Think About It

What can you do with your life?  What will you do with your life?  These two questions may sound similar, but their answers can lead us in very different directions.  Potential is all about what is possible.  It establishes the outer boundaries of our influence.  While it may not be limitless, it covers a pretty big expanse.  Productivity is typically much narrower; and, therefore, more limiting – not because we can’t do more, but because we don’t do more.  Have you ever thought about how much potential you have?  I think this is a scary thought for many of us because it forces us to wander into the unexplored darkness of the unknown.  We like the safety of knowing what we can do because we’ve already done it; but is that as far as we should go?  Potential calls on us to try to expand the borders (even if we fail).  In fact, in kind of an odd way, failure is a necessary part of potential because it defines our outer limits.  In...

Growing up in this era, Albert Einstein has always been respected as one of the most intelligent individuals of modern times.  Even though he has been gone since 1955, his scientific principles and influence continue to shape modern thought.  While he has a reputation as a deep thinker, I came across an interesting quote of his, “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”.    Maybe I like this thought because I am not a genius, but even in my ignorance it makes sense.  Some of the smartest people I know have the knack to be able to take something complex and make it understandable.  Knowledge is fine, but it becomes even more pertinent when it can be understood by the masses.  Smart people might be able to impress other academics, but really smart people have the ability to put complex concepts in a way that it can influence thought and behavior.  Truly smart people don’t make the people around them feel stupid, the...

What does it mean to be humble?   Most of us are quite familiar with the concept of humility – we typically know it when we see it – but what does it mean?   I have been taught that humility is the ability to see ourselves accurately in light of the world around us.   No, it isn’t always allowing others to run roughshod over us … it isn’t sitting back and not expressing an opinion … it isn’t having a poor self-image.   Humility allows us to make good decisions by properly assessing our role in any given circumstance.   Sometimes, it means taking a backseat to others who are more capable and other times, it means that we take the lead.   It might be stepping back and allowing others to try their hand at leadership, or it requires us to be point person.   Humility is accomplished by reading the room and analyzing who is best suited to do what. In a sense, humility and wisdom are closely linked.   When we have wisdom, we are more apt to demonstrate...

Have you ever been in the middle of a conversation and had someone come up and interject their opinions?   They had missed all the background for the discussion – but they were willing to share their insights.   It’s kind of irritating when people do that, isn’t it – I mean, what gives them the right to interject themselves into a discussion they may not fully understand.   Now, let’s stop here for a second and revise the question – have we ever done that?   Have we ever offered an opinion on a subject for which we may (or may not) have had good information or even a knowledge of the foundation that had been laid before our interjections?   As irritated as I may have gotten when people did that to me, now that I think about it … I am a bit embarrassed when I have done that to others. If it makes us feel any better, we probably aren’t alone sticking our noses where they don’t belong.   In fact, I would imagine it is quite common in human interactions – or ...

Wisdom is a noble pursuit.   In fact, the Wise Man of God promoted it by writing, “ My son, let them not vanish from your sight; keep sound wisdom and discretion, so they will be life to your soul and adornment to your neck.” (Proverbs 3:21-22).   Now, while wisdom is discussed a lot, have we ever thought about what it is?   This previous quandary led me to a dictionary definition that includes, “the quality of having experience, knowledge and good judgment”.   As I ponder this definition – as well as wisdom itself – I see some important qualities.   First, it requires gathering enough life lessons to compare and contrast the best option.   Wisdom isn’t about making a quick decision as much as it is making a proper decision.   Another element that stands out to me is the ability to slow our reaction time to come up with the proper response.   Speed isn’t as important as “smarts”.   A part of this process includes the abili...

One of the noble things about leadership is a conviction to help others make the best decisions they can; however, the opposite is true:  one of the most stressful aspects of leadership is a desire to help people make the best decisions they can.  Leaders – and, in fact, all caring people – take our responsibility towards others very seriously.  We want to do everything we can to ensure that the people around us make appropriate choices.  In fact, most of us would even be happy to make decisions for others; however, there are two things wrong with that.  First, we can’t make decisions for others – they don’t give us the power to do that.  None of us have a moral or spiritual “power of attorney” to be the decision-maker for others.  Even if that was possible, it wouldn’t be practical.  People need to live their own lives – for good or for bad. While this realization might cause us some distress, I also think that it can bring us a sense of peace....