The Meaning Difference

The Apprentice Finale: Undermining the Will to Meaning

The Apprentice Finale has been on my mind...

I don't know about you, but I was extremely disappointed with the way that Randal Pinkett ended his stint as a candidate for Donald Trump's "apprentice." After so many weeks of espousing his core values about work and life, and leaving the impression that his integrity was beyond reproach, Randal, when given the opportunity to make his mark as a true champion of "diversity" and the "will to meaning," decided to regress towards the mean and apparently reveal his true colors.

If you didn't see any of the fourth season of the "Apprentice," especially the show's finale on Thursday, this posting may not mean much to you. This said, the "lessons learned" are no less important in a dialogue about meaning in life and at work. You see, the final two candidates were both identified by "The Donald" himself as being stars and even though Randal was selected as the "winner" of the competition, it was clear that both candidates were more than well qualified to work for the Trump organization. Indeed, Trump even opened up the possibility that both candidates would be hired to work on separate projects--itself an innovation for such a "reality" TV program.

What was most disheartening is the fact that Randal who, prior to the final announcement, had touted his main competitor, colleague, and "friend," Rebecca Jarvis, as a deserving winner, turned his back on her when given the chance to make "history" and, among other things, set a new standard for business collaboration between the genders. In short, Randal chose "power" over "meaning" and sacrificed the respect of so many viewers who had supported him up to that point.

And since neither Donald Trump nor his business associates chose to raise the issue of Randal's "moral compass," in my opinion, only Rebecca ended the show with dignity and respect. Indeed, had the tables been turned, I wonder what Rebecca would have done. The "will to meaning" is about the authentic commitment to meaningful values and goals. I'd be interested to know if you think that Randal realized his will to meaning. And what about Rebecca, what are you thoughts (and feelings) about how she handled this situation? Really, what you YOU think?!

All the best...
Alex

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Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.
author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts
founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 7: Extend Beyond Yourself

Welcome! Glad to see you! ... The 7th of Viktor Frankl’s Principles asks us to reach beyond all we’ve learned ---to reach beyond ourselves. It not only calls you to look even more closely at yourself, but leaves you with a compelling call-to-action. Viktor Frankl highlighted this self-transcendent principle in a poignant passage in his book, Man’s Search for Meaning:

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“Don’t aim at success—the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued, it must ensue and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one’s dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one’s surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it.”
--- Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
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BE A PART OF OUR CONTINUING CONVERSATION:

All the conversations we’ve been having are timeless and can be helpful anytime you need a reminder or just a little inspiration and boost to your courage to transcend whatever is standing in your way.

If you missed the earlier posts, you may find it helpful to review them and I welcome your thoughts on ANY topic. I think you’ll benefit from the review as we move into Extend Beyond Yourself. The six Viktor Frankl principles we have explored so far are:
---- Principle 1: Exercise the freedom to choose your attitude
---- Principle 2: Realize your will to meaning
---- Principle 3: Detect the meaning of life’s moments
---- Principle 4: Don’t work against yourself
---- Principle 5: Look at yourself from a distance
---- Principle 6: Shift your focus of attention

PRINCIPLE 7: Extend Beyond Yourself
Manifest the human spirit at work by relating and being directed to something more than yourself.

In my book, Prisoners of Our Thoughts, I tell an inspiring story about Andrea Jaeger, the youngest seeded play in

Wimbledon

history in 1980. At only 15 years old, she was also the youngest US Open semi-finalist that same year. Andrea was positioned for continued athletic success and fame. Yet, by 1984, her career in tennis had come to an end because of injuries and burnout. Andrea disappeared from the sports radar screen and the public eye. However, during her years of being a tennis phenomenon, Andrea had spent her time off with sick children in hospitals around the world. This became the catalyst for a metamorphosis in her life. In 1989, she made a decision to dedicate her life to terminally ill children, giving them a greater opportunity to experience life. In no small way, Andrea’s response shows that the heart’s light within the human spirit is most brightly illuminated when we create meaning beyond our own lives. From this dedication, she built the Kids Stuff Foundation. She was asked by NBC Dateline some years later, “How do you want to be remembered?” Without having to think, she said, “I don’t need to be remembered. I want the kids to be remembered.”

When we work creatively and productively with others, our experience of meaning can be profound. When we work directly for the good of others, meaning deepens in ways that reward us beyond measure. Whenever we go beyond satisfying our own personal needs, we enter the realm of what Frankl called “ultimate meaning.” Some call it connection to a higher self, to God, to our own spirit, to universal consciousness, to love, to the collective good. No matter what it’s called, it is deep meaning and it transforms our lives.

