Less or More

Move more. Envy less. Sing more. Cling less. Accomplish more. Show less. Complain less. Live more. Compare less. Contribute more. Annoy less. Enjoy more. Worry less. Fulfill more. Take less. Focus more. Talk less. Start more. Eat less. Laugh more. Work less. Give more. Regret less. See more. Ignore less. Progress more. Criticize less. 

Invent more. Renounce less. Embrace more. Spend less. Share more. Measure less. Collaborate more. Upset less. Dream more. Irritate less. Write more. Doubt less. Read more. Whine less. Accomplish more. Drink less. Listen more. Waste less. Smile more. Own less. Learn more. Say less. Help more. 

Use less. Connect more. Stop less. Play more. Hope less. Communicate more. Skim less. Thank more. Fret less. View more. Reflect less. Originate more. Copy less. Do more. Love more. Share more. Be more.

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We So Scared

Many opine we aren't born with fear but as we go through our lives, it seems we take less chances and become more cautious. It could be because we've experienced things that haven't gone well. It could be because we think we have more wisdom so not to make foolish choices. That voice in our head says; "let's not do that again!"

Experts have been studying this for years and in an article entitled "Decision Neuroscience: Why We Become More Cautious with Age", there is sound evidence which suggests at least part of the reason is physical. As we age, the levels of dopamine in our bodies declines. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter and a hormone. It plays a role in many important body functions, including movement, memory and pleasurable reward and motivation. We might be smart but our physiological makeup does have a say in the matter without our interference. 

Age and Ageing 

So that might point to why we rolled the dice at 20 and hesitated at 50. We were born with the ability to reason but we are also made up of chemical elements that don't ask for our input and can become our biggest foe.  

I've had to make a couple of pretty significant decisions in the last few years. One of them I belabored over for weeks. I had a similar situation happen almost two decades ago and I jumped at it. I did make the move again this time but I was aware of how I gave downside more weight than opportunity. 

Hormone levels and age may make us pause a bit longer or fear a bit more but here might be an exercise worth trying. Find something small you are thinking about right now. It could literally be something so insignificant, it might not even matter next week. Take five minutes and try and think of you a decade or two ago and make the decision through that lens. You might surprise yourself.

But I'm still not bungie jumping! 

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Smelling Flowers

Through the pandemic, I have gotten a lot more reflective. I'm not suggesting I've climbed that mountain or executed the billion dollar idea that has made me rich beyond my wildest dreams, but it has given me pause about a lot of things about life. I did make a career significant career shift which turned out well but I haven't ordered the Bugatti just yet. I can honestly say my mind is clearer or at the very least more inquisitive than it has been in years. It has given pause to whether I'm utilizing my time well. 

I was running late for a client meeting last week and found myself getting angry at the audacity of other drivers being on the road slowing me down. Then I took a deep breath and laughed out loud. By myself in my car. If the roads had been clear, I may have made it to my destination four minutes earlier. 

Take a breath

It's those moments where I seem to be taking a longer pause to discover what really is important. Countless books have been written about being present now and not fretting so much about the past or future. If we could only be more like my cat. She does not worry that she purred wrong yesterday or that she's sleeping on my good sweater. She just lives in the moment. 

We spend an inordinate amount of time worrying about stuff we can't change, won't happen, or has happened. Why do we do that? It usually works out and even if it isn't exactly how we envisioned it would turn out, it's fine. 

Did nothin'

The Sunday before last, I got up early, had a coffee, read some news, had a nap, got up, had some breakfast, watched a Formula 1 race, had a nap, watched a show, made some dinner, watched another show, went to bed. And you know what? The sun came up the next day. Nothing terrible happened because I took a day off.

I think it's been accredited to the great philosopher Confucius who apparently said; "Life is simple; we choose to make it complicated." So I was four minutes late for my appointment. As it turned out, my client was 15 minutes late. We laughed about it over a spectacular cup of coffee.  

Cherishing every moment remains excellent advice.

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I'll Go First

I do wake up at 4am wondering if my life is fulfilled. It may not be the same time on the clock for you, but I'm going to guess I'm not alone. I worked with a guy early in my career who was instrumental in my professional development. He was awesome, in fact. And he passed away earlier this month. He was about 15 years older than me and now I'm thinking about what will I do in the next decade and a half that will matter. 

I get lost. I get scared. Sometimes I don't know what to do next. Occasionally I forget that I do have gifts to give the world and just to keep going. I can say the same for you. There are times when I wonder if it will all work out. Of course, worrying with no action won't get me anywhere, so I give myself a mental kick in the backside and keep going. 

What Have We Learned? 

We are still in a global pandemic and if the conversations I've had over the least 18 months are anything like the ones you've had, people are stressed but wondering what they want to truly do with their lives to be happy. I spoke with a colleague this week I hadn't spoken with in probably a decade. She and her partner are thinking seriously about dumping their careers, selling their house, getting rid of most of their stuff, and moving to Costa Rica to help others. That's so cool and brave. 

I don't suggest we have to go to those lengths to find happiness, but doing the same crap we've been doing for the last couple of decades may not be working either. So yeah, there are early mornings when I wonder what I could be doing to better my life and the lives of others. And that's okay because I will be more worried when I stop thinking about those things. 

Now it's your turn.

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The Mind

We live busy lives; or do we make them busy? We have much to think about; or do we avoid not thinking about anything? The brilliant Alan Watts shared much wisdom during his time here. He passed away 45 years ago yet his insight still rings true; perhaps even more today. In this lecture, he discussed the complexity of our minds.


