Change You Need

Obama is moments away from taking office. Already there are naysayers criticizing his lofty promises or accusing him of being an extension of the crooked politics that abound in Illinois. Even many who voted for him and currently support him are somewhat sceptical about his immediate ability to attack all the the problems his administration will inherit.

Regardless of how you feel about the new President, there is something to be said about his promise for change and the bold willingness he has to lead the United States. Considering the great social strides that have been made between the dreams of Martin Luther King Jr. and the historical magnificence of what is to occur tomorrow, there is amazing hope and possibility in change.

But what about personal change? Perhaps circumstances in your life are troubling or even overwhelming to you. I have seen a lot of people who have had difficulty finding work or finding work that is enough to provide sustenance for their families. I have worked with those that hate their jobs, but still continue to stay in them. The first thing I try to remind these people (as I sometimes must remind myself) is that although our efforts to improve our lives or solve our problems are not always met with success, real change and improvement are only possible with effort. Complacency and denial are far worse enemies than the problems we face themselves, because there is little hope that the problems will go away if they are never faced.

To make this point while also acknowledging the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. and the pending inaugural history, I quote the great writer, James Baldwin, who wrote powerfully for the social change that he believed in an age of institutionalized racism and segregation:

"Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced."

Now, being the time of the new year and the time of a new executive administration is a good time to reflect on the changes you would like in your own life. Be bold and face the areas in your life that need to be changed. Courageously face areas that need to be improved. Face the things you would like to change today, and hopefully the result you will have is being able to face a better tomorrow.

Facebook Insanity

It took quite a while and a whole lot of resistance, but three weeks ago, I signed up for Facebook as an additional means for me to expand my network and general branding. I had avoided Facebook because I was worried its application was less professional and sophisticated than what I was already using. Moreover, already on Twitter and LinkedIn for sometime, it did not make sense for me to add anything else because I really did not want to be too preoccupied with social networking management.

Nonetheless, one of my best friends entreated me to try it—and I have to say I have really enjoyed the experience so far and am amazed at its potential. But I do have some warnings about the pitfalls that one (including me) can easily fall into. I think I can assume that most professionals are aware that it is not advisable to post anything questionable because employers will do background checks for anything dubious. Scrupulously, I naturally only posted my professional profile picture and some of my favorite pictures of me with the kids. Still I could not anticipate what happened to me once I did sign up. The majority of my Facebook friends were old high school friends from twenty years ago. In high school, I was a prankster—and it was not long before I allowed myself to regress to my high school mind set in my Facebook interactions. There are countless silly applications on Facebook. You can pass around a drink, throw snowballs, invite others to play online games, kidnap others, give hugs, kisses, and somethings that I think are unmentionable. And in the three weeks that I have been on Facebook, all of these things happened to me. So much for maintaining a professional image. This in part was the inspiration for me to do my last post on being as mad as hell--a voice that was certainly more alive in me as a teenager.

Fortunately, one can do a few things to escape this miry mess. I have included a few that I am aware of:

• Create more than one profile, and have one profile that is strictly professional, restricting access to your other profiles.
• In the Facebook controls, you can control what information gets posted on your wall and broadcasted to others. If you do not want the rest of the world to know that you completed a drug deal in the game Mob Wars, simply deactivate the posts so that this information is not broadcast. Additionally, all posts can be deleted—so if you forgot to exclude an inappropriate post, you can still erase it before it becomes damaging.
• You can “hide” from individuals who you do not want to associate with your Facebook profile.

Now if only someone could advise me on dealing with the present addiction I have with some of these games my friends relentlessly invite me to.

Get Mad as Hell

I don't know why it came to mind today, but for some reason I thought of one of my favorite movie monologues of all time. The monologue is from Network. The movie is now over 30 years old, but the words and details of this monologue written by Paddy Chayefsky could have just as easily been written to describe the events of the day:



Howard: I don't have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's worth. Banks are going bust. Shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the street and there's no one anywhere that seems to know what to do with us. Now into it. We know the air is unfit to breathe, our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TVs while some local newscaster tells us that today we had 15 homicides and 63 violent crimes as if that's the way it's supposed to be. We know things are bad. Worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy so we don't go out anymore. We sit in a house as slowly the world we're living in is getting smaller and all we say is, "Please, at least leave us alone in our living rooms. Let me have my toaster, and TV, and my steel belted radials and I won't say anything." Well I'm not going to leave you alone. I want you to get mad. I don't want you to protest. I don't want you to riot. I don't want you to write to your congressman because I wouldn't know what to tell you to write. I don't know what to do about the depression and the inflation and the Russians and the crying in the streets. All I know is first you've got to get mad. You've got to say, "I'm a human being. God Dammit, my life has value." So, I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window, open it, and stick your head out, and yell, "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" I want you to get up right now. Get up. Go to your windows, open your windows, and stick your head out, and yell, "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!" Things have got to change my friends. You've got to get mad. You've got to say, "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!" Then we'll figure out what to do about the depression and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first get up out of your chairs, open your window, stick your head out and yell, "I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!"

