Category: Observations

Good Enough Really Is

What’s a fear you’ve overcome — and how did you do it?

I grew up with the fear of getting it wrong. I always felt that nothing was ever good enough for my mother, and that I was constantly being criticised when, in fact, she was probably only trying to do what was best for me, encouraging me to be the person she knew I could be.

Let’s be honest, most of us have had it drummed into us that “good enough isn’t” (good enough).

Then I learned the Pareto Principle. 80% of the benefit results from 20% of the effort. And I suddenly realised that good enough really is good enough. We aren’t perfect. We are going to make mistakes. There are very few, if any, areas in life where perfection is essential. So why waste 80% of our effort trying to correct that last 20% which no one except the most critical perfectionist (which is often ourselves) will notice, anyway.

The Imposters

Triumph and Disaster are imposters. They may engender strong emotions at the time, but those emotion fade and are replaced by the next big issue facing us in life.

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same

(If – Rudyard Kipling)

Porthcawl Beach

Rudyard Kipling’s poem, If, is a study in contrasts, considering many of the opposites that we encounter in daily life. He describes being able to do what others cannot; of handling situations with equanimity; of dealing with life in a balanced way.

Yet his comment, above, on the opposites, Triumph and Disaster, seems to add another dimension. Most versions of the poem capitalise the words as proper nouns, almost as if they are people, or even gods. And, in truth, many people see triumph as an idol to be worshipped at all costs.

Continue reading “The Imposters”

Do you like me?

We’re not a failure just because no one “Likes and Subscribes.” The failure is in not even trying.

How do you build loyal subscribers?

Maybe the question is more, WHY do you build loyal subscribers?

We all want to be liked. No one wants to be disliked. But there’s a difference between the desire to be liked, and the need to be liked.

For many people, today, being liked is not something optional; it’s become a matter of survival. And it all starts with parenting.

Continue reading “Do you like me?”

Enough

We are enough.

Talyllyn

There is something calming about sitting, quietly, by a gently flowing stream. The flow of the water over the rocks and pebbles, the whisper of the wind in the treetops, the song of the birds as they celebrate life.

It makes you realise that:

• Today, you have enough

• Today, you are enough

• Today, today is enough

It’s so easy to worry about what yesterday brought, or what tomorrow will bring.

Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not arrived. Even this morning and this evening do not exist.

There is only now. And the stream. And you.

And it is enough.

Autumn of My Life

utumn of my life.

No time for redundancy.

How will I find work?

Sadly, this is the experience of too many people, especially in the current economic climate. But when it comes in later life, the question goes through your mind, “Is my working life over?”

You don’t have to be all that old to have this experience, either. And, worst of all, it can come along totally unexpectedly. And you have no control over it.

However, at this age, one thing you have is experience and determination. So, rise up and meet the challenge head on. Don’t assume that you are of no value, just because someone terminated your employment. It may be difficult to be positive, faced with rejection after rejection. But remember, the more positive you are when being interviewed, the more likely you are to get the job.

Some years ago, I read, or heard, a great tip on interview technique:

Remember, the interviewer has more to lose than you have. You don’t have a job to lose. If he or she chooses the wrong candidate, they could find themselves out of work.

It’s great advice. And it works.