Is This Really All There Is?

Reflection and Action for Leadership

Category: living

Value – What’s Yours?

cereal value

This post is short and (hopefully) sweet –  á la Seth Godin. I’ve talked about “values” in the past.  This one is about VALUE.  Perhaps it’s the ravages of middle age but I am losing my interest in potential.  Talk to me about what value you bring NOW.  In fact, someone may not have the entry level skills for a retail job, much less the ability to survive TEOTWAWKI (go ahead, look it up!).  If you have the desire to be of value to your community, then you are the kind of person I want to be around.

When someone wants to be of value, they are seekers – they have to be curious.  Integrity is more important to them than having the opportunity to show their cleverness.  They work to be a  part of the community. All I know is that when I’m done, and to paraphrase Albert Einstein, I would “rather be a man of value than a man of success.”

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on August 8, 2010
filed in ethics and morality, leadership, living, motivation, service
tagged community, talent, value, worth

How Does It End?

light in the tunnel
You’ve put in a few decades doing whatever it is you do. How does it end? I was prompted to think about this after a longtime friend came by for dinner. We’ve known each other for close to 35 years. We talked about the paths we’ve been on and the paths we see ourselves taking in the near future. We also reminisced about people we know in common.

Retirement
Our dinner guest is pushing hard. She’s one of the women I talked about in my last post who’s always shown me qualities that were missing in many of my male professional counterparts. She got her Ivy League degree but knew that nothing was promised. She’s hasn’t had it easy but she’s embraced “free agency” and works to improve the lives of those around her.

I was taken aback to hear that friends we went to school with are getting ready to head for retirement and quieter climes in the next year. I was shocked to hear recently that the nephew of a friend had put in his twenty years and was retiring in a year or two and was opening a restaurant/bar.
Maybe what happened to me is…

What’s Next
that I share the view of people like Peter Ragnar who believe that a lot of the aging process is mental. I’ve also taken positions that haven’t provided decent retirement benefits as one of their perks – so temptation is less. My ADD also does not lend itself to a hammock. I am also from the Helen Keller school of thought that says ” security does not exist in Nature. Life is either a daring adventure or it’s nothing.” This is part of the manifesto shared by me and my fellow Ronin.

God does not promise security in this life. The author Philip Yancey points out that we don’t get to know God and then do his will – we get to know God by doing his will. Like my parents, I choose to “wear out rather than rust out.” It took me a while, but I realize that my wife’s complaints about our path are mainly pro forma. In many ways she pushes harder than I do. She does this in the face of the paradoxes that come with being a good Christian. The more you do, the more is demanded and gratitude be damned.

The reasons for staying on or stepping off may be the result of evolution, genetics, or something else. Some of us are built a different way. Some deal with the difficulty of the now – they live how they believe Christ lived, and they accept that God will determine the value of all these efforts at some point in the distant future. You are not alone. I respect and admire those who have decided that their race has been run. But there are those of us who are not content with where we are and what we’ve done and we will keep moving. The Talmud, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Bible all recognize that we cannot possibly finish the work set before us – but we will not be excused for not taking it up.

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on July 26, 2010
filed in Christian, belief, ethics and morality, living, over 50
tagged career, faith, life, meaning, purpose, retirement

The Power of Belief

friendly universe
“Cogito ergo sum” – I think, therefore I am. I have been hoping that there is a related principle that applies to the art of writing. Something like, “I write, therefore I am a writer.” Even if it is not true, I will continue to act as if it is. I combine this with Emerson’s advice on writing that “when you run out of arrows, throw your body at it.”

Today I’m throwing my body at a short post on the Universe.

Albert Einstein felt that the fundamental question facing all of us is: “Is the Universe a friendly place?” We each get the chance to answer this for ourselves. What if you decided just for today that it was? Would you be a rebel in this Universe? Would your belief about your capabilities or responsibilities change?

What kind of Universe do you currently live in? If we take better control of our beliefs and imagination, we can make sure the trance we’re in is one of our own making.

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2 Comments by Hans Hageman on July 24, 2010
filed in belief, education, living, society
tagged belief, imagination, Universe, writing

Great Schools or Just Retooled Factories?

It’s also worth checking out his 2006 TED talk.

Albert Einstein said: “We can’t solve problems at the same level of consciousness at which we created them.” Yet this is exactly what we do in our efforts at educational reform. There continue to be dueling reports about whether charter schools work any better for underprivileged kids than the regular school system. From what I can tell, this is only a discussion about the best form of palliative care.

I go back and forth on why we do what we do with our children and their education. Is it a desire for social and economic control by our oligarchs? Is it greed? Is it a lack of imagination? A combination, or something else entirely?

This affects us all and I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on July 2, 2010
filed in balance, education, history, liberal arts, living, politics, private school, public education, school, school choice, society
tagged children, education, future, school choice, school reform, students

What Will You Bring To The Life Party? Shadow or Light?

sun and clouds
This is a short guest post from one of my former students – Tiffany Pagan. She’s on her way to big things! Also, if you sign up for my newsletter, I’ll give you FREE access to a 15-minute audio recording on relaxation and performance.

