Intentional Tuesdays

Are you passionate about your work?  If not, can you remember a time when you were?

Passion is a game-changer.  When you're passionate, work doesn't feel like work.  When you find the passion, your fuel and your drive come from a different place.  Passion provides a limitless source of energy and enthusiasm.  Work is joyful.

What happens when the passion fades?  Work becomes work.  It becomes something you have to do, for all the wrong reasons.  

What causes the passion to fade?  For many, it's something that I call professional drift.  It happens slowly, usually over the course of many years.  One thing leads to another and eventually you find yourself doing work that isn't really the right work for you.  

That's where your superpower comes in.  When you know your superpower with absolute certainty and total clarity, you're able to notice when you've drifted off course.  You'll be able to make the...

I recently came across Ibram X Kendi's book, How to be an Antiracist.  It's not a new book, but it has recently been launched to the top of the charts in light of recent events.

Although I've only just started the book, two of the concepts struck me as so profound, and so utterly useful, that I wanted to share them in this week's Intentional Tuesday.

The first is the idea that we should change the way we think about the word "racist".  These days we tend to apply this to "people" rather than to ideas and systems.  This is a problem for multiple reasons.  For one, it's incredibly easy to distance ourselves from the issue by saying ... I'm not a racist.  It's never that simple.  Racism is about ideas, systems and policies.  To focus on people, we miss the bigger picture.

The second mind-blowing concept is that there's no such thing as neutrality when it comes to racism.  It's not enough to say ... I'm not a racist, or I don't have racist...

Are you a leader, manager, coach, or mentor? 

It’s really a trick question, because each of us probably has occasion to play all four of these roles from time to time.  However, we can only play one of them at a time and deciding which of the four is most appropriate for the situation can be challenging.  How do you know which is best for any given moment?

To answer this question, we must first examine the core elements of each function.

Leadership 

I like to say the primary function of leadership is to create motivation through uncertainty.  Leadership is about communicating a vision of the future.  A vision of a better way and a better place. 

Although this vision is inspiring, it also creates a degree of uncertainty, because we do not yet know how to achieve that vision.  We don’t know how to get there.  We have direction (via destination) but we do not have directions.  

In terms of results, leadership is...

There’s no question that superpower design is an individual journey and many of the benefits of doing your superpower design work are realized at the individual level.  You’ve likely heard me talk about these benefits already.  Better results.  Better relationships.  More impact.  And an increased feeling of authenticity. 

But the real potential of the superpower concept, in my opinion, comes when it’s applied to the organization level.  In the book, this is what I call … the Final Frontier.  I use a quote from basketball coach Phil Jackson … the strength of the team is each individual member and the strength of each individual member is the team. 

Imagine being on a team where everyone not only knew your superpower, but also had a deep appreciation for it.  Imagine if they knew the best ways to get the best from you.  Imagine if your boss knew this.  How much more effective could you...

Friends,

I’m so excited to announce the launch of my new book.  Superpower 5.0.  If you haven’t already, check out the sweet cover.  That was designed by my old friend, the very talented, John Bulmer.  If you don’t know John, check out his work, he’s quite the renaissance man.

And Yes, I launched the book on my birthday.  With the 5/5 date and the book title, it was too good to pass up.  Plus, it gives you the opportunity to give me a huge present!  I actually gave myself a present today…my first real starbucks (drive through of course) in over a month!  I’m quite proud of myself.

I’m actually very proud of this book, too.  I think you’re going to love it.  It’s super easy to read and it’s packed with fantastic ideas and insights for helping you to discover your superpower.  If you think you already know your superpower, this book will help you get more out of it....

Today, I have an exciting announcement:  After more than a year of research interviews and writing, my second full-length book will launch on 5.5.2020.

The book is called Superpower 5.0:  The 5-Point Plan to Develop the Best Version of Yourself.  This book is a follow-up to my first book, Never Too Late:  Get Unstuck, Escape Mediocrity, and Design a Life You Love, which was a #1 New Release and Best Seller on Amazon.  

Superpower 5.0 provides a deep dive into one of the core concepts of Life Design, the idea that each of us has unique superpower.  I believe that Superpower 5.0 is the most accessible and practical guide for unlocking your ultimate potential.  The book draws upon proven techniques for identifying, applying, and optimizing your unique superpower.  It includes dozens of real-life examples and insights that I’ve never shared before. 

But make no mistake, Superpower 5.0 doesn’t contain a lot of fluff. ...

Everything that we do, at some point in time, we will do for the last time.  The power of realizing this is incredible and we have a silver-lined opportunity to do that right before our very eyes.

Reference:  Waking Up App

Photocredit:  https://unsplash.com/@imajingation

There's a lot of great advice out there about the best way to manage these chaotic times.  Ultimately, there are two must-haves ... Stillness and Movement.  

References

The Warrior's Meditation

Air Squat Video - From Crossfit Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMvwVtlqjTE

Hindu Squat Example - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw2OT_-M8ek

Hindu Push Up Example - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdH5dT12axE

Photocredit - https://pixabay.com/users/comfreak-51581/

Let's face it.  These are anxious times.  No matter how close or how far you feel from the Coronavirus, there's no escaping the fear and the stress of this pandemic.

There are many ways to work through the stress and the anxiety.  I'll periodically come back and update this post with some of the better resources that I've come across.

But one of the best ways is also one of the simplest...Give yourself permission to be okay.  That's exactly what I'll be talking about in this week's episode.  I hope it serves you.

Additional Resources

• The Drive Podcast, Episode 100 -  In this episode, Sam Harris, neuroscientist, author, and host of the Waking Up Podcast, joins Peter to discuss this unprecedented coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.  NOTE:  For the first 38 minutes, they discuss the virus in general.  At 38:00 the conversation shifts to managing the emotions and stress. 

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Photocredit - https://pixabay.com/users/geralt-9301/