Weekend Challenge: Take In The Scenery

We love metaphors(in case you haven’t noticed).  And one of our favorite metaphors is mountain climbing:  the struggle, the surprises, the moments of unspeakable beauty . . . mountains make great comparisons to “real life.”

This weekend hundreds of thousands of students around the country are celebrating reaching the top of a mountain:  graduation.  Twelve, or more, years of dedication, concentration, and effort culminating in one grand ceremony. 

One of the truly remarkable things about being at the top of the mountain is the view.  If you are lucky  the horizon is hundreds of miles away and the things you see are things that can only be seen from that place.  And the longer you look, the more you notice that one thing dominates the view:  more mountains.  Like in life, every succesful endeavor tends to lead you to the next great endeavor.

But those are for another day.  Today, remember to enjoy this accomplishment.  There are not more than a handful of days in your life that will bring you the same profound feeling of ending and beginning all at the same time.  Relish it.

But remember what those other mountains looked like . . .

The Gurus of Get It

Traits We Admire: Consistency

The Colorado Rockies have a pitcher named Ubaldo Jimenez.  Ubaldo has a routine: every morning after he pitches he runs six miles.  At home, on the road, win, lose–after every performance.  A month ago Ubaldo threw a no-hitter, a feat that only happens once or twice a year in baseball, one of the rarest feats in all of sports.  What did he do the next morning?  Run six miles.

Steven King is a writer’s writer.  He published his first best seller in 1974; he has had 33 (!) of his stories turned into movies; he has published under pseudonyms, and in several different genres.  Yet, with all the fame, all the success, not to mention the enormous fortune, he just keeps writing: he has two books slated for release in 2010, and one more movie is currently in the works.

The habits that you are forming right now, as you pursue your Perfect Life, are the habits that will be the cornerstone of your success.  But once you reach that peak you must resist the compulsion to believe  that you can “downshift;” keep doing what it took to get you there or you will inevitably slide back down from that peak.  Consistency is the key to long-term success.

The Gurus of Get It

Ignore the Naysayers!

There is a philosophy that we believe in when it comes to designing your perfect life.  In order to succeed, you will do it because of people or in spite of them.

With any luck, all of you have people in your life (friends, family, co-workers, etc) who are a source of light.  These are the ones that are there to help and support your dreams.  They are the ones who encourage you and let you know that you can accomplish anything.  It is these people that we look back at and understand that success will happen because of them.

There may be a whole different set of people who are the naysayers.  The ones who tell you it cannot be done.  They will try to crush your dreams or at the very least, never offer any real encouragement.  This may be in work, relationships, sports or other hobbies.  When faced with these kind of people, you will need to succeed in spite of them being in your life.

Regardless of whom you have around you, decide to succeed, than look no further than in the mirror to make it happen!

The Gurus of Get It!

Weekend Challenge: Project

The Eagles have been playing together now for 38 years.  And even though a couple of them have had successful solo careers, they are still playing concert dates and recording new music as a band.

Tom Watson came very close to winning the British Open last year at age 59–23 years older than the man who eventually won the tournament in a playoff.

Last week we were introduced to a man who had spent his life’s work organizing people and ideas into coherent, successful projects.  Now, at the ripe young age of 87, he still goes to board meetings with a notebook in hand and a twinkle in his eye, looking for something to do.

Your job this weekend is to give some serious thought to the path you’re on, and try to project yourself 40 years into the future.  Can you see yourself still doing what you’re doing in 40 years?  If you can’t, if you think about your job/life/relationship and think “I can put up with this for . . .” then STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING!!  Your time, your energies, and your spirit are too valuable to settle for something that you know you can’t love for the rest of your life.

The Gurus of Get It

Traits We Admire: Courage

Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.   –Ambrose Redman

It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare. —Mark Twain

We, as a society, tend to value courage as highly as any other quality.  We recognize and glorify those who would choose to run into the burning building or towards the sound of gunfire rather than away.  And rightfully so–that there are people in the world who choose to face danger so that others do not have to is one of the great things that elevate humans above beasts.

But there is another, subtler kind of courage that is far more valuable.  It is the courage to stand up for what one believes in, the courage to do the right thing when it’s far easier to do otherwise, the courage to go against the tide of popularity and embrace the new kid.  This is moral courage, and its value is even greater than the physical courage we so readily recognize and laud.  And it is this kind of courage that will truly set you apart for your Perfect Life.

