The Usefulness of Beauty

In Madrid with clients over the last few days, I managed to get out and see the city a bit. And what a city. Whether you’re looking at the Italian rock crystal chandeliers in the throne room at the Palacio Real (exterior pictured), the extensive Velazquez and Goya collections at the Prado, or the edifice of the baroque Iglesia de Santa Barbara, you cannot help but be bowled over, absolutely bowled over, by beauty.

“Have nothing in your house which you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

            William Morris, 

            19^th century British artist, designer, writer, social innovator

While this has long been a favorite quote, it took on new meaning for me this week. It also took on new proportions, as its application broadened in my mind from what you put in your house to what you put in your life.

Most of my writing has to do with the “usefulness” part of Morris’ equation: how can you marshal your…

• thoughts
  
• resources
  
• strengths
  
• time
  
• communication with others

…most usefully in order to move forward and be effective. And this focus on usefulness is critical—it’s just that it’s not everything. As humans, it’s not only about the useful, it’s also about the beautiful. And sometimes it’s about how the beautiful thing can be the most useful thing. Like that time you knew that it was worth it to pull the car over and watch the sunset even though you were already under the gun on time, or that day you stopped and listened to that whole song, that gorgeous song, even though your to-do list was longer than your arm. Madrid reminded me of this. That even though I had writing to do and projects to work on, not only was my experience at the Prado, for example, beautiful, it was useful: I left refreshed and clear-headed, ready to tackle the work ahead.

This week, go beyond the useful. Besides looking at how you are marshaling your thoughts, resources, strengths, time and communication with others to get done what you need to get done and be effective, look at the beauty level in your life:

• What are the evidences of beauty in your life that are nourishing you in ways that nothing else can? (We're going to avoid a thesis on the nature of beauty. For our purposes here, please define beauty for yourself. For some it’s a song or a picture, for others it may be a little more esoteric...)
  
• How can you leverage those even more in your life? (e.g. my appreciation for Velazquez shot up last week. I’m putting a postcard of a new favorite painting in my workspace)
  
• Where, if anywhere, is beauty lacking in your life? Perhaps in a way that affects the usefulness piece? (e.g. if your thinking is unproductive, look at how you start your day. It may be that you need a beauty shot in the morning—try turning off the news and turning on some great music)
  

On a final note, I live in California. Near the coast. I am privileged to be around a lot of beauty—much of which is natural beauty. What impressed itself upon me in Madrid was the abundance of beauty that wasn’t natural, but made by human hands. Art, design, architecture, the many, many details (look at the manhole covers!)—it was overwhelming. Don’t wait for natural beauty. Don’t wait for anything. If it’s important this week, take some inspiration from the artists and the artisans of Spain over the centuries, and give the beauty in your life a little focus, care, and effort. It just may be the most useful thing you do.

Staying True

I met a young woman the other day who told me that her biggest stress at work isn’t the long hours or the heavy workload. She likes what she does and her strong work ethic drives her to excellence. And that’s the trouble. Because her biggest stress at work is her fellow employees, who continually nag her to not work so hard or so long or with such excellence, because she’s making them look bad.

If I had a dime for every time I’ve heard this from clients over the years….

This is rampant. And rampant across industries and across levels. I’ve heard it from production line workers and I’ve heard it from accountants. Other people trying to hold the one person back—because—why? Posturing, competition, image, laziness, envy, fear...we could speculate on a lot of reasons. What’s important is to look at what to do when it’s directed toward you.

In deciding how to respond (or not) to the pressure from your coworkers, there are various considerations:

• How strong are your relationships with these coworkers
  
• Are any of these coworkers in a position of authority over you, or do they influence anyone who is in authority over you
  
• How important are these relationships (e.g. how interdependent is your work and your success)
  

…to name a few.

But the one consideration that stands taller and bears more weight, ultimately, across the course of a career, is this:

Your commitment to doing your best and being your best. Your commitment to excellence, and to your integrity.

It's wise to consider the politics, yes. It's just that politics can't always be the swing vote. There may be some appropriate give and take, but over the course of a career, it's simply essential to stay true to your own compass.

There will always be people trying to distract, detract, drag you down. Do your thing. Do your work. Do what you know to be right.

A Useful Perspective

I’m in Saigon this week with clients (officially Ho Chi Minh City. I was relieved to find the locals still refer to it as Saigon—Ho Chi Minh City is long to say. And write).