The capacity to extend beyond yourself, according to Frankl, is another one of our unique traits as human beings. If we take just a few minutes to look around in our lives, every day we will see people doing things for others, quietly, unexpectedly, and without compensation. If we were to ask why, they might not have ready answers. But I suspect that they would all agree, “It feels good.” Selflessness---extending beyond ourselves----feels good. It satisfies something in us that yearns to go beyond or transcend ourselves, that knows we are honoring a deeper meaning in life when we serve the needs of others. The capacity to extend beyond yourself, according to Frankl, is another one of our unique traits as human beings.

The yearning to be of deep service often comes out of deep suffering. Viktor Frankl, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Aung Sang Suu Chi---all transformed their suffering into service. They experienced their suffering as meaningful in the most profound ways. It wasn’t bitterness that resulted from their suffering; it was love ---- and meaning. The sacredness of being able to extend beyond their suffering informed and transformed the rest of their lives. Meaning became their life’s work.

We aren’t all called to be Mandela or a Gandhi, but if we pay attention, we will find that life calls to us every day to go beyond our own interests ----extending beyond ourselves. The search for meaning in our lives takes us on paths large and small. When we go beyond ourselves----whether in forgiveness, unselfishness, thoughtfulness, generosity and understanding toward others---we enter into the spiritual realm of meaning. By giving beyond ourselves we make our own lives richer.

PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION... Individual Reflection Activities

Consider these questions. Then TALK with us. Help everyone learn by sharing from your memories, experiences or current issues…

Recall a situation in your work or personal life in which you felt the need to extend beyond yourself in order to deal with it effectively. Consider situations like:
---- you were faced with a critical business or personal situation requiring an extraordinary response.
---- you were faced with a question of corporate social responsibility that required some soul-searching for an answer


How did you extend beyond yourself to deal with the situation?

What, if anything, happened with this change in consciousness??

What did you learn from the experience of extending beyond yourself?

What did you learn about yourself in the process?


I look forward to hearing from you and you’ll hear back from me if you share your thoughts!

All the best,

Alex

____________________________

Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.

author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts
founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 6: Shift Your Focus of Attention

Hello to everyone stopping by! This is the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS Conversation Series. I’m glad to see YOU if you’ve been following along and welcome you if this is your first time participating.

THREE WAYS TO PARTICIPATE:
Cast your vote in the The Meaning in Work and Life Survey

Visit Viktor Frankl commemorative exhibit at the Global Dialogue Center’s KNOWLEDGE GALLERY. It’s one you won’t want to miss! It serves as a backdrop for our conversation.

JOIN OUR CONTINUING CONVERSATION:
If you missed the first five principles, you may find it helpful to review them and I welcome your thoughts on any topic. I think you’ll benefit from the review as we move into Shift Your Focus of Attention So far, we have explored five of Viktor Frankl’s principles:

---- Principle 1: Exercise the freedom to choose your attitude
---- Principle 2: Realize your will to meaning
---- Principle 3: Detect the meaning of life’s moments
---- Principle 4: Don’t work against yourself
---- Principle 5: Look at yourself from a distance

PRINCIPLE 6: Shift Your Focus of Attention --- Deflect your attention from the problem situation to something else and build your coping mechanisms for dealing with stress and change.

This principle is particularly useful when you are faced with a difficult situation or decision to make. In the my book, I highlight a story of a man named Andy---a former executive with a major software company. He used to make more than $130,000 a year with great benefits. Suddenly, he found himself laid-off and unable to find a job that offered the same or similar responsibilities, status, salary and benefits. Instead, out of desperation, he found himself grasping at survival jobs offering considerably less.

Most important, Andy’s approach to dealing with this loss is a example for us all. Instead of allowing his life to be driven by frustration, money worries, shame or embarrassment, he managed to see himself as going forward instead of seeing this unexpected change as going backward. An avid golfer, he looked for jobs related to his hobby and landed a job at the pro shop, moving on later to selling golf equipment at a bigger store.

Andy learned a great deal since he was cut from his executive job in late 2001. Among other things, he’s been able to see the silver lining in what could have been, for him as it is for so many of his peers, a cloud of despair and a time of inner emptiness. Instead, he serves as a great role model for us in the way he was able to shift his focus to more important matters in his life and has discovered deeper, personal meaning in the process.

How about you??? How resilient are you??? Think of a time when you’ve been able to deflect the reality in your life and see a more positive side to it all.

The same skills that helped Andy can help us on the job or in our personal lives to deal with difficult people, situations or decisions. We all know complainers. At one time or another, we’ve all been one. When we get locked into our own complaining shadow and focus on all the bad stuff, we immediately lose sight of the good stuff. When we can learn to de-reflect---that is, shift our focus of attention--- from what is bothering us to a more positive target, we get a different insight into solving the problem before us.

