Right Relationship

It's important to remember our place, our relationship to all things.  

This line of thinking sparked a memory of an old story and I credit Ken Cohen for bringing the story to my attention in his book, Honoring the Medicine.  Here it is:

An elder and chief from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, was invited by the Pope to visit the Vatican as a representative of her nation.  Grandmother was pleased with this recognition.  The Pope took Grandmother on a tour of the magnificent buildings, art, and archives.  Later, when it was just the two of them and they were in the basement of the Basilica, the Pope pointed to a closed red door that was barely visible among the rows of sacred texts.

He explained in a hushed whisper, "Only a few great leaders have seen what lies beyond that door.  I escorted the Dalai Lama into that room, and now I am going to show you."  The Pope opened the door.

The splendor of the Vatican contrasted sharply with the simple view that greeted Grandmother: 15-foot square chamber in the center of which were a wood chair and a small table.  An antique looking gold colored telephone was on the table. 

The Pope pointed, and said, "Ever wonder how I speak to God?"  Knowing that Grandmother would welcome a chance to speak with the Almighty, the Pope continued, "It's a long distance call, but it reaches.  You only need a credit card," he smiled.

Grandmother shook her head with regret and explained, "I am poor, so I must decline the honor."  Yet, she was filled with gratitude for the offer.

A year later, while the Pope was visiting Western Canada, he received an invitation to attend a longhouse welcoming feast in his honor at a small village on Vancouver Island.  The Pope accepted and was pleased to see his friend.  After the nightlong festivities, as dawn was breaking, Grandmother invited the Pope for a walk around the village.  The cool fog was just beginning to lift and he could see the cedars and the sea.

To his surprise, he noticed a small simple cedarwood shack with a red door.  The Pope was incredulous. "You don't mean to tell me....?"  "Yes," replied Grandmother, calmly.  They went inside, and the room was barren, except for a red telephone sitting in the dirt. The Pope smiled and Grandmother said, "You won't need a credit card though. From here, it's a local call."

The stories told by indigenous people do such a wonderful job of teaching us to remember place, with each other, in our community, our nation, on Earth, and in the cosmos.   Wherever we are, we are there.

Humility

Today is extraordinary.  Not because we have snow here in Seattle, the first of the season, and not because we are coming into the Holidays, with all of its festivities. 

Today is extraordinary, because I sit here typing on my computer looking out my Southward-facing windows onto my little porch with my plants all sprinkled with snow and I received a visitor.  The most beautiful hummingbird, green and red, came right to my door, pecked his beak on my window as if looking to get inside, and stayed there flicking his wings, looking right at me, for what seemd like minutes, probably seconds, but I stopped breathing, in those seconds.  I'd never been that close, though separated by a pane of glass, so close. 

When I started breathing again, a big smile spread across my face.  I felt like that little kid I once was, and then more grown up and not so little as time flew by, waiting impatiently on Christmas Eve, in and amongst all the bright tiny lights and the happy colored wrapping paper, that air of expectation, and awe, and wonder.

I have the lightest of hearts right now.  And it made me think what is means to be humble, to have sincere humility. The tiniest little creature, with what I understand, has the most valient of hearts.  And its own super powers - the ability to fly backwards! 

I know that Level 5 Leadership comprises humility and will.  I am pleased to have had this reminder from the hummingbird today, a true symbol of what leadership - and joy! - can look like this, in these times. 

Inspired!

I couldn't wait to sit down to write this post.  After my brother successfully finished the NYC Marathon on Sunday, I was pumped up, excited, filled up.  Simply put, he inspired me - by his actions, by the commitment and the courage.

It made my wonder, what is this thing we call, inspiration?

I looked it up and from a definition perspective I found comments like:  to heighten, to intensify, to stimulate, to encourage.  I do certainly feel these things, even today three days later. 

AND, I feel something else.  It's been hard to put my finger on it, so it took a while for this blog post to be created.  I wondered over the last three days if inspiration comes in compartments, like being inspired on the job versus in your personal life.  It occurred to me that I have had tremendous energy for all parts of my life these last few days, so the answer seems to be, no.  I can be inspired in my personal life and it carries over to all of my undertakings.

So how does something that I did NOT do, come to have such a significant impact on my personal life, my professional life, even in my alone moments?

Then it hit me.  When the undertaking, or "enterprise," is one of scope, risk, and complication and we can witness the undertaking first hand, cheer from the sidelines, hold the belief and trust that all will be well, we are forever changed by what is possible. 

My brother is 38 years old, has three kids, is an amateur runner at best and a year ago Thanksgiving he said he intended to run this race.  At the Holidays, with six siblings, all with kids running around, lots of chaos and fun, someone who says they're gonna run 26 miles seemed more funny than plausible.  And so I did not take much note of this declaration.

But as I cheered him on Sunday, I wondered about the deep sacrifice he made to train for this undertaking.  My teacher says, 'sacrifice' really means 'to make sacred again.'  To get up every week, knowing you had one less week to train, or that this week it was three short 8 mile runs, or next week it will be a long 13 mile run, and on and on. I now understand my teacher's comment.  This had to come from the heart; it can not be your mind that finishes this undertaking. 

Maybe that's a piece of what is inspiring: It is not a focus on what we give up but a focus on what we give.

Three hours after the race, my brother sent an email to so many of the people who supported him during the race.  I was touched by the humility and grace with which he thanked everyone.  He called out the moments when he saw them, at 96th Street, 110th, First Avenue, thanking them all, and saying how much their support made a difference.

Perhaps that's what leadership really looks like - to set an intention, to give of yourself, and to be so grateful for the support and belief of others.

PS, I also discovered that the word inspire means 'to inhale deeply.'  When was the last time you inhaled deeply?

Mine was Sunday afternoon!

And it still feels amazing.  Thanks, Neal. 

South Africa's Spirit of Generosity

Woke up this morning to an email from a colleague.  She wanted a bunch of us to know that the World Cup is not only entertaining, frustrating, challenging, fun, and everything a sports event was meant to be, she also wanted us to know that it's extraordinary in another way.

South Africa is no longer a contender in the World Cup.  Neither is the US, for that matter.  Funny thing though, South Africans also woke up to an email in their business emails today and the theme was what can we do to continue to make this World Cup remarkable.  How can we make our visitors more comfortable? How can we continue to participate?

If ever there was a living example of the Spirit of Generosity, this email is it!  How can I make you better at what you do?  How can I help out another person to excel, to succeed, to transform?

Click here to see the SA email,  and oh, before you finish your Wheaties America, what can you do today in the spirit of generosity? Let's join our friends in South Africa and give someone a hand today, help 'em out, help 'em up, and pass it on. 

Still my favorite!

My work with executives and managers is dedicated almost entirely to empowering these amazing individuals, ennobling them to make the changes needed to move us all forward, whether that forward motion is in their companies, communities, or in this country and in the broader context. Sometimes that requires a slightly different approach.

And that's where this blog and this post come in....we need more laughter in our lives....laughter is the place of creativity, it is the muse, and she calls out to each of us.

As executives, middle managers, supervisors, we learned how to do 'serious'.  But do we remember how to dance, to sing, and to laugh until our bellies ache.   Watch this til the end and tell you aren't smiling!

(And Matt's from Seattle!)

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.