Connectedness Archives - Page 2 of 5

18th March 201622nd June 2016

Change Brings Improvement. …Not quite!

Earlier this week I spoke to someone that works in a division of a large multi-national company. Things have become rather challenging for them as the corporate culture has taken over. They used to be a smaller family owned operation but was bought as part of a global expansion by the large corporate.

Just this week another measure of control was instituted and everybody expected to comply. After this happened I had a chat with my friend and he said that “we must just wait because when a good company like this makes changes things will improve.”

I asked him to reflect for a moment and indicate whether the changes thus far have brought improvement – a resounding no! Continue reading “Change Brings Improvement. …Not quite!”

4th March 201622nd June 2016

Positive Belief Systems Create Great Companies

The only reason any company can be great is if the leadership of the organsiation cultivates a belief system about the people that work their and that focuses on the inherent potential of every individual.

The moment the leadership starts to focus on the shortcomings of its people the leadership themselves become the biggest problem. The irony is that you will find that most leaders use beautiful rhetoric that goes something like “we really believe in our people” or “our people is our greatest asset”.

I started out by stating that a positive belief system is what is required. I did not state that lightly. Continue reading “Positive Belief Systems Create Great Companies”

26th February 201622nd June 2016

Alive Questions

Perhaps you have already downloaded your copy of the Alive Today! manifesto – Great! If you haven’t done so yet, head over to downloads and grab your free copy. I’d love to hear from you if you have any feedback, so head over to the contact page and leave me a note.

The reason that I am mentioning this is not merely to give free stuff away but to hopefully challenge us all to ask some valuable questions. Continue reading “Alive Questions”

26th February 201622nd June 2016

Alive Questions

The reason that I am mentioning this is not merely to give free stuff away but to hopefully challenge us all to ask some valuable questions. Continue reading “Alive Questions”

29th January 2016

Hey! What Ya Reading There?

Towards the end of last year, as I was reviewing things a bit, I posted on different manners of reading and I specifically focused on going back and reading things again. We are in such a rush and sometimes we read multiple books at a time we can potentially lose focus. I have also listed one or two powerful books that you can read here and here.

Here are a few additional phenomenal reads that I can recommend:

Continue reading “Hey! What Ya Reading There?”

27th November 2015

Who Inspires You?

A while back I wrote a post on the amazing people who have mentored and taught me many valuable things in life. This got me thinking about other people who have not necessarily mentored or taught me but have nonetheless inspired me. One person really stood out among many others. I met him many years ago as he was setting off on his career as an avant-garde winemaker.

Continue reading “Who Inspires You?”

16th November 2015

The Greatest Mystery Ever

In our little Westernized world – i.e. the dominant Western values of individualism, selfishness and personal gratification – we happily strive after happiness. Just last night I watched The Pursuit of Happiness and realised how big this implied drive is in our society. Today I read an article on happiness and that also made me think of Martin Seligman and his concept of PERMA (Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationship, Meaning and Accomplishment). This, in turn, made me think of the work by Victor Frankl who wrote Man’s Search for Meaning. Man’s Search fro Meaning is frequently listed as one of the most important books of the 20th century.

I also watched this video where Dan Gilbert asks why are we not happy – worth the watch – really funny and informative. This video on the other hand is of Kelly McGonigal who actually helped me look beyond my own paradigm of stress in a way that was refreshing and inspiring to realise how to make stress your friend.

Along with this I reflected on some of my philosophy classes I attended as an undergraduate student and I now lecture. This includes the key concept of telos, or purpose, as well as eudamonia, or happiness, that was used by the Greeks. The idea is that life’s telos is eudamonia – to have purpose in life means to strive after a state of being healthy, happy and prosperous – sounds great! Now we just need that 10 step, 5 goal, personality test, just add water recipe…

Continue reading “The Greatest Mystery Ever”

13th November 2015

Intensity = Creativity

I recently read an article that demonstrated how the level of intense emotions we experience correlates to the level of creativity we demonstrate. Whaaat?!
That means that most working environments (I have experienced) kills creativity because, in general, it is not acceptable to demonstrate intense emotion. Please, go ahead and argue that one…

Yes there are some positive changes in the working environments but in general we are expected to keep emotional stuff to ourselves, especially the intense kind. Emotions are in general still not welcome at work.

Off-stage it is a different approach. Normally our private lives are filled with drama, colour and EMOTION. When I am alone in my car I will turn up the music and sometimes resort to some shout therapy in order to experience intensity. I just want to feel the intensity of life. The ups or the downs, but just feel! Truth, beauty, boldness, rejuvenation; just feel and feel intensely.

I want to go from just surviving to feeling alive today!

Right now as I write this post it is an expression of INTENSE emotion and passion to see a world where we get out of self-imposes imprisonment, live authentically and feel with intensity. It demonstrates the catalyst for and the power of creativity. It is to look beyond and fully comprehend what I cannot see. To be motivated to encourage others to step out, take risks and lead.

In the article the author differentiates, for example, between pleasant (which is low intensity) and desire (which is high intensity). If you get a chance to read the article, great! If you don’t have the time to read the article, just think about that one example of pleasant vs. desire. What do you desire?
Okay, just be careful here, I am not saying that if you desire a heap of cash you should go rob a bank. Use your common sense here.

…But I think you know what I mean – what are the things that are actually fueling the fire in your belly but that you allow to get extinguished by the day-to-day mundane. Because let’s be honest, it is your responsibility to act upon it or develop the patience to act upon it later (but not let it die in the meantime – be wise).

Bottom line: Where is the emotional intensity that propels us to create? Isn’t that why we are here? Are we not fundamentally part of a Great Creative Force?

6th November 20156th November 2017

What’s the Focus?

I’d like to pause for a moment and refocus your attention on the focus of Survive to Alive. The main purpose behind the blog is to serve you, the reader, that is interested to learn and grow on a personal level and therefore move from just surviving to living. Perhaps you are already living the life you intend but need some insights into the changing world and the opportunities for sustaining the life you have created – read on!

If you feel you do not need insights, paradigm shifts or growth, you won’t find much value here. But if you are looking for wisdom and a better life in general please read as much as you like and PLEASE give me feedback by either commenting on the post you read or using the contact form.

If you are interested in understanding and learning from the emerging 21st century (or contemporary) economy and business environment you will also find value in what I write. I aim to contextualise the current changes occurring in the world of work, business and the economy specifically. Within this context I focus on the consciousness, motivation, purpose, identity and fear of leaders at all levels. The focus is on assisting leaders at all levels to develop their spiritual intelligence in order to connect themselves, team members and organisations to a higher purpose and accordingly be able to align action to this purpose.

I love working with and writing for individuals, entrepreneurs, startups and small to medium sized businesses because there tends to be more creativity, energy and freedom. I do however have experience in the corporate environment and there are companies out there that are doing some amazing work. In short: Although I prefer to align with entrepreneurs, startups and medium size companies I look for like-minded individuals and groups who seek a deeper life and how this translates into awesome businesses!

What’s your focus? Maybe you need some help with that. …I can help. So, give me shout if you need to have a real conversation (also called coaching) or maybe you need someone to help your team or organisation focus on what really matters – I’m your guy. It’s what I have been doing for the last decade on a personal and professional level.

Go from survive to alive today!