The principle of de-reflection, Frankl would say, helps us to ignore those aspects of our life and work that should be ignored. It also helps to turn us away from being self-absorbed with our problems and directs us toward the true meanings that beg to be discovered by us. In effect, de-reflection encourages us to perceive something new in a situation so that we may let go of our old perceptions and ways of doing.

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De-reflection can only be attained to the degree to which…awareness is directed toward positive aspects.”
--- Viktor Frankl, The Doctor and the Soul
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PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION... Individual Reflection Activities
Consider these questions. Then TALK with us. Help everyone learn by sharing from your memories, experiences or current issues…

Recall a situation in your work or personal life from which you felt the need to shift your attention in order to deal with it effectively. Consider situations like:
---- you were faced with a critical business or family decision
---- you were thrust into an emergency situation requiring swift action
---- you found yourself in the middle of a personal crisis

How did you shift your focus from the situation to something else?

What if anything did you do as a result of your shift of focus?

What did you imagine or fanaticize?

What did you learn about your capacity for shifting the focus of your attention?

Looking back, what did you learn in the process?

I look forward to hearing from you and you’ll hear back from me!! All the best,

Alex

_______________________________________

Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.

author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts

founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 5: Look at Yourself from a Distance

Welcome to the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS dialogue series. I want to mention two additional ways you can participate:

Be sure to see the Viktor Frankl commemorative exhibit at the Global Dialogue Center KNOWLEDGE GALLERY. It is MEANINGFUL!

Share your opinions in the The Meaning in Work and Life Survey

OUR CONTINUING CONVERSATION:
So far in this dialogue series, we have explored four of Viktor Frankl’s principles:
---- Exercise the freedom to choose your attitude
---- Realize your will to meaning
---- Detect the meaning of life’s moments
---- Don’t work against yourself

If you missed the first four principles, I invite you to review them. Feel free to add your thoughts too. Others visiting will learn from your thinking and experiences. I do think you will benefit from the review as we move on to the 5th principle.

PRINCIPLE 5: Look at Yourself from a Distance --- Only human beings possess the capacity to look at themselves out of some perspective or distance, including the uniquely human trait known as your sense of humor.

In my book, Prisoners of Our Thoughts, I share a story that highlights this principle: The ad in a London ‘Unemployed. Brilliant mind offers its services completely free; the survival of the body must be provided for by adequate salary.’ Viktor Frankl quoted this ad in his book, The Doctor and the Soul to make an important point about the different ways that people may respond to being unemployed. To be sure, Frankl was not in any way suggesting that unemployment is not a serious matter; on the contrary, he emphasizes that being unemployed is a ‘tragedy because a job is the only source of livelihood for most people.’

In this example, we can see that the person who placed the ad in the London newspaper turned a dire situation into something humorous because she was able to put some distance between herself and the issue at hand. The ad also reflects both her sense of humor and her innate, distinctly human, capacity to look at herself in a detached way and rise above her predicament.

This quality if truly a gift! Interestingly, having a sense of humor is usually accompanied by cheerfulness. This is another one of those misleading words. Most cheerful people I know have experienced real tragedy in their lives. Real cheerfulness is not have-a-nice-day artifice. It’s a way of experiencing the present, no matter what the weight of the world or the weather. Cheerfulness celebrates the possibilities of meaning around every corner. It buoys us up beyond our individual concerns and invites us and others around us to find something to be happy about. This doesn’t mean we hide behind cheerfulness. We simply lighten up, raise ourselves up and sometimes have a good laugh.

Viktor Frankl in his lectures and writings talked about the value of having a sense of humor. He described a kind of cabaret that was improvised in the concentration camp. The entertainment took the form of songs, poems, jokes and even stand-up comedy, some with underlying satire regarding the experiences in the camp. Frankl reported that any pursuit of art within the camp might seem somewhat grotesque, but the lesson was that it was possible to find a sense of humor in even the worst of circumstances.

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We know that humor is a paramount way of putting distance between something and oneself. One might say as well, that humor helps man rise above his own predicament by allowing him to look at himself in a more detached way.”
--- Viktor Frankl, Psychotherapy and Existentialism
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PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION... Individual Reflection Activities
Consider these questions from your own experience.

Can you recall a situation in your work or life when you felt the need to distance yourself before you could find a proper resolution to the situation (e.g., perhaps this was a business decision that wasn’t aligned with your values or an emergency situation that required swift action.)

How did you distance or detach yourself from the situation?

How did you distance or detach yourself from YOURSELF, so you could objectively look at your own behavior and actions?

What did you learn from it?

What did you learn about your capacity for self-detachment?

