I am lucky to be part of a network of people- or, more accurately, several unrelated small clusters of people- engaged in learning, thinking, and growing. An environment like this is continuously exhilarating. It extends my horizons, deepens my understanding of the world, and enriches and strengthens the practices that define my work and daily life.
Every day in my journeys, my reading, and my conversations, I come across ideas that resonate with how I view the world but also ideas which challenge my working hypotheses and how I do things. I relish these opportunities to reflect and adjust. But what happens seldom is that I read words that capture my personal theme as much as the blog I read this morning from Michael Bungay Stanier. It is part of his new coach training series on Box of Crayons, but his succinct way of capturing his thought of the day may be valuable to anyone who is committed to helping others be the best and most fulfilled they can be.
I will share a couple of paragraphs of Michael’s post here and encourage any and all to check out his site for more ideas on which to chew. This snippet is about getting clear on how you want to serve.
Here’s Michael:
Fierce Love
This is what rings most true for me at the moment, a mantra of service.
Fierce reminds me not to get too comfortable in the conversation we’re having.
To push myself to be as bold, as courageous and as vulnerable as I can when I engage.
Love reminds me that I want to fully champion that person, help them on the journey to be the best version of themselves that they can, regardless of what we’re working on.
Michael embraces a truth I feel so strongly that it takes courage to challenge ourselves and to challenge others, but without challenge, authenticity, and compassion, none of us can fulfill a fraction of our potential.
For this Valentine’s Day and every day, may you:
Read Think Experiment Discuss and Write
but most of all
Always Act from the Heart
