Friday; September 15

          The other day I came upon an observation from George Will who noted, “Perhaps the soundest advice for parents is: Lighten up. People have been raising children for approximately as long as there have been people.”.  Interestingly, as I reflected on this observation it didn’t impact me from the perspective of childrearing as much as it reminded me that I am over-thinking life.  For the last several years I have found myself taking things too seriously.  I have spent too much time believing that I have to do things just right … I have to make sure that I don’t offend people by saying something in a certain way … and I have to do my best to eliminate mistakes and reduce the potential for error.  When I do fail, I feel compelled to apologize for it, analyze it and make sure I don’t do it again.  While all the above is good advice, I often find myself choking the life out of living by making it too confining.  What would happen if I worried less about doing things acceptably (perfectly) and spent more time making new discoveries while rekindling the enjoyment of the pursuits from the past?  People have been living life for a long time and have found peace and contentment despite being imperfect.  Many successful people have learned to laugh at themselves and refuse to take themselves or their circumstance too seriously.  Maybe, in a sense, their ignorance of their frailties have allowed them to relax and enjoy life. 
Are we living longer, but enjoying it less?  Have we become too analytical for our own good? 
What do you have planned for this weekend?  Will it be fun – if not, is it really worth the time we are going to invest in it?
Think about it!

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday; November 29

The biblical story of the Good Samaritan has changed our world. Notice I didn’t say that it had change religion or even Christianity, it has influenced the world. There are very few people who don’t know the moral of Jesus’ parable about the Good Samaritan. In fact, the phrase has become a common description of everyday people doing good to their neighbors. While Jesus’ parable from Luke 10 shares several spiritual lessons, one of the most practical is that good can be done by anyone. You don’t have to be a church official to do good, it is not only possible for each one of us to help, it is required of all of us. If a Samaritan can be good, so can we! After presenting the parable, Jesus asked the man who had originally asked the question about being a good neighbor which character in the story was a good neighbor, “… he said, ‘The one who showed mercy toward him.’” at which point, the discussion from theoretical to personal, “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’” (Luke
Read more

Thursday; January 12

The other day I was watching a television show that used a rather common term applied to overcoming challenges. When organizations experience unexpected setbacks – especially when they lose key people – they rely upon the concept of “Next Man Up”. In essence, when our starters (or stars) go down, effective organizations rely upon their next levels to step into the vacancy. While this is an effective response, have we given much thought as to how we prepare to be the “next people up”? First, we must know our job. Even when we aren’t the primary players, we need to be preparing ourselves to be ready when we get the opportunity to shine. Second, we must do our best when we get the chance. Knowledge is important but what turns potential into talent is effort. Yet, maybe the most underappreciated aspect of this concept is a willingness avoid excuse-making and whining about the unfairness of our situation. When we complain about the circumstances that caused the need for replacements
Read more

Monday; September 25

When I was a youngster, I remember hearing about this thing called the Generation Gap. I was a little bit too young to be active in the social movements of the 1960s, but I do remember listening to the challenges the generations were experiencing way back then. Interestingly, now that I have been on both sides of the aging process, I have to admit that the Gap of the 1960s was nothing new. With the development of each generation comes conflict. The young people don’t feel like the older people understand them and the older folks tend to believe their input is being underappreciated. Too often trust is the casualty when two generations collide. The sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be this way. When we can capture the innovation and energy of the younger folks and harness the wisdom of those who have been around for a while we can develop a winning combination. No, we won’t always see things eye-to-eye nor will we necessarily speak the same emotional language, but when we app
Read more