overflow » Success

Success spiral

ames — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 17:46:16 +0000

“As for where my passion comes from, who knows? Part of it is the snowball effect of success, which makes you more and more motivated and more and more passionate the more you achieve. You start to develop an image of yourself as the best – whether it’s in maths lessons at school or in the last 100 metres of a bike-race. You succeed because you’re passionate and you become more passionate because you succeed.”

- Mark Cavendish, Boy Racer (World Champion)

Cav’s passion. This is why he is world champion.

ames — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 22:29:01 +0000

“… a secret ingredient which no computer or device could measure: passion. Passion was the difference between riding at 100 percent and 110 percent. Passion allowed you to suffer through pain. Passion was emotion, not science; racing not performance. Passion was what separated me and dozens of much more talented lads whom I was beating and would continue to beat.”

- Mark Cavendish, Boy Racer (World Champion)

I’m reading Cav’s book at the moment and absolutely loving it. I love reading/hearing/seeing people with such passion achieve their goals, despite not being ‘as talented’ or having the right engines. Initiative surpasses talent. Passion does to.

Stories

ames — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 19:09:52 +0000

This weekend I’m on a short retreat. It’s almost like a small injection to realign that which falls away with daily life. Enrolling made me realize I haven’t yet completely processed and lived my last learnings, from April’s retreat. When I write, I process. So here we go.

Lama Mark talked about stories.

We had to note all the stories we told ourselves.
All the stories we’ve brought in to.
And the major stories going on in our being: our feeling tone.

“Stories come out on retreat” he said and then with wisdom emanating from his eyes he followed with “what stories come out on retreat, in the next seven days, are whats driving you.” A hush of silence fell on the already silent room. We all knew it was going to be a powerful week.

How do you unravel your stories so you have none?
Go to ‘no story’ me?
Awareness lifts the cap off to liberate the stories.
Slow down.
Remove distractions.
Why all these thoughts?
What are they there for?
When do they get really strong?

I find this incredibly inspiring and beautiful

ames — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 19:10:52 +0000

“Sometimes you rely on other people’s imaginations because you can’t imagine everything you can do.”

- Nipa Doshi, furniture designer

Love

ames — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 22:11:17 +0000

“If you do something with love, if it’s the right thing to do, and if it’s truly what you want to do, it always works out.”

- Nipa Doshi, furniture designer

Are you feeling lucky?

ames — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 22:54:04 +0000

“I think we live in societies where we can create our lives. I think luck is something you create for yourself.”

- Nipa Doshi, furniture designer

Actions

ames — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 22:35:19 +0000

“Listen to what people say, but most of all pay close attention to what they actually do. An approach like this makes you humble. You quickly learn what little things you got right and what big things you got wrong.”

- Rowan Simpson, in Idealog

Leadership and hope

ames — Wed, 18 May 2011 22:35:27 +0000

“Identifying and articulating your ideal self, the path you truly want to follow in life requires self-awareness. But once you clarify your ideal self, you stimulate hope – an antidote to the inertia of habit. As Napoleon observed, “A leader is a dealer in hope.” The challenge for every leader lies in reaching inside to the source of hope. There lies the power to evoke and articulate one’s personal ideal self-image and the shared ideals that flow from it – and so lead others in that same direction. That kind of leadership, however, requires not only a vision, but also a clear picture of the realities you are facing.”

The New Leaders: Transforming the Art of Leadership

Leadership

ames — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:00:29 +0000

“Self management also enables transparency, which is not only leadership virtue but also an organisational strength. Transparency – an authentic openness to others about one’s feelings, beliefs, and actions allows integrity, or the sense that a leader can be trusted. At a primal level, integrity hinges on impulse control, keeping us from acting in ways that we might regret. Integrity also means that a leader lives his values. Such leaders strikes others as genuine because they are not making a pretense of being other than they are.“

- Daniel Goleman, The New Leaders: Transforming the Art of Leadership

Cultivate carefully

ames — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 22:44:50 +0000

“It is a basic principle of Buddhism that whatever you set your heart and mind upon, that you become.”

- Vessentara, A Guide to the Buddhas

It seems obvious, but it is easy not to be aware of this. When I think about it, I thin of people I know who have traits. Take the ‘victim’ trait for example. It feeds itself, attracting more victim status, when you are in this mindset. You look out for it, you put yourself in situations where you will be one, affecting your actions and behaviour. So with this in mind we can see it the other way. What do you want to achieve? That is what your heart and mind should follow.