Cool Mind Warm Heart

Made by Belief

Man is made by his belief.  As he believes, so he is.
~ The Bhagavad Gita

REMOVING YOUR BEAN FROM YOUR SIT-UPON

Think back about 12,000 years. 

Had Ben and Jerry’s been around, you can bet they’d have created a flavor the likes of “Glacier Granite Swirl.”  After all, the chief topic of discussion in those days was the block of ice two miles high that covered all of North America from the Arctic Circle to Pennsylvania.  (The tallest mountain in Vermont today is just shy of 4400 feet, so this glacier was over twice that high.)  Nothing stands still and a glacier is no exception.  On its underside, the friction created by its weight and movement reshaped a whole bunch of rock. 

You ask: What does this have to do with with the meaning of life? 

Developing a Strong Mind

Meditation, the company of saints and intelligent, mentally powerful people, good books, introspection, creative work in art, science, literature and business––all further the development of a strong mind, receptive to the wisdom of the soul.

~ Paramahansa Yogananda

Clear Vision

Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart.  Who looks outside, dreams.  Who looks inside, awakens.
–– Carl Jung

TO COMMUNICATE WELL

My professional history has caused me to be asked on occasion, “What will it take for us to communicate effectively with the world?”  Over the years, the first words out of my mouth have become, “Learn to manage fear.” 

Eyebrows have been known to hit the skylight in response—“fear” being the most despised four-letter word in American business, if not everywhere.  No surprise, really.  We fear most what we understand least.

So I offer my two cents.

Laughter Intervened

Like all young men I set out to be a genius, but mercifully laughter intervened.

–– Laurence Durrell

Symbols of Friendship

The images of the stone sculptures I build and photograph on my Vermont farm are, more than anything else, symbols of my work in the world.  Symbols of friendship, you might say.  I help others take whatever life presents and create beauty, health and meaning––for themselves and their organizations. 

The same can be said for my essays, My Two Cents.  They are offerings to us odd socks who are willing to entertain the possibility that everything is a gift.  That willingness can transform our every preference, opinion and choice.  Imagine the power of moving beyond, if only for a moment now and again, the great human craziness of believing that people and circumstances outside ourselves are responsible for our happiness.  That belief, which we all struggle with, may be the single biggest cause of human misery––and thus the biggest obstacle to effective leadership.