I borrowed this transcript from the people over at http://www.whysanity.net/. Though this monologue is rich with content, there are only two things I would like to comment on.:

1) This scene is a prime example that you must be happy with your job, because this breakdown is a dramatization of what your potential burnout might be if you don't. Don't wait until reach this stage--strive for work that you love.

2) In bad times, it often pays to get mad. The problems that Howard Beale and the world at large are facing in the movie are too overwhelming for a simple solution--but the simple declaration that you are no longer willing to accept your dissatisfaction--that your life indeed has value--is a liberating step, and therefore a step in the right direction.

Maybe if you allow yourself to get a little bit mad, you can break out of the trap of complacency which has allowed your life to become other than what you would like it to be. Maybe if we all get a little bit mad, we can make the world a better place.

Half full -- or Half Empty?

The pervasive bad news spinning through the media right now is really astounding: the continuing drops in the stock market, declining retail profits, the dying automotive industry, increasing foreclosures, layoffs, hiring freezes, unemployment (or underemployment). It has really snowballed over the last few months. The reiteration I continually hear is that we are facing times worse than any faced by generations born after the Great Depression.

The gloomy outlook all might be true, but my argument is: Does it really help to dwell on everything that is wrong, when arguably, there still are things positive or things that we can be thankful for? Am I the only one who is thankful to see gas prices drop to lower prices than seen in five years? But there is more to see, and I am becoming more convinced that the way to get beyond whatever these times continue to bring us is to dwell on what is still good, while also continually seeking ways that each of us can contribute to make things better.

I recently came upon a few sites that help convey this message and have been useful to me in maintaining a sense of optimism that I genuinely believe helps one thrive. And so I now gladly share them with you:

• PSFK asks the compelling question: Recession or Reorder?
• Lateral Action uses an amazing optical illusion to inquire: Are You Trapped in Black-and-White Thinking?
• Kevin Coyne suggests innovation as the solution in Business Week.
• Jonathan Fields, the Career Renegade wrote an entire manifesto describing NOW as the perfect opportunity to pursue your career dreams in his Fire Fly Manifesto.

Now might be a challenging time for many, but I believe that we must not despair when facing difficulties. Instead persevere and keep an open mind to possibility. Easier said than done, but survival itself is much easier for those who can manage to keep their cups half full no matter what they are going through.

Your Inspiring Book

It was just the other week when I wrote about getting life back into a sense of balance. Since then, I have made progress in my own life, moving in the direction of my choice, but I acknowledge that I still need to take greater charge and face hurdles that I have still avoided.

Today, I read a most-inspiring posting on this topic from Gail over at Inspire Me Today. If you ever start to feel like you are an actor in your life instead of the author, here is an excellent framing that will help remind you to take charge and move toward what you really want, making the most of everyday.

Here's a small excerpt of Gail's posting, Get Out of the Book:

Just because the world is hurled at me- I don’t have to catch it! I have the choice in that moment to jump in and play, or not. Once I remembered that I am the author, everything became easier. Nothing was as serious as it seemed just moments before. I have the power to make the choice to play the game or not- and today, I’m just not playing. I shut the book and put it down. There are more fun things to do, so instead, I’m rewriting the script to fit the day I choose to experience.

Take time to reflect on how you are approaching each day, and dwell on how you wish to write it. Even if things are thrown at you, you are the author of your attitude and the way you therefore create and perceive the story of your life.

Miracles abound

I recently picked up the latest Reader's Digest, and in it was an Einstein quote I had never seen before:

"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."

This is a fantastic framing of the half-full bucket or optimistic vision coming from one of the greatest minds in history. These are indeed tough times for many, and when life becomes difficult, it can be commensurately difficult to see a silver lining.

There will always be challenges and misfortunes in life, but are your eyes open only to the negative or banal--or are you able to see how amazing and wonderful and miraculous the universe is? How you live your life is your choice, so accordingly decide which life for you is most fulfilling and set your mind on that vision.

Success

Here's a great quote from John Wooden, the best coach ever:

"Success is the peace of mind, which is the direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to do your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming."

Success is more growth than it is actual attainment or achievement. Do you have this kind of peace of mind? Are you striving for your absolute best?