Self-forgiveness is probably one of the most underrated traits necessary for successful business ventures. We make a mistake or we blow a pitch or we hurt a business colleague, friend or family members’ feelings (unintentionally of course). Hope is the anecdote to mistakes. It’s about you can and will be given another opportunity to right the wrong, strut your stuff and make a difference . We all have the ability to keep moving forward.
Looking to the Past and Moving Forward – Part I
It has been an interesting year. I’ve had a lot of personal and professional growth. There are a lot of sites that suggest some of us are more akin to look backward than forward. Here’s some thoughts from the writers of the Harvard Business Review.
In his recent article for the Harvard Business Review blog, Jeffrey Gedmin shares his observations on how some people are more keen to be foresighted than others. Though born from experiences in the corporate world and not directly related to the field of higher education, his advice on how to improve your ability to think about the future and make informed descisions can apply to anyone. The exerpts below are the four things you should do to become more prescient.
For starters, be empirical and always be sure you’re working with the fullest data set possible when making judgments and discerning trends. Careful listening, a lost art in today’s culture of certitude and compulsive pontificating, can help us distinguish the signal from the noise.
“Thinking outside the box,” is one of the most well-worn clichés in…
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For 27 years Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, prior to that he was a man of many passions, a lawyer, a boxer, a husband and a father. His quest to end the travesty of apartheid got him there but he grew from the experience. When he emerged from prison at age 70, he was a new man and he became one of the world’s great leaders. He not on transformed himself but his country of South Africa. He passed at age 95 last Friday but he left us with his amazing wisdom.
http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/11_inspiring_Nelson_Mandela_quotations_15739.aspx
In this Information Age, there is well a lot of information. It can be tough just trying to keep up. The phrase never stop learning has never been more true. If one is to reinvent one’s self. One must participate in a lot of learning, reading , growing, social media maintenance. television watching – not to mention keeping up with the regular demands of one’s own life. It can be exhausting. That’s why meditation have to be a part of one’s routine. Breathing is the key to life.
On MSNBC’s Morning Joe, the participants delve into topics related to politics, culture, nutrition and life with spirited conversation. I often disagree with some of the opinions but I almost always enjoy the banter. Today, the main hosts, Former Congressman Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski reflected on their personal pain brought by failure. Joe extolled the virtues of hard work to overcome the tough breaks (amen brother) while Mika dealt with her departure from CBS News and being told it was the best thing that could have happen to her. I don’t disagree. Failure can bring enlightenment and peace. Failure can restore you to your reset point so you can get your life back. Failure has built amazing television talk show hosts, business leaders, tech legends, social rights movements and great fried chicken.
Failure is not without pain but it can be a source of inspiration. If you have dreams build them, ignore barriers. Just try, why don’t you? All you can do is fail which might be the best thing that could ever happen to you.
Apparently the fifth time was the charm. 64-year old Diana Nyad today completed a record swim from Cuba to Florida. Go Girl!
Last weekend started a series of activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. Here is a video of the iconic speech given at the march by the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.
I grew up on Cleveland’s East Side in a middle class neighborhood. My mom and her girlfriends would play bridge at one of the homes on Talford Street while us kids played outdoors rode our bikes, played kickball in the street, caught lightning bugs or would gather in the basement to watch “The Twilight Zone” or “Ghoulardi.” On weekends our Dads would gather at Mr Pace’s house on Talford Street to watch sports and barbecue. Often my family would join the families of Talford Street on trips to the West Side Euclid Beach Amusement Park or , Punderson State Park Lodge in the winter and the Jersey Shore in the summer.
The families central hangout on Talford Street was the home of Louis and Gloria Chapmon . I came to know the couple as Mr. Chapmon and Aunt Gloria. Later “Gloria” would become a lifelong mentor when she hired me for my first job at age 11. Eventually the lure of the suburbs resulted in my parent’s friends moving from Talford Street. Still come Christmas at least we would all gather at the Chapmons in the Cleveland suburb of Bedford, Ohio. Aunt Gloria, a native of Bermuda, was always a glamorous host and great story-teller. Part of her accent remained.
“Aunt” Gloria
Aunt Gloria was a school official for the City of Cleveland for much of her career and a was a Legacy Life member of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) . She was also close associate of Dr. Dorothy Height . In fact Dr. Height attended her son’s funeral and her daughter’s wedding. We all attended the many luncheons and weekend activities for the many organizations that Aunt Gloria belonged – even on weekends during my college days when I would visit home, my mom and I would go to one of “Gloria’s luncheons.” In fact Aunt Gloria would come to Washington, D.C. and take me to events sponsored by NCNW.
She was also member of the sorority Eti Phi Beta Sorority where she served as national president. She was also honored with several awards from numerous organizations and individuals including Congressman Louis Stokes (D-Ohio), NCNW and the NAACP.
Growing up in Bermuda she was a playmate to then Princess Elizabeth. No surprise the Queen held audience with her former chum a couple of times . Aunt Gloria also traveled with Leon Sullivan’s African Summit with her daughter to Gabon, Morocco, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Hers was a life well lived for herself and for others. She also met with Nelson Mandela at the South African Presidential Palace.
Aunt Gloria, Her Mom and Her Son in front of Buckingham Palace
We all need people who can see in us something that others don’t see or can’t seem to grasp. For me it was my “Aunt Gloria” who while not a blood relative was every bit as important in helping to shape the fabric of the woman I am today and the woman I hope to become. She passed two weeks ago but I still see her smile and hear her laugh.
Small Biz Boomer 