25 Jan 2010 at 15:34
ZenLeader
commitments, core values, created life, guidance, guide, guided plan, intentionality, judgment, leadership, life architect, life compass, outcome, personal compass, point of reference, satisfaction, self-expression, service, transparency
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“What did you think of the front line foot soldier nineteenth from the right in the first battle scene from ‘Troy?’ Yeah, I don’t remember either.”
Constructing a Life Compass
I grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Wandering about in pristine nature, whether on a day hike or extended backpacking trip was as normal for me then as is walking to a local eatery is for me today. I didn’t have to travel far from my back door to find myself in undeveloped forest. I grew to know well the land around home. I was profoundly familiar with the topography, the flora, the fauna, the landmarks, the natural shelters, and the hazards. I had a mental map with me at all times and a clear sense of how to conduct myself to do and get anything I wanted within that familiar domain. Just as clear were my limitations and the challenges I would find. I could move from place to place quickly, ever secure in the knowledge of my relative location and the associated practices that a particular place called for.
Extended sojourns took me into unfamiliar territory. As I progressed deeper and higher into the mountains I encountered sharp inclines capped with uneven granite peaks that resembled broken teeth. I had to skirt precipitous bluffs and roaring, icy snow melt rivers. The trails that I traveled were often as not worn into existence by creatures with a far different agenda then I might have. My knowledge of the flora and fauna was more vague and theoretical. The furry local inhabitants were surly, territorial, and sometimes aggressive. The natural shelters were less obvious and the hazards more severe. The consequences of a misstep could be grievous as help was not readily available. I had to keep my wits about myself and senses acutely tuned to the details of the landscape and signals provided by the immediate surroundings. Surprises and hazards would often require significant deviation from my planned route. The insistent demand to pay attention to my immediate environment and unplanned detours could easily distract me from my desired destination. Fortunately I always carried with me a tool to remind me of my intended terminus and helped me to correct for unintended deviations. That was my trusty compass.
Being on the PD warrior end of the spectrum I have frequent need for a good life compass. So I’ve spent a bit of time creating and refining mine. In essence it is my internal locus. It is an instrument constructed from three key components my:
- core values,
- life commitments, and
- unique self expression.
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21 Jan 2010 at 13:52
ZenLeader
commitments, core values, created life, guidance, guide, guided plan, in the moment, in the now, intentionality, judgment, leadership, life architect, life compass, outcome, personal compass, point of reference, satisfaction, self-expression, service, transparency
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“The more time we spend in this twilight realm the greater our need for an internal guide. Fortunately, such an instrument is available.”
Navigating Life’s Chaos
Even the most confined and structured existence is visited, with or without warning, by life transforming surprises – illness, death of a loved one, aging, children, disasters, and so on. These surprises, whether welcome or not, are fraught with ambiguities, turbulence, transitions, and a bevy of chaos inducing unknowns that draw us away from our comfort zones. They cause us to be emotionally and psychically at sea for at least brief periods.
There are as many strategies for coping with the risk of chaos as there are people. At one end of the spectrum are the attenuators, committed to minimizing the risk of experiencing unmooring incidents. These people cautiously stick to the comfort of known territory constructing choreographed, familiar existences. They remain in the same neighborhood, keep the same friends, work for the same company, engage in the same recreational activities, for a lifetime. While surprises and the associated chaos are inevitable, these folks are committed and work hard to keep a lid on it. You know people like this. – the mail person who has travelled the same route for forty years; the octogenarian who has never travelled more than fifty miles from home; the middle aged assembly line laborer that eats the same lunch every day of the year.
On the other end of the spectrum are those committed so deeply to self actualization that they purposefully seek out uncharted territories, cranking up the associated ambiguities and chaos, embracing the unknown. I call these people, who continuously push the edge of their personal and professional capacity, personal development (PD) warriors. In the interest of full disclosure I fall into this category, having participated in a multitude of wisely structured and a few spectacularly stupid transformational events and long-term processes. To give you an idea of PD warrior fare, some of the edge pushers I have participated in include taking assignments work beyond my capabilities, attending transformational seminars, extended martial arts training, dance intensives, running marathons, completing graduate school, vision questing, taking dangerous work assignments, and the list goes on.
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18 Jan 2010 at 18:18
ZenLeader
commitments, core values, created life, guidance, guide, guided plan, intentionality, judgment, leadership, life architect, life compass, outcome, personal compass, point of reference, satisfaction, self-expression
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“While my achievements can be measured by that which I have taken on during my life, my satisfaction can be measured by that which I have let go.”
Every life has an arc filled with circumstance, our associated experiences, and our choices in the face of them. Upon reflection, where and what I am today is a directly linked outcome of all of my circumstance generated experiences and my subsequent choices I made. Let’s say for argument’s sake I have no control over the circumstance that arises around me. (This construct is fodder for another lengthy post.) Even if I was without choice concerning my circumstance I do have complete control over the choices I make in how I react, behave, take action, and plan for future steps. As it turns out we have a fair degree of control over our experience as well. But I’ll get to that later. For now let’s get back to the more obviously controllable piece – choice.
If I can make planning choices then I do have at least modest control over our future circumstance. Those plans that I can and do make change my course, directly influencing my future circumstance. For instance, if I inattentively find myself in the middle of a crosswalk when the light changes and am suddenly confronted by a multi-ton vehicle hurtling toward me I will likely respond with the instant choice of getting the heck out of the crosswalk. If, in addition to my immediate response, I choose to be more mindful of and responsive to the crosswalk status and traffic conditions I am far less likely to have to react to hurtling cars in my future. In that way the current state of my life, as an outcome of my choices, is no accident figuratively or literally.
If my choices are the fastest and most powerful way to change my life trajectory then it follows that, given my commitment to living a life of continuous satisfaction, I need to make choices that form and keep me on a satisfying path (1). Sounds easy enough and pretty straight forward. However, if it were that easy most people would figure out the trick early on in life and be busy living their satisfied lives. Additionally, my commitment eight years ago to live a satisfied life would not have been so completely life altering.
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