In between work activities, I’ve found time to pursue conversations with local residents. And something rather interesting has come up:

The war that I’ve always known as “The Vietnam War”—they know as “The American War.” 

A bit of a mind-bender, really. Something that's always been so concrete in my experience has a different concreteness elsewhere. Elsewhere here.

Thus endeth the reference to war. This entry isn’t about war, it’s about perspective. 

Perspective is a powerful thing. The way we see things and understand things, the interpretations we make, the expectations we form, all relate to our perspective. And it has the power to inform the thinking and the actions of people at a global level, a national level, a local level, an individual level.

The individual level:

Take a look at your perspective on…you choose: a relationship, your career, yourself as a person, anything that’s critical to you right now. Maybe the way you’ve been looking at your relationship with one of your colleagues hasn’t been serving you or helping you to form a productive relationship. Maybe your perspective on your career has made you stagnant or caused you to lose energy and not take productive action. Perhaps your perspective on yourself is in some way not serving you, has sapped you of your sense of what’s possible for you.

We must deal in facts and truth, not simply perception, yes. Well, one of the facts is that, as humans, there is an element of perspective in just about any situation. And another is that we typically don't step outside of our perspective to see if there's another way to look at things. A better, more useful way.

This week, choose one area that’s important to you right now and in which you feel stuck at some level, and ask yourself if your perspective on the situation is helping you or hindering you. If it’s the latter, consider looking at the situation from a new perspective—one that is productive for you and helps you to get unlocked and move forward.

Action, Not Activity

So…how are those New Year’s Resolutions?

We’re a week into the New Year, and I’m going to suggest an idea to help you stay on track (or get back on track!).

Action, not activity.

There is always something to do. An activity to engage in. There always will be. The trouble with activity, though, is that it can fill your days yet get you nowhere. Action is different than activity, in that action is something you do that is attached to an important goal you’ve identified. Activity fills your days. Action moves you forward.

It’s tricky, because in the “activity” category are many worthwhile things. “I should read this book—it’s an important one. It will make me better informed. It will help me in my career.” These are good things. The question I would ask is—are they YOUR things, right now? If your most important thing right now is to exercise and get in shape, and you read the book instead of working out, then you have engaged in activity and not action.

Don’t settle for activity, even worthwhile activity (like reading a good book!). Get clear on what’s important to you and be sure your choices are attached to your goals. Then you will choose action over activity, and not just fill your days with activity, but move your life forward with focused action.

Making Your Resolutions Work For You

According to a survey released last month*, 66% of Americans don’t make New Year’s Resolutions. This flies in the face of the tradition of the season, and begs the question: Why?

For many people, this “resolution rejection” comes from a sense of failure. “I made resolutions in the past, I didn’t stick with them, and I wound up feeling lousy.” We feel let down (we let ourselves down), we experience a power-drain as we grapple with our lack of follow-through, and guilt sets in. And we think, “Forget it. I don’t need this kind of grief.”

And if this is you, you’re right. You don’t.

When people don’t follow through on their New Year’s Resolutions, it usually has its roots in one or more of these three areas:

• Choosing goals that aren’t meaningful and don’t have enough of a payoff
  
• Choosing goals/actions that are too big
  
• Not having a plan
  

To succeed with your New Year’s Resolutions, simply turn these three areas into principles that will work for you:

• Make it Meaningful: there are many things you can change. Choose one that will have a big payoff for you. Think: “Next year at this time, what is one way I would like my life to be different?” Choose something important, something that really matters to you
  
• Think Small: either give yourself a small goal, or if it’s a larger goal, break it down into manageable pieces, and focus only on the first piece
  
• Schedule It: to create a plan, keep it simple. Just put it on the calendar. By “it” I’m referring to whatever the first few actions are that will move you toward your goal. This works for just about anything: working out, getting organized, keeping up with people better, writing a screenplay, learning a language, spending more time with your kids…
  

You may not choose to “resolve” anything this New Year. And you may have good reason. Simply remember that growth and movement is critical for us as human beings. The lack of those more often that not leads to stagnation and feeling stuck. For our health and vitality, we need to embrace intentional growth and forward movement. And of course, you can do it at any time of year, not just at New Year’s. Whenever you do choose to put something in motion for yourself, keep it simple. Set yourself up for success by making it meaningful, “thinking small,” and scheduling it.

* Survey by ISI Translation Services