

If you are a fan of my Never Ending Story process, The Creative Habit will be a book you will treasure. Pick up a copy and let me know what you think.

LPI “Self” Test Drive Still Available

Jossey Bass, my publisher, continues to offer The Offsite: A Leadership Challenge Fable and the Leadership Practices Inventory Self assessment at no additional cost. A $40 savings. The only hook is that you must order directly from them. Take the Test Drive for yourself or sign your team up today.

Vision Story Challenge Wrapping Up

Begun in July, “The Best Vision Story Challenge” is wrapping up. You asked for more time to develop and then report back success of your Vision Story. Your wish was granted! We have received some great contributions to add to our files. Check out the samples of past stories that are a part of the Challenge. You’ll also find some tips and techniques to ponder as well. And don’t forget Gwen’s story in The Offsite, it’s a great model to work from. The winner and the reward will be announced next month. If you still have not contributed your story, there is still time. Don’t be shy.