Poised for Success

“Don’t let your past dictate your future.” ~ Bill Johnson

“Don't worry about yesterday it ended last night at midnight.” ~ John C Maxwell

Whenever I am involved in a project, I start by doing an analysis.  The analysis is to understand where we are, to define where we want to be, and then to determine how to get there.  When I first started consulting, I was taught that the customers will always ask for the world; consultants temper that with what is reasonable to deliver, then you meet somewhere in the middle.  The unique thing about consulting is that you go in with a single purpose, start at a single date and you look forward towards the goal. 

How many times have we heard “We have tried that before,” “After X years, nothing has changed,” or, “You need to understand the history”?  Any new ideas or projects always gets some sort of push back,  generally, due to the fear of change.  However, there are some people who look towards the past and determine the potential future by past failures.  In the first case, the fear is due to comfort while the second is justified by past events.    

Many thought leaders talk about having the BIG GOAL, but stress striving for the smaller objectives.  The understanding is that small change over time has a big impact.  To succeed, one needs to look forward towards the horizon, as opposed to looking back from where they came.  The past may hold lessons, but the conditions most likely have changed, the people involved are of a different mindset and the need for a new goal has dictated the choices.  As Jim Rohn famously said, "It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go."

Someone recently pointed out that a certain group, when talking about moving forward, always start off talking about the “Good Old Days.”  The comment by this person was, “They seem to forget the struggle and pain involved to create those good old days.”  We are good at minimizing unhappy events in favor of the happy ones.  In any venture, however, as we poise ourselves for success, we have the clear choice to look backwards in time or to set our sails and face forward to the future ahead.

Leaders are Readers

I recently sat with some different teams and asked, “Have any of you read…”  The book I asked about was a business-related parable that came out a few years ago highlighting the need for change, the different types of people confronting the issue of the day and how they react.  The general response I received was blank stares.  Someone stated that it was previously recommended to them, they had the book, but never opened it. 

Years ago, I attended a conference where I had the opportunity to listen to different highly successful speakers.  The topics that they talked about and most of the names have since faded from my memory.  The thing that stayed with me was the one overriding connection that each of the speakers were avid readers; they were proud of the fact, talked about the resourcefulness of education it provided them and the source of mentorship. 

I went from being a non-reader, to someone who read regularly.  I generally read on a Kindle, and have downloaded books from 2011 through the end of 2017, on the average 32 books a year.  This is from someone who did everything to avoid reading.  Reading has helped me learn new things from experts in their fields, provided me insights into certain areas and helped to hone a positive mindset.  When I refer to a book or make a recommendation, those books have had a positive impact on me.

Most have read the classic books on personal development – “The Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale, “As A Man Thinketh” by James Allen, and “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill, etc.

What books have you read that have inspired you?  What are you currently reading?  What book would you recommend?

The list of books that I have read so far in 2018:

• “Leadership Lessons” by Will Peters
• “The Magic of Thinking Big” by David J Schwatz
• “What is Mindfulness (#whatis)" by Tamara Russell
• “The Go-Giver” by Bob Burg and John David Mann
• “Who Moved My Cheese?” by Spencer Johnson
• “The Cheapskate Next Door” by Jeff Yeager
• “The Complete Sherlock Holmes” by Arthur Conan Doyle
• “Words That Hurt, Words That Heal” by Joseph Telushkin
• “Talent is Never Enough” By John C Maxwell
• “Great Teams” by Don Yaeger
• “The Year of Living Biblically” by A. J. Jacobs
• “The Magic of Believing” by Vic Johnson
• “Dracula” by Bram Stoker
• “The Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson

Clowning Around

I love the 4^th of July - a day to celebrate the birth of our great country, a day of fireworks and a day to feel patriotic.  And for me, most importantly, it means that my annual gig as a clown has come again! 

That is right – you read that correctly, my annual clown gig!  You see, I have two friends, Juggles and Glitter (yes, that is their names) who several years ago asked if I would be interested in marching in a 4^th of July parade as a clown.  No, they were not just clowning around with me.  It was something that I had never done before, so I said yes (I am generally open to trying new experiences). 

This was not just slap on some makeup and go.  THIS WAS SERIOUS BUSINESS.  I had to learn how to be a clown.  I had to learn how to put on clown-face makeup.  I had to learn the clown garb, most of which I borrowed from Juggles.  And, I had to learn how to act like a clown.  A good clown is fun, exciting and can make you smile.  For me to join Miles of Smiles, I had to be worthy!  Since then, I have marched in cold weather, extreme heat and humidity (this year) and torrential downpours.  To use the words of Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, “And loving it!”

The best part, is making children smile.  Some of them sit along the parade route, obvious in their bored expressions as their parents have dragged them out to watch a long parade in hot weather.  However, when they see me, as the clown, coming up to them to give them some attention, the big smiles appear.  Now, this is true of children of all ages, young and old alike.  Not everyone, however, is excited to see me coming.  I walked up to a brother and sister that were all smiles and excited I was coming up to them.  The boy saw his mother stand up and said to me, “My mother is going to take our picture.”  The mom finished standing up, turn to her right (away from us) and proceeded to walk down the block into a crowd and out of sight.  “Oh, yeah,” said the boy, “she’s afraid of clowns.”  Yes, coulrophobia (fear of clowns) is real. 

After the long parade in the extremely hot weather was over, I had one more stop to make.  At my synagogue, they were having a 4^th of July BBQ.  In I walked, arms waving overhead, yelling happy 4^th of July.  The smiles were just as big when I went from table to table.  These people know me and were thrilled.  Many had fun (at my expense).  Someone even said, “I have a serious question to ask you, but I can’t because you are a clown!”

In both cases, being a clown is about giving a moment of joy and happiness to someone else.  I guess the old adage is true, happiness did come from making others happy.

Photo by Glitter