If you inadvertantly brushed up against a thorny bush while walking on a path in the woods - whether you put the bush there or not - you would probably move swiftly to extract yourself from the bush and move on. You think that people would do the same with the emotional and mental thorns encountered in the path of life, but do they? In my observation the greater tendency is to wrestle with the bush, roll around in it, jump in it, jump on it, walk away and leap back onto it just when it looked like they were clear of it...anything but get away from it! It just doesn't make any sense.
Tag: gregory hake
Masters of the Air
To be sure, letting your view of the world around you become stale or static is unnecessary and unfortunate. Be open and willing to see what you've see a million times - whether person, place or thing - in a new light, starting now.
Leadership Lessons: Sir Ernest Shackleton and The Endurance
One value of recounting the great achievements wrought by our fellows throughout history is that their stories help to put our current worries, fears or concerns into perspective. Did you really let traffic "ruin your day," the wrong item in your take-out order "piss you off" or an unfriendly glare or comment "cause you to blow up?" Try dealing with being stranded in the middle of nowhere for two years, incommunicado and with 27 people you've only just met.
Your Relationship with Language
I had a friend many years ago who swore she recalled her first minutes out of the womb. The bright lights, the movement, the suddenly unmuted sounds and the large creatures who made rhythmic noises to one another and in her direction all formed her first memories! From the moment you emerged from the warmth and relative safety of the womb, you likely encountered similar stimuli, …
Hymn to the Night
Thank you for your comments and attention over the last week. It has been a remarkable one on many fronts, and I appreciate your willingness to take steps to improve your ability to interact with the world around you. I leave you tonight with a few words from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Hymn to the Night I …
Word Salad or Le Mot Juste?: How to Speak and Write Better by Gregg Hake
Grammar, vocabulary and articulation tend to imprison more than they liberate. Far too many people feel inadequate and embarrassed or even ashamed of their lack of ability in this area. Some blame a lack of proper education, others accuse themselves of not having listened while being given a good education, but the truth of the matter is that you can start where you are, always!
The Dignified Life – The Choice is Yours by Gregg Hake
Every thought, word or deed you express either carries in it the compelling tone of dignity or the disquieting sound of lowliness. The choice is yours. Remember. The choice is always yours.
Victor Wooten, Amazing Grace: The Flow Experience Revisited
Every once in a while you hear or see something worth sharing. I heard this solo by bassist Victor Wooten years ago...it's definitely one of my top ten favorite musical performances of all time. Victor exemplifies the unmistakeable "flow" experience described so meticulously by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in his book, "Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience."
Bobby McFerrin, Oprah and the Music of Life
A friend of mine once told me that he sometimes listens to a complex piece of classical music 10 or 15 times before he has enough of the "strings" to make it all the way through without being distracted. Isn't that a wonderful way to put it? I certainly thought so. Music tells a story, whether in actual words or simply in feeling content, and the stories help to condition our understanding of the world around us. In fact, it helps us to understand ourselves.
Trust your Instruments
Flight training should be required for all teenagers. Replete with valuable lessons that can be applied to any situation, learning to fly is one of those all-consuming activities that allows even the busiest person a moment of respite, a peace that comes only from complete concentration. My aviation career began at the age of fifteen. My flight instructor, Mack, was an …
Gregory Hake 