Wisdom and Energy

Toward the end of Thomas Hardy’s wild and wonderful story, The Mayor of Casterbridge, the title character reflects on what he’s come to think of as a trick the gods play on us: When we’re old enough to have the wisdom to do great things, we no longer have the energy it takes to do them. And thus the big things we need most rarely get accomplished by us.

We can call this phenomenon the principle of “Wisdom-Energy Age Reversal,” or WEAR.

In our youth, we’re full of energy, or what Hardy refers to as “zest,” but we have very little worldly wisdom to guide our abundant capacity to act. Then, by the time that many decades of experience may have schooled us well in the ways of wisdom, we lack our early measure of energy to achieve the things we have come to see would be great. This is why so many of the big things that do get accomplished in the world seem to lack an appropriate measure of wisdom, and why the old and wise among us are much more apt just to critique and complain than to actually rectify the many wrongs around us. It's a principle that indirectly counsels us to enter into partnerships and collaborations that span the spectrum of age.

I love Hardy’s books, largely for his characters and his masterful storytelling. But he’s often thought of as a pessimist, and this principle on wisdom and age can explain at least a portion of that worldview. Given the fact that he wrote a century and a half ago, I’d say that this part of his philosophy at least might be said to WEAR well, on into our day.

For a truly enchanting story that displays the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune as food for thought and that shows, among many other things, how secrets and lies never provide a sound path in life, read this delightful book.

To find it, click HERE.

Gisele and The Power of Positive Energy

The New York Times just ran a remarkable piece on the Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen. As she was reflecting on her early days in modeling, Gisele says:

"In the beginning, you know, everyone told me, 'Your eyes are too small, the nose is too big, you can never be on a magazine cover."

Then she adds:

"But, you know what? The big nose comes with a big personality."

The experts were completely wrong, as experts very often are when faced with something new. Gisele's net worth as a model is now estimated to exceed 300 million dollars, and Forbes puts her daily income at around $128,000. She's also appeared eleven times on the cover of American Vogue. The Times reporter is surprised when she says, "My career was never based on pretty." But then the designer Angela Missoni explains:

"With Gisele, there is something different, her energy. Of course, she is super beautiful, but she has this charisma, this presence, this very sexy normality."

Gisele herself attributes her extraordinary success to her energy, hard work, and innate positive attitude that finds the best in any bad situation. Others comment on her grit and ability to rise to the occasion, whatever the circumstances. And it could very well be that the very "imperfections" or "flaws" that everyone complained about at first were actually among the secrets of her success. She had a new and different look. And her inner spirit lit up all the cameras that were turned in her direction.

Of course, there are numerous lessons in such a story. First, that the experts and gatekeepers in almost any industry or walk of life are probably among the least likely to see and appreciate something new and great that comes their way. In politics, fashion, and almost everywhere else, the experts are often among those most baffled by the next new thing.

Second, the inner is more important than the outer in almost any quest for success. Energy, grit, hard work, and a positive attitude can take any of us far.

Third, those things that other people consider to be your flaws might just be important stepping stones to future success. My friend Dave Rendall has a very good book on this called The Freak Factor, and is busy traveling the world explaining to people the strange and yet common alchemy of turning weakness into strength.

Many people are writing recently to tell me about passages early on in my new book The Oasis Within that are helping them greatly to deal with the sort of negativity and obstacles that Gisele initially faced in her career. I'm so happy to hear that the conversations of my characters are making a difference with wisdom people can use! If you have had a good experience with the book but haven't yet let me know, please write me through the website TomVMorris.com and share your story!

Priorities

We all have priorities. We value some things over others. We prefer certain activities to alternatives. And yet, we're not always aware of our priorities. Twentieth century theologian Paul Tillich suggested that everyone has what he called an "Ultimate Concern" - a priority that trumps all others, a most important thing in your life. For some people, it might be life itself. For others, love, or family. For too many, it seems to be money, or power, or status.

