The Practice of Your Life

The Exercise and Pursuit of a Consciously Created Life

Do you acknowledge people for “just” doing their jobs?

Mar 09
2010

Do you think you should acknowledge people for just doing their jobs; for just doing what they’re supposed to?   Many people would say no, of course not.  They’re doing the absolute minimum required and it’s only service or results over and above the norm that should be acknowledged or rewarded.

If you think this way I ask you to reconsider.  Why?

Many people don’t feel that they make a difference

First, because many people don’t feel that they make a difference, they don’t feel that what they do matters, and if you look closely you may find people who feel this way surround you.

These people go through the motions at work in order to get a paycheck.  They do the motions to keep their job… Continue reading

Why Self-Help courses often fail to produce lasting results

Feb 27
2010

If you’re a regular consumer of self-help books and courses, here are eight questions for you to answer.   Honestly now.

Despite all those courses and books you’ve consumed on making your life better:

Are you still stuck in the same circumstances of your life?

  1. Do you still do work that you have no passion for, or continue doing a job you hate?
  2. Have your relationships stopped growing, or even fallen back to where they were before you did those courses?
  3. Do you still gossip?
  4. Are you no closer to realizing your dreams? (Honestly now.)
  5. Are you still passionless and unfulfilled
  6. Are you resigned to living an unremarkable life?
  7. Do you blame other people and circumstance for your disappointments &amp

We All Need Help – Yes That Includes You

Jan 15
2010

Today’s equivalent of “The World is Flat” (not the book, but the common belief of pre-Columbus Europe) is that “I Don’t Need Help,” and the implications are just as profound. I see signs of this paradigm every day. People suffer silently for much or all of their lives because they think that they don’t need anyone else, or that asking for help is a sign of weakness. We limit ourselves and what is possible to achieve as communities because of this paradigm called “I Don’t Need Help”.

The World is Not Flat and You Need the Help & Support of other People
No matter what you’re up to in life, you need other people to get things done, to fix things that break, to build, to create, solve problems… Continue reading

Launch of Morevidareviews.com

Jan 13
2010

Now on to some good news (my last post was not so cheerful).  I’ve been working with a company called LightThread to develop a review site for the courses and coaches in personal growth and development.  I launched a beta version of the site yesterday and you can read the press release by clicking on the News & Events tab on this site.  I’m very excited.

There are thousands of seminars, workshops, retreats, conferences etc. and really no way to evaluate what’s good from what’s not.  I was surprised to discover that there was no equivalent to a www.zagat.com or a www.yelp.com where you can read what regular people have to say about a restaurant or some local service (Yelp) that you are considering.  People use these services… Continue reading

Farewell to a Master – Choco 1967 to 2009

Jan 06
2010

I would have preferred my first post of the new year to have been forward looking, but I’m compelled to have it be about my friend Choco who passed away on Dec 31, 2009 at the vital age of 42.

The exact timing of his leaving us on that day is not clear to me and I wonder if it occurred while I was immersed in the merriment of bidding farewell to a difficult year for many – 2009 – and the welcoming of a year that holds so much promise.  Sad to think that while I was celebrating life, he was losing his. One of those things that makes you wonder.

As far as I understand it, Choco was on a small boat about to, or in… Continue reading

In defense of Gossiping

Dec 22
2009

In my last post I wrote about the Consequences of Gossiping and like most things in life there are many shades of grey.  Below there is an amusing story about gossiping that suggests that while you are well advised to remove yourself from gossip it is not wise to be completely oblivious to it.

Here’s the story (by way of Kim Davis – Thanks Kim):

“In ancient Greece (469 – 399 BC) Socrates was widely lauded for his wisdom. One day the great philosopher came upon an acquaintance who ran up to him excitedly and said, “Socrates, do you know what I just heard about one of your students?”

“Wait a moment,” Socrates replied. “Before you tell me I’d like you to pass a… Continue reading

Six consequences of gossiping you shouldn’t ignore

Dec 18
2009

The essence of practice is the consciousness or intention you bring to the practice – something that you willingly choose to participate in every day.  Long held practices take on a life of their own and if there is no clear purpose to the practice we call them habits.  For some gossiping is a habit, for others it is a practice the purpose  of which is to raise themselves up by bringing others down.

First a working definition of gossip:

Gossip: casual or unconstrained conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details that are not confirmed as being true : he became the subject of much local gossip.chiefly derogatory