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The Thoughtful Leaders BlogLet it go
“You can’t hold a man down without staying down with him.” Booker T. Washington
A friend of mine used to tell me how she’d be mad at her boyfriend, and he wouldn’t even know. “We’re fighting,” she’d say, “And he has no idea.” It was clear to her that she was expending energy with her anger and frustration, and it wasn’t affecting him at all. Related Posts:Leave a ReplyAre you a carrot, egg, or coffee bean?What pressures are you under right now? What difficulties are you facing? And how are you coping with them? For many of us, our approach to adversity is predictable. Some of us tense up and become harsh, some of us try our best to ignore the issue and hope it goes away, others give up and tolerate what’s happening. And there are those, whom I admire, who seem to find a way to rise to the occasion with focus and clarity and make the most of a bad situation – or in fact, turn it into a win for them. Related Posts:2 Responses to “Are you a carrot, egg, or coffee bean?”Leave a ReplyThe first step towards winning an argument
“There’s more than one way to look at a problem, and they may all be right.” Norman Schwarzkopf
Have you ever been totally certain you knew the right and best answer to a problem? You knew the best way to approach an issue, how to get the greatest outcome…only someone else was also completely certain that they knew the best answer, and it wasn’t close to the solution you came up with. And what if that someone was someone who really mattered to you, whose opinion mattered, who you needed agreement from, needed on your side? And they were steadfastly asserting that their “wrong” answer was the way to go. Related Posts:Leave a ReplyThree simple steps to stop complaining and try a new perspectiveIt is so easy to complain. Walk into any office or stroll through the halls, and listen in. It won’t take long before you hear griping and venting about something gone wrong or something blatantly unfair. People complain – about their co-workers, their bosses, their latest assignments, even the weather. What is the cost of lost hours and energy focused on complaining, I wonder? Easily in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Even more important, what if you could circumvent some of that complaining and help employees be more productive, simply by helping them think in a new way? Related Posts:Leave a ReplyStop swimming upstream“By yielding you may obtain victory.” OvidJust the other day I was about to tear my hair out because of my 3-year old son. All I needed to do was get out the door to run a few errands. And I swear, when I have an agenda, something I need to get done, it’s like he smells it. And he pushes equally hard in the opposite direction. I find myself screaming (at least inside) at him — and then I lose it even more because I know that that’s not the way I want to parent. Related Posts:Leave a ReplyLeave a Reply |
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View Robyn McLeod's profile
It’s a nice story, however, when it comes to defining oneself, it’s easy to say “I’m this or that”… what truly determines a person is “consistency”.
A person may handle a certain adversity well but next time, crumble. This is because problems come in different forms and degrees, hence, one should have the stamina in terms of aspiration, confidence and support system to continue to face life’s battles.
We are ALL coffee beans at one point, but a TRUE coffee bean is one who has the “courage” to change the traditional way of doing things, of stepping out of the status quo… and in our case, in terms of business operations. For instance, “work experience” is simply repetition which means one is exposed to the same situation most of the time where if there are changes it’s only slight and if ever it’s heavy, it comes only once in a blue moon. Therefore, more valuable than experience are… brains, character, enthusiasm, adaptability, and good health.
It’s the body that takes in problems, the heart that withstands adversity, and the head that solves them.
Thank you for your thoughtful response — you make a number of good points. I agree that our ability to deal with the many faces of adversity has a lot to do with what we’ve dealt with in the past, our inner fortitude, attitude, and the support system we can tap into when needed. And yes, sometimes being the coffee bean takes courage!