This fall, I went on my first ever US speaking tour. Below is the presentation that I gave in 17 different cities all over the country. I hope you enjoy it, and if you do, please share it with a friend.
|
Wisdom is gained in one of two ways.
It is either discovered, or passed on. We discover wisdom when we notice or experience something, and allow that thing to deepen our understanding of the world at large. Wisdom is passed on to us when a mentor, scholar, teacher, parent, or friend offers it to us whether it’s in a book, a lecture, or simply in conversation. Both are very useful, very different ways to acquire wisdom. What makes them similar is they both require an openness, humility, and a willingness to learn from the one doing the acquiring. Time will steal every minute we don’t give a purpose to
The economy will steal every dollar we don’t name Selfishness and busyness will ruin every relationship we don’t invest in Sin will corrupt every desire we don’t commit to Him Success will always be ten steps away when we don’t define it Peace will never exist if we don’t seek to create it Circumstances will rob all your joy if you let them Most of the time, those who waste their lives are not careless or destructive, they simply lack intentionality. When we fail to be intentional with the things that has been given to us, we fail to retain anything that has been given to us. Be on time
Work hard Don’t complain Do your job (and not someone else’s...unless you’re asked) Give others your attention, your FULL attention Bring your heart and mind into the room And leave your ego at home Give more than you ask Use your gifts Seek to serve Learn to lead Learn to listen Speak up Shut up (and know when one or the other is needed) Notice Make Share It’s real easy to criticize the quarterback on Monday morning, until you know what it feels like to get hit on Sunday afternoon.
It’s easy to call your boss an idiot for the way he’s running the company. That is, until you learn what it’s like to have thousands of people depending on your for their jobs. It’s no problem to shake your head at someone else’s parenting style, until you know what it feels like to be judged in that way. It feels good to sit on the sidelines and tell everyone how you could have done better. It feels a lot less good to actually suit up and get in the game. In fact, it’s downright uncomfortable. There’s a lot of talkers out there. Talking is easy. In fact, it’s the easiest thing in the world. What there aren’t a lot of, is doers. For me, if you’re in the latter category, let’s talk. Otherwise, until you suit up and actually try, I’m not really interested in what you have to say. When you live in Chicago, you expect there to be traffic
When you live in New York City, you expect Times Square to be crowded If you’re going to war, you expect there to be violence So what do you do? You prepare You leave early You walk to work through backstreets You train your soldiers and give them guns If we know something is going to happen, we should prepare for it in advance. This is common sense, right? Perhaps not. In life, challenges are going to happen, whether they be physical, relational, financial, or spiritual. You are just as likely to face challenges in life as you are the hit traffic during rush hour. So why don’t we prepare for these things better? Why don’t we ensure that we have some sort or health coverage, or at least a good relationship with our doctor? Why don’t we learn how our spouses would like to be communicated to during tough times? Why don’t have keep an emergency fund? Why don’t we establish relationships with wise elders who we can go to in times of spiritual crisis? If you know something is guaranteed to happen, it just makes sense to prepare for it in advance. Otherwise, life will keep going while you’re still stuck on the highway. It’s not that you don’t have anything to write about
Maybe it’s that you could write about anything in the world It’s not that you don’t have enough time Maybe it’s that you have too many things on your schedule It’s not that don’t have enough money Maybe it’s that you have too many expenses Often times, what we view as a problem of scarcity is actually a problem of abundance. Simplify. |
AboutThis blog is about learning how to notice, make, and share your art Archives
September 2016
|
