There’s a story about the way elephants are tethered when in human captivity. A simple chain or rope around one leg is tied to something that does not match the strength of the adult elephant. If he chooses, he could easily break the tie and be free. However, when he was a young elephant, he learned that it was useless to fight such restraint. By the time he’s grown up, he remembers not his strength, but the uselessness of the fight.
Imagine for a moment being composed and unflappable in the face of every behavior that might set you off. Getting fired. Being discriminated against. Told you are a failure. Not being allowed to speak. Expected to follow the pecking order. Expected to comply while your boss loses his composure in dramatic and threatening ways. Any one of these acts would interfere with most people’s best version of themselves. Yet Elizabeth Zott keeps her composure as her boss’s frustration escalates, offering a clear picture of what being unflappable really looks like.
We went snow skiing in Utah last week, just as the state was getting slammed by a major snowstorm. For most skiers, fresh snowfall implies a powder day, the dreamiest of ski conditions. For me, it caused me to reflect on my skills and willingness to brave the mountain as a skier who has had minimal opportunities to practice.
Over the last week, I’ve been doing my “prior year review”, as I mentioned in my email on Friday. What a clarifying exercise it has been! In no particular order, I will start with some of the insights I’ve gleaned. Maybe the most important was this: My energizers far outweigh my de-energizers. Yes, I had
Well, here we are again. It’s the end of the year and everyone is talking about New Year’s Resolutions. If deciding to do something different changed things, I would be all for it. But think about it. How well does the annual New Year resolution process work? If the empty gyms at the end of
We had a weather warn day here in the mountains of North Carolina this week. Actually, we had three of them. The weather forecasters at our local station started informing us that a massive storm was coming and that initially we would have rain and then we would have extreme wind, along with falling trees
My pottery studio calls me during the dark nights of fall and winter. When I’m tempted to go to bed at 6:00, playing with the clay offers a productive alternative. Over the last decade, these dark nights have netted me many more pieces than I could ever use myself. My studio is full of bowls
We are now into the season of gratitude, cheer, love and…exhaustion. While this time of year can fill us with joy and connection, it can also wear us out. It’s easy to forget our own needs while we welcome friends and family to our table, look for the perfect gift and eat the fun foods
This last Sunday morning, I “signed my talk.” You might remember from last week’s Coaching Digest that I said: “When I get up on the stage on Sunday morning in San Antonio, I will be “signing” my talk. It will be recorded, and in that way, frozen in time. That’s the best it can be
One morning this week, I was up early enough to catch Priscilla’s Yoga Stretches on my local PBS station. Nostalgia washed over me. When we first moved to Lake Lure 22 years ago, we lived in the original house while building our new house. This was a small house, with just enough room on the