"You are not here merely to make a living. You are here to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, and with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world. You impoverish yourself if you forget this errand." ~ Woodrow Wilson I was giving thought yesterday …
Category: Observations on Life
The Value of Decision
Lexi, my Red-tailed Hawk hunting partner, has taught me a great many things over the last two-and-a-half years. I have a deep respect for her hunting style, which centers around an uncluttered capacity for decision. Human beings have it relatively easy. We don't, generally speaking, have to risk life and limb every time we eat. …
Human Understanding
Even though our minds posses by nature an insatiable desire to know the truth, there are two tendencies that will weave a veil between ourselves and the truth in short course if we are not careful. Both were articulated beautifully by Francis Bacon and it is my great honor to reflect the light of his …
On Revenge
"This is certain, that a man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green, which otherwise would heal and do well." ~ Francis Bacon When you are consumed by bitterness, it spreads within you like a disease. Such bitterness may appeal temporarily to others who, fooled by grief, drawn in by sympathy or preoccupied by …
Protect and Serve
Of all the things that can be in the course of a day, the two most important in my mind relate to protection and service. What is there to protect? In an nutshell, that which is sacred. Sacred things must be protected from the coarseness of the world. Sacred things cannot be destroyed, however, they …
The Ability to Simplify
"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak." ~ Hans Hoffman It is good practice to make a regular review of the systems you use to govern the factors and administer the details of your world, whether at work or at home. What may have been fitting weeks, …
Anticipatory Service
In a recent company meeting my team and I discussed the means by which we can work together to provide exemplary service to our clients. One of the many ideas that emerged centered around the concept of anticipatory service, a phrase that I discovered while reviewing the Ritz-Carlton Gold Standards. Anticipatory service cannot be scripted, …
The Warrior Spirit
Every so often you meet someone who embodies the warrior spirit. You know the type. They are rugged, dogged and intrepid, and they possess a remarkable capacity to overcome obstacles and move through difficulties that would crush the ordinary man. Such men are rarely bellicose in nature, in fact, they tend to be pacifists at …
The Martial Virtues
"Vigilance in watching opportunity; tact and daring in seizing upon opportunity; force and persistence in crowding opportunity to its utmost of possible achievement - these are the martial virtues which must command success." ~ Austin Phelps You cannot be vigilant if you are upset by your immediate circumstances or worried about what might happen in …
The Spirit of Ownership
In my professional career I have noticed that there are two types of people: those who approach everything as owners and those who face their life’s work as hirelings. The former develop habits that make them ideal candidates for actual ownership and they also tend to position themselves in relation to the opportunities that come …
Gregory Hake 