The Gurus of Get It

Weekend Challenge: More Than Words

Proclaim the Gospel at all times, and, when necessary, use words.  –St. Francis of Assissi

More than Words. –80s hair band Extreme

(let it never be said that this blog is not versatile in its source material!)

For some reason these two thoughts came across our desk today.  We decided to run with them.  Both statements are clear expressions of the simple idea that words are cheap, and actions speak loudly.  And whether that’s from a 13th century Catholic priest instructing his followers to live in a way that shows your Faith and Love, or it’s from an obscure classic rock band talking about expressing love through actions so they’d never have to say “I love you,” the idea is really all the same.  To put it into the contemporary vernacular: stop the talk, walk the walk.

Your actions say more than your words.

Your accomplishments speak louder than your intentions.

Your choices mean more than any hundred excuses.

This weekend, consider whether an “outsider” looking at you go about your life would see that you were on a Mission in pursuit of your Vision.  Also think about this: they should never have to ask you about it. 

The Gurus of Get It

This Is What We’re Talking About!

This morning we heard a radio program, and DJ’s were having callers weigh in on one question:  If you could, would you take back the last ten years of your life? 

Truly sad.  Most of the callers that we heard contributed thoughts along the lines of “Of course I’d take them back so I could avoid the no-good, cheating, lying jerk!!”

And this is the problem, and the reason we wrote the book.  None of the callers seemed to “Get It”– most of them simply wanted to undo one of their stupid choices, without solving the underlying problem:  their choices!!

We are fairly well convinced that every one of the cheating, lying jerks “tipped their hand” at some point, and still the callers chose them.  Had they shown a little Foresight, looked at the big picture through the window of their Vision, and exercised a little discipline, it’s easy to imagine that the answer to the question would be “No Way.”

We want you live your Perfect Life, and that’s a life that never looks back to undo itself.  That sort of life is in your reach if you just take the steps you need to Get It!

Radical Honesty!

We read a story a while back about how much better the world could be if everyone practiced what they called “Radical Honesty”.  What this means is that you should practice being honest, with everyone, in every situation.  Does it sound scary?  It would only sound scary because no one does it.  We are all afraid of being honest.

It is a great concept, but really only effective if multiple people in your circle practice it.  It is not about being rude (instead of saying “you look fat in those pants”, you can say “I am not sure those pants are the best choice”).  It is about speaking your mind, especially if someone asks for your opinion, advice, etc.  Think about how many times in your life where your friends or family came clean after the mistake was made (i.e.: “Yeah, I did not think it was a good idea, but decided to keep my mouth shut”). 

What can you do to help make this world a little better (and less fake)?  Be sure to help your friends and family when the opportunity presents itself, especially if they ask for your “honest” opinion.

The Gurus of Get It!

Weekend Challenge: Be Mentored

One of the truly remarkable things about a good Mom is the way they show their children necessary skills to operate their lives.  From how to whip up a decent meal in a pinch to how to keep a household running to how to balance career and family, those of us who were blessed to have great Moms learned lessons that we probably barely recognize, but which make it possible for us to have dreams and ambitions.

Our parents are usually the first mentors we have in life.  We often move on from them to other mentors whose skill sets more narrowly fit our career goals, but the lessons about living stay with us so that the later mentors have a chance to work their magic.  A good mentor will teach you not only what to do, but how to do it, and why it’s important to do it.  Their role is complex, but for a willing student they hold the keys to your future Perfect Life.

So this weekend, try to find one person who has travelled a portion of the path that you’re setting yourself on, and form a relationship with them.  See if they are willing to guide you down your chosen path.

And don’t forget to call your Mom and thank her for everything she did for you.

The Gurus of Get It

Traits We Admire: Clarity

Number of words in the Ten Commandments:  297

Number of words in the Lord’s Prayer: 50

Number of words in the Declaration of Independence: 1,337

Number of words in the Gettysburgh Address:  269

These are, arguably, four of the most important documents/speeches ever spoken or written.  And each of them manages to tell its tale in a relatively brief fashion. 

For a comparison, the recently enacted Health Care Reform Act from Congress comes in at over 2,000 PAGES.

There is a tendency in this society to use a lot more words than we need to–some of that is because it gives lawyers something to do, part of that is because we think more words will soften the impact of what we say, and some of that is due to any number of other factors.  But, regardless the explanation, in all the words we lose the gift of Clarity.

Speaking clearly is sometimes not the easiest thing to do, and it should certainly be sprinkled with compassion.  But how much tidier would the world be if we could all simply say what we mean and mean what we say?

The Gurus of Get It!