HERE IT IS:

“I wrote this and wanted to share it with a few people who I believe know the real me! Enjoy!

When you act a certain kind of way your whole life, no one ever expects you to have a different side. When all people see you do is laugh, the world is surprised to see that you cry, too. Life is not about how others see you, but how you see yourself. If you know that your heart bears love, hate, laughter, tears, pain and joy, then you have nothing to fear. If you know that your mind has the potential to make a person smile or make a person cry, then you must always be conscious of the words you use with the people who love you.

Life will bring you light and life will bring you darkness. Life will inevitably bring storms, but after every storm, life will always bring back the Sun. And when the Sun shines upon you it will enable you to shine upon the world. You can guarantee that everyone will always and forever see you for who you really are: A ray of sunshine who will always surpass the clouds.”

– Tiffany Pagan

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on June 29, 2010
filed in balance, energy, living, nice people
tagged clouds, life, light, shadows, sun, words

Reiki Energy Healing And Growing Up

pranic healing
I’m back on the path! Reiki energy healing was a part of my life in the mdi-90′s. I had parents with health problems and students who were living with holes in their souls. Reiki, hypnosis, biofeedback, and NLP were some of my stops along the way. My intuition, stress level, communication skills, and health all improved as I undertook this journey. I studied under some good people – Rachel Hott and Stephen Leeds, John LaValle, and William Lee Rand, among others.

Reiki
“Reiki” means “universal” or “spiritual” energy. Kanji is made up of ideographs and pictographs so it’s difficult to come up with an exact translation. The founder, Mikao Usui, did not use the term “Reiki” but this is the name that has come to describe this system of healing. I studied under William Lee Rand and became a Reiki master in 1997. It was cool for me to go back and check on this lineage

As the son of a Methodist minister, I had to ask myself whether I was delving into the dark side with my studies? Part of this question was answered by the peace that I was able to bring to my family and students with my practice. I was honored to be part of an Episcopal church, headed by Father Robert Castle, that invited me to the altar on Sundays to provide Reiki healing.

Christianity
For me, Reiki has meant a closer connection to God – a way to relieve suffering, express compassion, and to be more Christ-like. I spoke to Christians who were concerned or skeptical. They were unable to answer my questions about “Gifts of the Spirit” and Paul’s guidance in Corinthians. If you are called to practice the gift of healing do you ignore the Jesus of John 14:12 who says: “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing.”

The Lesson
I have stated it in other posts and been attacked for it in other contexts but…I am my parents’ child and I am a child of God. Healing is part of my path. I hope to pass this on. I ‘d love to hear about your path to healing and your thoughts on ways we can create a healing community. I’m not ashamed to say that I’m growing up.

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1 Comment by Hans Hageman on June 28, 2010
filed in belief, education, energy, health, life fitness, living

Is Suffering Optional?

suffering bastards

Desire and Suffering
So I’m sitting here trying to evolve and flitting across my consciousness was the phrase: “Desire is the root of all suffering.” I’m not sure why it came up, but it’s something I had always believed was one of the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism and probably a generally good prescription for the things that ail us as Americans and as humans. This time, as I thought about it, something didn’t seem to feel right.

Happiness
Too many of us seek reward and recognition from sources outside ourselves and we all eventually find out, as Arjuna did, that we are not entitled to the fruits of our labors-only to our labors. As we undertake our labors and fight the “Long Defeat,” it doesn’t mean that we should no longer continue to seek our bliss or to undertake Joyce’s (and Joseph Campbell’s) “Hero’s Journey.” In fact, I believe that never embarking on this journey or leaving the path is the source of most suffering in the people I run across. We need to do what we are called to do with no thought of reward. Our desire for self-importance becomes a trap.

Desire vs. Craving
I’m not comfortable (or perhaps not evolved enough) to believe that if I was able to eliminate all my desires that I would be in a better place. Our desires not only direct our basic survival but they help us to create as well. I choose to believe that the world is a better place because some people had the desire to create freedom, justice, and artistic beauty.

I think Buddha and the Bible are referring to craving. Excessive aversion or excessive attachment can screw up a lot of things. So can the substitution of hope for action. Our desires create a spiral that requires a constant attention to our material and emotional happiness – to the exclusion of our mission. This keeps us from getting the real work done. We will never have all the facts so we just need to focus on our daily acts on the way. If you want to know what’s required, Micah 6:8 says we are to: “Act justly, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

If that’s too much, then if you’re somewhere between “I’m on top of the world!” and “I guess things could always be worse”, you’re probably okay.