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Fearless Action

Much has been written and said about taking chances, failure, and ultimate success. If you were to ask any person who has attained any modicum of advancement, they would probably tell you about the many times it took to make it. The setbacks, roadblocks, and challenges were plentiful.

"Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others."
Jonathan Swift

You know that feeling you have right now in the pit of your stomach? That’s the voice you may not be listening to but you should, I should, we all should. Then act on it. Our fear stops us from moving. Our worry that it won’t work out makes us freeze.

"Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.
They somehow already know what you truly want to become."
Steve Jobs

Now think of a time you listened to your intuition and you started to move. Suddenly the doubts dissipated and things began to work out. Once you made the decision, it was clear what you needed to do. There were hiccups and twists, but you kept going.

"Vision with action can change the world."
Nelson Mandela

We need to remember that one step today toward our goals will take us one step away from our fears. The longer we wait, the more difficult it will be to move and the more our doubts will grow. Few among us are immune.

Your gut knows what to do.
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Alan Watts – The Mind

We live busy lives; or do we make them busy? We have much to think about; or do we avoid not thinking about anything? The brilliant Alan Watts shared much wisdom during his time here. He passed away 42 years ago yet his insight still rings true; perhaps even more today. In this lecture, he discussed the complexity of our minds.


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As a passionate leader, Kneale Mann has extensive experience as a business coach and project manager in numerous industries and organizations including; human resources, corporate training, financial services, media, real estate, healthcare and more. He is always open to meeting leaders who want to improve their bottom line through strong culture and leadership. knealemann@gmail.com

Listen to Your Gut

We admire fearless people who take chances. But without knowing their story, it’s difficult to make that claim. Much has been written and said about taking chances, failure, and ultimate success. If you were to ask any person who has attained any modicum of advancement, they would probably tell you about the many times it took to make it. The setbacks, roadblocks, and challenges were plentiful.

Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others.
Jonathan Swift

You know that feeling you have right now in the pit of your stomach? That’s the voice you may not be listening to but you should, I should, we all should. Then act on it. Our fear stops us from moving. Our worry that it won’t work out makes us freeze.

Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.
They somehow already know what you truly want to become.
Steve Jobs

Now think of a time you listened to your intuition and you started to move. Suddenly the doubts dissipated and things began to work out. Once you made the decision, it was clear what you needed to do. There were hiccups and twists, but you kept going.

Vision with action can change the world.
Nelson Mandela

We need to remember that one step today toward our goals will take us one step away from our fears. The longer we wait, the more difficult it will be to move and the more our doubts will grow. Few among us are immune.

Your gut knows what to do. Get quiet enough not to ignore it.
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Kneale Mann | People + Priority = Profit

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Reflecting on Time

Fall Back and Think

The clocks fell back to standard time in many parts of the world today. It’s all part of an energy saving, sunshine increasing plan we call daylight saving time. It was devised by a New Zealand dude named George Vernon Hudson in 1895 who originally proposed a two-hour time shift.

There are all sorts of good reasons we still do it today from economic to environmental but let’s not forget how much we love the long stretch of sunlight from the end of March to the first week of November.

Tick Tock

Time is one commodity we cannot renew. Despite our denial, none of us has an unlimited supply. Yet often we use it like we do. We fill our days with busy tasks and stress as we look toward the weekend for a few stolen hours of rest. Then we fret about work, wish we had more money to buy that item and fight our way toward winning some sort of self-made race.

Projects need to be delivered, meetings must be attended, activities have to organized. Life can be hectic and we miss the important stuff though we seem to have gotten good at giving it lip service.

As we gain an hour today, here are some wise thoughts about time...

Time is the only thief we can't get justice against.
Astrid Alauda

In spite of the cost of living, it's still popular.
Kathy Norris

Men talk of killing time while time quietly kills them.
Dion Boucicault

Life happens while you're busy making other plans
John Lennon

Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.
Willaim Penn

Time waits for no one.
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards

Life is about the gift not the package it comes in.
Dennis Costea

Time is making fools of us again.
J.K. Rowling

Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can't buy more hours. Scientists can't invent new minutes. And you can't save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow. Denis Waitely

Cherish your time.

knealemann | email

Join me for Movember.

image credit: getty

Friday Motivation

It’s Friday. If you’re on Twitter, please recommend people who inspire you with #followfriday. Let’s turn to some motivation.

Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for patience.
George-Louis de Buffon

If you want to test your memory,
try to recall what you were worrying
about one year ago today.
E. Joseph Cossman

Dreams are today's answers
to tomorrow's questions.
Edgar Cayce

Time is a dressmaker
specializing in alterations.
Faith Baldwin

The only thing that overcomes
hard luck is hard work.
Harry Golden

Life is the sum of all your choices.
Albert Camus

Love all, trust a few,
do wrong to none.
William Shakespeare

I'm a great believer in luck
and I find the harder I work,
the more I have of it.
Thomas Jefferson

The last function of reason is
to recognize that there are an infinity
of things which surpass it.
Blaise Pascal

A successful person is one who can
lay a firm foundation with the bricks
that others throw at them.
David Brinkley

Trust yourself.
You know more than you think you do.
Dr. Benjamin Spock

Don't aim for success if you want it;
just do what you love and believe in,
and it will come naturally.
David Frost

Diplomacy is the art
of letting someone else
have your way.
Daniele Vare

Never be afraid to sit awhile and think.
Lorraine Hansberry

Wisdom is the reward you get
for a lifetime of listening when
you'd have preferred to talk.
Doug Larson

It is sweet to let the mind
unbend on occasion.
Horace

Have a great weekend!

@knealemann