The ancient stoic philosophers believed that our chief concern should be to know what is properly our ultimate good. Then we can take care to govern our lives accordingly, not letting our priorities get out of order, but giving the most time and attention to what's most important, and the least to the least. The fake urgencies of life often cause us to get this backwards, giving our focus to ephemeral things that are actually of little value, and letting them crowd out the things that are of greatest meaning and significance.

You've heard the old story, of the rocks and the jar, I'd imagine. A professor has a very large glass jar on a table in front of the class. He tells his students that he's going to fill it with rocks, and he does. "Is it full?" he asks. They all agree. It's full to the top. Then he produces a bucket of pebbles and begins to pour them in around the rocks, filling it even more. "You see, it wasn't actually full before," he explains as they all contemplate the much more packed container. Then he produces a bucket of sand and starts to pour it also into the jar, filling in all the cracks and spaces between the rocks and pebbles.

The professor explains that the jar is like a life. If he had started out filling it up with the little things, the grains of sand, and had packed it to the top that way, there would have been no room for the bigger pebbles, or the much larger rocks. But by filling it with the biggest things first, there was also ample room for the smaller things. He then explained the metaphor explicitly. If we allow the little urgencies and demands of life to fill our time and hearts, we'll have no space left over for the bigger things. But if we start of with a focus on what matters most, we'll also have plenty of room for life's smaller matters. It's all about priorities.

And then, there is, of course, the variant of the story where an enterprising student suddenly stands up, walks up to the desk, pops the top of a beer can he's carrying, and slowly pours it into the apparently full jar, explaining as he does, one more insight: "There's always room for Bud."

How are you with priorities? They matter in a business just like they do in a life. Get them wrong, and all sorts of things go wrong as well. Get them right, and many other things go right, things worth celebrating. Then, there's room for a Bud.

Patience

For most of my life, patience has been a monumentally aggravating virtue. I like to make things happen. I like to dream it, do it, and then move on to the next thing. I work hard at projects, and pursue them with determination, persistence, and as much creativity as I can muster. And then I like to see my efforts come together and work, producing the fruit of achievement. I bask in the warm glow of a job well done and go looking for the next one.

When I get excited about an idea or a project, I become a curator of great energy. It seems to come to me from all directions, get inside me, and demand to be used. I surf on it, run with it, and even fly because of it. Then, occasionally, things don't go as expected. Not right away, at least. And sometimes, not even considerably after the "right away" phase has long gone. What's this? The world is not responding to my bright idea and hard work? I'm being made to WAIT?

Patience has a very different energy signature from striving and working hard. For most of my life, I had no real conception of how to make them go together. I was always pushing, running down hallways, making call after call, with almost a frantic pace that finds youth to be such fertile soil. But as I've gotten older, I've come to a bit more of an understanding of patience.

The world is an infinitely complex buzzing web of intersecting interests, energies, and events. It's hard to fit a new idea, or invention, or discovery, into the speeding traffic of what's already on the highway. You sometimes have to sit on the on ramp and patiently wait until the time is right. Then you can safely merge into the stream of ongoing things that are whizzing by.

Impatience doesn't want to wait - ever. But waiting can be just as important an activity as doing. A great baseball player doesn't step up to the plate and let impatience goad him into swinging hard before the pitcher even throws the ball. That would be crazy. And if he even swings a moment too soon, he can miss the opportunity and the ball. Patience is all about acting when the time is right. It's about waiting until the proper moment arrives. It involves the ability to be at peace and give the world time to get ready for your great new idea or project. It's most of all an attitude. And it's powerful.

Impatience is all about ego and that spoiled child inside that wants its way now. Its companions are frustration, irritation, and anger. Patience is a form of inner peace. It's about wisdom. Its companions are serenity and assurance, a confidence that doesn't require immediacy. It isn't in a hurry. It understands that great things take time.

I always wanted to have a better understanding of patience. But I had to wait a long time to get it. It was worth the wait. And most things of value are.

