Monthly Archives: January 2015

Neil deGrasse Tyson on Guiding Principles

The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation. For me, I am driven by two main philosophies, know more today about the world than I knew yesterday. And lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you. – Neil deGrasse Tyson

That successful people create their own love, meaning and motivation implies it’s all up to you. How will you create your next opportunity?

The notion of having two “main philosophies” to drive your decisions is interesting. What are your main philosophies?bonsai tree

My main drivers are fun and money on the professional side. Not as altruistic as deGrasse Tyson, but authentic to me. When I’m considering a work project, I ask: 1) will I enjoy this, regardless of the outcome; and 2) will a positive outcome have enough of an upside to say NO to other things. What are the questions you ask yourself to decide on a commitment or goal?

 

If you want help staying focused on your big goal for 2015, I will be co-presenting a webinar on Focus with peak performance coach Renita Kalhorn (she coaches Navy SEAL candidates on mental toughness!). Full details on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/focus-make-2015-the-year-things-happen-tickets-15308583385

John Lennon on Happiness

When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life. – John Lennon

Look at the measurements most people track – 401k balance, credit score, performance at work, last year’s or next year’s bonus or raise. How do you measure happiness?

For me, happiness is when I don’t feel so stretched for time and can allocate my energy and attention to prioritize outside my business. So in 2015, this means I’ll be cooking more (prioritizing family who loves it when I cook), doing more comedy (I jumped in last week after 6 months of a break and did a set at Gotham, and Jerry Seinfeld dropped in as a surprise guest!), and I’ll be working on my real estate portfolio (yes, my outside interests even unrelated to my main business are business-related).Please, please, please

How will you incorporate more happiness into 2015?

If you want help staying focused on your big goal for 2015, I will be co-presenting a webinar on Focus with peak performance coach Renita Kalhorn (she coaches Navy SEAL candidates on mental toughness!). Full details on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/focus-make-2015-the-year-things-happen-tickets-15308583385