Author: Scott Mabry (page 1 of 15)

My Resolution to Realize How Good Things Really Are

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“Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to realize how good things really are.” ~ Marianne Williamson

Like most people I take the end of the year to examine what has come before.

To consider my life.

Or reconsider my life.

Painfully aware of the gaps.

Resolving to do better,

I set goals.

Make promises.

Write them down.

Make a plan.

Things I want to do.

The person I want to be.

Year after year.

But this year,

I’m opting out,

Or, at least, opting differently.

I realized that in always reaching out for something else,

To be somewhere else,

To be someone else,

To do something else,

I’ve missed being grateful for what’s already here.

Never allowed myself to feel I was enough.

Just as I am.

That life is pretty awesome.

Just as it is.

That I can be special.

Without trying to be special.

Doing the best I can.

Where I am.

Until the next door opens.

To just take it one day at a time,

To appreciate what this day has to teach me,

To love the people in my life,

And just take it all in.

To stop chasing an image of who I should be,

In the mind of some expert or marketing campaign.

To stop trying to meet someone else’s standard of success,

Or a meaningful life.

I want to celebrate my life as it is.

To appreciate where I am,

And that where I am, while not perfect,

Is pretty amazing.

To let change happen naturally,

In the process of living.

A resolution to accept that enough,

Is enough.

Surrendered to the idea,

That right here,

Right now,

That living in the miracle that is this moment,

Is all I need.

Happy New Year.

A Moment on Being in the Moment - For the Holidays and Everyday

This post, not surprisingly, came to me as I thought about my family gathering for the holidays and the challenges that sometimes creates with old emotions brought to the surface and the uncomfortable tension that can result. What follows is the little holiday care package I prepared for myself.

“One moment at a time. No expectations.”

Letting myself feel what comes up and meeting the emotion with acceptance and self-compassion.”

“Recognizing what I am experiencing, the story behind it, and choosing my response.”

This led to…

Aware - noticing what’s happening in and outside of me

Acknowledge - naming the emotion I’m experiencing

Affirm - appreciating, with compassion, that the emotion is not right or wrong

Assess - identifying the underlying need that created the emotion

Act - choosing a response that serves this need

Accept - understanding that I’m not in control of what happens next

Learn and repeat.

This also means allowing myself to fully accept and experience the joyful moments.

Perhaps this will be helpful to others during the holidays and into the new year.

Thank you to all who have provided encouragement, support and engaged with me here at Soul To Work.

Wishing you peace and joy.

Pyramids, Circles and Organizational Geometry

Welcome to Organizational Geometry.

I was reading a book recently that had nothing to do with business or leadership.

In fact, it was related to the Christmas story.

The author talked about a shift.

A new relationship built on circles instead of pyramids.

And that got me thinking about these shapes and how they differ.

How they influence the way we work and lead.

 

Pyramids.

Rigid.

Sharp.

Complex.

Heavy.

Stationary.

Structured.

Promotes inequality.

Consumes energy.

Blocks connection.

Monument to the ego.

 

Circles

Flexible.

Smooth.

Simple.

Light.

Mobile.

Natural.

Inspires equality.

Conserves energy.

Forms connection.

Monument to unity.

 

Pyramids

Or Circles?

Which one appeals to you?

 

Pyramids require that roles are defined and movement is limited.

(People die inside those things)

Energy is linear.

The structure creates layers of separation.

Changing the form requires careful maneuvering to avoid collapse.

Leadership is concentrated at the top.

 

Roles are flexible and can be organized in new ways with minimal effort.

Energy flows through and across the organization.

Circles allow unique and independent systems to overlap and connect in any number of ways to form new outcomes.

Leadership radiates from the center.

 

Shifting from pyramids to circles feels like a process of changing how we think about relationships, decision-making and the way groups are linked together in the organization.

More of a cultural, psychological shift than a structural change.

A different paradigm.

 

Circles seem full of possibilities.

Why then do we still see so many pyramids?

 

Many organizations are changing.

The focus seems to be on flat.

Not round.

A flatter pyramid.

Is still a pyramid.

End of lesson.

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