In the recent November 2017 copy of National Geographic Magazine, there was an article on the world’s happiest places, by Dan Buettner, the author of The Blue Zones, Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. According to Buettner, the three happiest places on earth are Denmark, Costa Rica, and Singapore. The things they have in common are that their “people feel secure, have a sense of purpose, and enjoy lives that minimize stress and maximize joy”.
You’ve likely heard people talk about the phenomenon of “Imposter Syndrome” – the propensity to feel like you’re going to be ‘found out’ by everybody due to this or that weakness you have, despite your many accomplishments.
In the face of this defeating self-talk, a greater focus on strengths can provide a validation of your skill set. It feels better because you’re using the natural talents you already have inside you and bringing them out, front and center.
According to Stephen R. Covey’s book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “Sharpen the Saw means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have--you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual.”
Meditation has moved from something a few specialists did to becoming a mainstream phenomenon. I’m not sure when I made the shift myself in wanting to check it out. It might have been when a colleague shared his experience with daily meditation to get his head clear, or perhaps when watching the students learn the art of Buddhist mediation at a mountaintop monastery in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Nevertheless, I recently found myself opening to the idea of meditation.
Turnover is high and costly. A study by the Society for Human Resource Management states that employers spend the equivalent of six to nine months of an employee’s salary to attract, identify, and train their replacement. So that means that an employee salaried at $100K will cost the company $50-$75k to hire and train a replacement. Do I have your attention yet?
A very disturbing message in last week's WSJ noted that all women's longevity is stagnating in the U.S. and white women's longevity is actually declining. We are the only developed country with this type of trend. France, Germany, UK, Canada, and others are experiencing declines of mortality rates in the 45-54 age group. In the US we are on the opposite trend and women's mortality rates have been on the rise since the year 2000. Even more disturbing are the top causes of death--drug and alcohol overdose, suicide, and chronic liver disease. WSJ: Rising Death Rate
John Wooden was part of the creation of Carroll’s strategy and inspired him to get his plan into writing and to include vision, philosophy, and beliefs. Using Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, he desired to get his teams to the peak performance level of self-actualization which is at the top of the pyramid. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Carroll's written philosophy is the foundation on which he builds highly successful, top performing teams. The detailed clear vision contains beliefs, style, and rules.