Passionate Pursuit

As I look back over the trajectory of my life, from the high perch of being on the verge of 63, I see that the times when I've had the most fun and gotten the most done were the times when I was the most passionate in pursuit of an idea, or project. My enthusiasm propelled me forward. It woke me up in the morning, and got me going. It gave me energy. It sustained me through the day. It opened the doors of possibility all around me that would otherwise have remained closed, and sometimes locked.

When I was a professor, and writing articles and books like a maniac who required no sleep, people would often ask me "Do you just work all the time?" My reply would most often be: "No, no. Not at all. My life is long periods of indolence punctuated by intense bursts of activity. I get so excited about what I'm working on that I can't help but get things done. Then I go take a nap."

But passion waxes and wanes through a life. You're not always surfing a high wave of energy. If you find yourself right now astride your board in calm water, just waiting for the next wave, and nothing's on the horizon, you can do something about it. You can yourself stir up the waters. It all starts within. Make your own waves. In life, unlike in the ocean, it's possible. It works. It's always better to feel the breeze in your face as you ride a big wave, as you go new places and do new things. It will kill the lull if you can feel the love. You can renew your inner passion.

We're here to make things happen. Pursue passionately what's right for you!

Today.

Exuberance!!!

I've come to think that a vastly under appreciated quality in life is exuberance. It's a form of passionate energy that lights people up and gives a glow to anything they do.

Now, I'm not talking about the artificially chirpy forced positivity that you sometimes see in exceedingly annoying people. That's an artificial copy, a counterfeit, easily recognized, for the genuine article of my concern here. I'm talking about a natural energy that flows through some people and leads to great things. I remember reading about a lecture once given by Linus Pauling, the Nobel Laureate, where he was literally dancing on a table in excited illustration of some idea that was inspiring him. His cynical colleagues would just shake their heads. But it was exuberant Linus who did the breakthrough work.

Exuberance, done right, is motivating and magnetic. It enlivens and uplifts. It's the fuel of discovery and great change. And it's insufficiently understood.

"Wait," you might be saying if you have a bit of skepticism in you about this, "Would you really want an exuberant plumber or electrician? An exuberant barber or checkout person at the grocery store?" Actually, yes. Whenever I'm around genuine exuberance that's not a mask for something else, I feel refreshed and energized. It raises my confidence level in the person displaying this quality. And it makes me glad that, in a world of Eeyores, there are still some Tiggers.

Passion and Performance

Passion drives performance like nothing else, in business, and in life. What do you care about most deeply? What enlivens you? What awakens you? What form of work or service feels like play? What gives you a sense of mission or purpose? That's what you need to be doing. It's tough in life to settle for anything less.

Yeah, I know that the cynics will reply, "Passion can't pay the bills." And passionate mediocrity is just bad on a bigger scale. Sometimes, our greatest loves have to be hobbies. I get it. We all have limitations, commitments, and various other realities to deal with. But a truth still stands. When you can pick your passion as your primary purpose, you can often fly high.

This week I've written once before about a really nice book I've been reading, The Work: My Search for a Life That Matters, by Wes Moore. Today, I want to quote him again. On page 120, he writes:

One thing I began to realize in my travels was that everyone I met who was truly successful - whether in business, in philanthropic work,  in human rights, in government, or in raising a family - shared one common trait: they were fanatically passionate about the work they did. They breathed it. They needed it. It was their lifeblood.

He then goes on to challenge us:

Really, think about it: name one person in your own life who fits the description of unassailable success who is not driven by that kind of clarifying passion.

I'm not sure I would have used the word 'fanatical' but, that caveat aside, I agree wholeheartedly with what Moore says here. Tremendous passion tends to drive tremendous results. In the 1600s, Blaise Pascal wrote, "The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing." The heart, the core of our emotion, and passion, the metaphorical organ of enthusiasm and positive energy, has reasons and powers that intellect alone can't match.

The more heart we can bring to our work, the more passion and commitment and enthusiasm, the more likely we'll make that work into a masterpiece of service, or performance, and a real gift to those around us. Why should we settle for anything less?