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on June 24, 2010
filed in balance, belief, energy, ethics and morality, living, society

Calm Nerves And Exercise

calm workout

When we workout, most of us don’t usually think about calm nerves as one of the goals for the session. We go to a gym or health club with a sound system or put on a IPod. The playlist, more often than not, has a powerful and simple rhythmic ( and not always melodic) structure. Heavy metal and rap figure prominently on the music menu. We feel motivated, our hearts start racing, and the adrenaline starts to flow but… are these the things we want happening? I contend that we need to go a different route for more of our workouts.

Things Your Mother Didn’t Tell You About The Autonomic Nervous System
The Autonomic Nervous System (“ANS”) regulates the functioning of organs and muscles. It’s divided into the sympathetic, parasympathetic, and enteric systems. I will focus on the first two.
Sympathetic
When we’re in a situation of “fight or flight” this system causes our digestion to slow down, and our heart rate and blood pressure to increase. We also increase our production of cortisol and adrenaline. This system obviously played and plays a critical role in our survival but the chronic production of these effects ends up being too much of a good thing. That music that you want pumped up as you go for the big lift or an extra mile will eventually play a role in things like hypertension, suppression of our immune system, and Type 2 diabetes.

Our bodies do a pretty good job of recognizing emergency and danger. Artificially adding to this stimulation with our choice of workout music (on top of job and family stress) is not something we should be doing.
Parasympathetic
The parasympathetic system helps us to rest and digest. Energy is saved, blood pressure decreases, and digestion begins. Classical music and, more specifically Baroque music (with its 60 beats per minute – like the human heart) gives us the ability to more easily access or remain in the parasympathetic state. Baroque music has been studied for its “Mozart effect” and its healing abilities. It stands to reason that it would have a beneficial effect in what would otherwise be an adrenaline dump of an activity. It makes sense to me that if we exercise in as close to a parasympathetic state as possible, using music and awareness, then we are better training our bodies for a more healthful reaction for times of stress that are not life threatening. Make the substitution on your IPod a couple of times a week and see what happens.

Why a post like this? Because I love you.

Are you willing to give classical music a try during your workout? What do you listen to now? Comment and let me know.

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1 Comment by Hans Hageman on June 18, 2010
filed in education, exercise, health, living, music

Job Loss To Lemonade

Check out the whole movie when you can. Pam Slim, Michael Port, Justin Lukasavige, Chris Brogan, Janet Atkinson, John Carlton, and Hans Hageman & Associates, are some great places to start if you need or want to investigate the employment side of life as a masterless Samurai -- the Ronin. There is no better time.

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on June 11, 2010
filed in courage, living, motivation, over 50, society, work/life

Figure THIS Out And You’ll Avoid Life’s Dead Ends

I have never found regret to be a useful emotion. It’s tough to learn from regret and it prevents forward movement. If you can work yourself up to something a little stronger, like guilt or remorse, there may be some positive benefits – a necessary apology, or a change in behavior or a different approach for next time.

As Frank said, “Regrets? I’ve had a few, but then again, too few to mention.” I was able to figure something out when I practiced law and while not perfected, it has allowed me to lessen some of the kinds of regrets I hear too many people experiencing. Perhaps this is because of some really high self esteem but I like to hallucinate that it’s mainly because of a fairly regular values inventory.

We get our values from experience, family, role models, and various cultural/media messages. For the most part, they remain outside of our conscious awareness. Our values often change with context, age, and experience but I believe that people are happiest and most successful when they are able to establish “bedrock” values that aren’t contextual.

In some of my recent work with police officers I was interested in their answers in response to questions about their values. Like many of us, they hadn’t given too much thought to their personal values or to the values that are important to police work. In this line of work, if your personal values don’t line up/aren’t congruent with those of your job, the consequences can be extreme. It was a good discussion and the conversation was more honest and robust than it could have ever been with the board members and many senior staff at Boys & Girls Harbor.

Some of the questions I asked them are the questions I have asked myself at different times in my professional life:

  • What’s really important to you?
  • What motivates you to do what you do at work and for your family?
  • What things, people, experiences do you feel you can’t live without?
  • What do you get most excited about?  When?
  • In what areas of your life do you refuse to compromise?

After you answer these questions, ask yourself, “Do I live these answers?” Understand that when you don’t, you pay a price. It’s too simple to be described by single words but since we live in the land of McDonald’s, here are a list of some values that serve as my bedrock:

  • Honesty
  • Compassion
  • Directness
  • Freedom
  • Truth
  • Generosity
  • Mastery
  • Family
  • Duty
  • Sacrifice
  • Knowledge
  • Achievement

These aren’t in order of importance.  Another interesting exercise is to rank them.  Send me a comment or email if you want a post on this.  What I do know, is that there was a conflict between my bedrock values and the people who were calling the shots at my job.  I am grateful that they brought me back to awareness and I thank you all for joining me on my latest adventure.

Write me with examples in your life when your values came into conflict with the living (not espoused) values of your job.

Jai Ho!

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No Comments by Hans Hageman on June 1, 2010
filed in Web 2.0 teenagers education social media, balance, health, high school, knee surgery, living, motivation, school, violence
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