Bored to Death – A Story About Why We Need Work

There is an old story that I’ve heard many times of a young man who died and found himself in a very beautiful place, surrounded by all the comfort and beauty that he had dreamed of.

A figure dressed in white came up to him: “You are entitled to anything you want.”

Enchanted, the young man did everything that he had dreamed of during life.

However, after many years of pleasure, he sought out the figure in white.

If Something’s Worth Doing

There’s an old saying that, “if something’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”

It’s a great philosophy, but today I would like to add to it.

If something’s worth doing:

You’re Not a Lizard

My oldest son, Hayden is turning 10 soon.  Yes, I’m that old!

He loves animals (he writes his own animal blog) and more than anything, wants a lizard for his birthday to add to his little menagerie, which at this stage consists of two goldfish.

Lizards aren’t energetic creatures like dogs or cats.  Because they are cold-blooded, they required an external heat source to warm them up and give them the energy that they need to survive.

Alas, I’ve met a few people who act as though they are lizards.

I Don’t Just Want To Read About History

I love reading about history, especially about inspiring people who have achieved phenomenal deeds.

I enjoy learning about the men and women who have helped to shape the world as it is today through great ideas and remarkable action.

I find it relaxing, I find it stimulating and I find it motivating.

But I don’t just want to read about history.

I want to make history!

Inspirational People – Rosie Batty

2015 Australian of the Year, Rosie Batty

About a year ago, Rosie Batty was trying to live a normal life with her 11 year old son, Luke, when her former partner and Luke’s father murdered her boy one evening after cricket practice in Tyabb, no more than 20 minutes from my house.

It was an unimaginable crime that immediately thrust Rosie into the public spotlight as she grieved the loss of her son and tried to make sense of such a senseless situation.

This remarkable woman has handled her tragic circumstances with grace and has become an extraordinary ambassador to bring awareness to, and hopefully resolve, our national crisis of domestic violence.

The Feral You

There’s a tame version of yourself.

Its timid, values safety and security, lives in confined surroundings and relies on others for survival.

But it doesn’t reflect what you were made for.

A feral animal is one that was once domesticated, but has now been released or has escaped to the wild, returning to its natural state to live.

Walking on Rocky Ground

It would be nice to have a nice cruisy life on a flat, straight road that takes us to our destination.

But so often we’re walking on rocky ground.

The path is sometimes treacherous and we know that we have to watch our step so that we don’t trip and fall.

So we sit and wonder, “Am I better off staying where I am, or should I risk the path?”

Will I Make It?

A couple of time in the past few days, several clients have asked me the age old question, “Will I make it?”

They were changing industries or looking for promotions and were uncertain about the future.

There were a lot of unknowns for them, and the greatest concerns that they had were:

• Will someone give me a chance?
• Do I have the skills to succeed?

Whilst I can never guarantee the outcome, they themselves can control their attitudes, action and level of focus on their goals, so with that in mind, here are some of the questions that I asked in response:

My Favourite Martin Luther King Story

We’ve all heard the famous “I have a dream speech” and many of his other brilliant quotes.

But one of the things that I admire most about Dr King is that he wasn’t just a man of words, but of action.

In his book, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants, Malcolm Gladwell tells a story about him that I love.

“Once in Birmingham, when King was giving a speech, a two-hundred-pound white man charged the stage and began pummeling King with his fists.  As King’s aides rushed to defend him, McWhorter writes:

The Doers and the Dour

There are those who take action to change the world and those who complain about the state of the world.

There are those who look for opportunities to do something and those who have a long of excuses as to why they can’t do anything.

There are those who move towards their goals on a regular basis and those who don’t understand why their goals don’t move closer to them.

There are those who make the most of every day and those who whine about where the time went.

There are those who look to the future with optimism and those who are negative and fearful about the days to come.