I haven’t seen the movie yet but Robert Redford at 77 has a lot to share about aging, acting, and life. For instance, he is completely comfortable looking like himself – no plastic surgery or Botox. He is clearly an adventurous soul, cares about the environment, budding film makers and challenging himself even in his late seventies – pretty cool!
Diana Nyad succeeded in her 5th try to make the 110 mile swim from Havana, Cuba to Key West. Amazingly it took her nearly 53 hours – that’s over two days and she is 64 years old. Her advice: never, ever give up! I agree: my advice on success in life and business: never, ever give up! Sometimes, we need some outside coaching and guidance to get perspective but giving up is never an option for those of us who truly want to live!!
A super-interesting article in the Sunday Review section of the The New York Times highlighting the value of siblings and especially girls in a household who bring out more generous and empathic behavior for men. For example, one study showed that male CEO’s were more generous with their employees if they had a daughter instead of a son.
Whether I am working with an individual, group or organization, I help all people eliminate distractions. Distractions come in many forms and disguises. I worked with a young woman recently who came to me because she said she wanted to be very successful and make a lot more money in sales. She is bright, attractive, intelligent, and personable.
However, as I got to know her, I realized that she was consistently distracted by drama both in her personal life and at the office. Thus, we began our work together with a strong emphasis on eliminating the drama and distractions in her life. It’s hard to be truly successful, I argued, if you are running around pissed at this person and not talking to that person. Anger, blame, negativity and resentment consume valuable energy that we can put to good use elsewhere, such as developing a new business strategy or booking another appointment!
What inspires you to be great? I love asking people this question. Some people think of world leaders like Nelson Mandela or even JFK. Others think of Astronauts, test pilots, or famous race car drivers like Danica Patrick. Still other people think of famous business leaders like Steve Jobs and Jack Welch or top athletes like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. And then there are celebrities like Angelina Jolie or Russell Crowe.