What role, if any, did humor play in helping you through the situation?

Looking back, what would you have done differently?

I look forward to hearing from you. I'll be checking in from time to time and look forward learning from you about what you’ve learned about looking at yourself from a distance!

All the best,

Alex

____________________________

Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.

author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts

founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 4 - Don't Work Against Yourself

Welcome to the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS conversation series.
So far we have explored three of Viktor Frankl’s principles:
---- Exercise the Freedom to Choose Your Attitude
---- Realize Your Will to Meaning
---- Detect the Meaning of Life’s Moments

If you missed these posts, I invite you to review them and add your thoughts!!!. I think you will benefit from the review as we move on to the fourth principle.

PRINCIPLE 4: --- Don’t work against yourself
Avoid becoming so obsessed with or fixated on an intent or outcome that you actually work against the desired result.

Have you ever worked so hard at something that the more you tried the harder the task became and the farther away it seemed you got from your goal? In such situations, it is common for us to cast the blame on everyone or anyone else... or at least to shift bulk of responsibility for failing to reach our objectives on to others. In Prisoners of Our Thoughts, I share a personal example of working against myself---one that had far-reaching implications and meaningful lessons. In reflection, I had several realizations:

• I had tried too hard to get everything done “my way.”
• This in turn, estranged me from the colleagues who were essential to the overall success I was working to achieve.
• My fixation on the “right” way to do things, marginalized the contribution of others involved, including subtle sabotage.
• Paradoxically, I had become my own worst enemy and didn’t even know it.

Even when the stakes are high and our success essential, focusing on the results rather than the process can actually get in the way of a successful outcome. We all know how it works: our nervousness and anxiety about “getting it right” keep us from getting it right. The higher our expectations about something, the more disconnected we are from the actual accomplishment of it all and the less able we are to participate in its successful unfolding. Our good intentions actually become the cause of our failure.

Viktor Frankl calls this paradoxical intention. When a specific success is so fervently sought that we overlook and neglect the relationships that are an integral part of the process, we lay the seed for something to go wrong. We fly in the face of our own success. We neglect our own meaning, the meaning of others, and the meaning of the process.

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“The job at which one works is not what counts, but rather the manner in which one does the work. --- Viktor Frankl, The Doctor and the Soul
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Consider these questions from you own experience…and write in to tell us your story. This will help us all learn from the process...

Can you recall a situation in your work life in which the harder you worked to achieve an outcome the farther away you seemed to be from the goal?

What made you recognize that you were not making progress?

How did you rationalize or justify your dilemma? Who did you blame?

To what extent did you feel you were working against yourself?

What did you do about it? What did you learn from it?

I welcome hearing from you and will enjoy reading your posts. I'll be checking in from time to time and look forward learning from you about what you’ve learned about the value in not working against yourself.

All the best,

Alex

____________________________

Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.

author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts

founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 3 - Detect the Meaning in Life's Moments

Welcome to the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS conversation series. I'm glad to "see" you if this is your first visit --- and I welcome you back if you were here previously.

We have worked on the first two of Viktor Frankl’s principles, Exercise the Freedom to Choose Your Attitude and Realize Your Will to Meaning. If you missed these posts, take time to review them. I think you will benefit from the review as we move on to the third principle.

PRINCIPLE 3: Detect the Meaning of Life’s Moments --- only you can answer for your own life by detecting the meaning at any given moment and assuming responsibility for weaving your unique tapestry of existence.

We don’t create meaning; we find it. And we can’t find it if we don’t look for it. Meaning comes to us in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes it looms big in our lives; sometimes it slips in almost unobserved. Sometimes we miss a meaningful moment entirely until days, months, or even years go by and then suddenly something that once seemed insignificant becomes a pivotal, life-changing moment. Sometimes, too, it is the collective meaning of many moments that finally catches our mind’s eye; as if we weave together a living quilt from patches of moments that, by themselves, would have passed us by unnoticed. And although we are not always aware of it, meaning, Frankl would say, is in every present moment. …All we have to do, in our daily life and at work, is to wake up to meaning and take notice.

“Live as if you were living already for the second time and as if you had acted the first time as wrongly as you are about to act now! …The true meaning of life is to be discovered in the world rather than within man or his own psyche… --- Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

It all comes down to awareness. In this regard, it has been said that “it is more important to be aware than it is to be smart.” To be aware is to know meaning. To be aware takes time. It asks more of us. If our lives are propelled by nothing but things piling up to respond to or the passive preoccupation with television, we lose out on meaning. We have to see, hear, smell, touch, and taste meaning if it’s going to exist in our lives.

PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION... Individual Action & Reflection Activities
With this third Detect the Meaning of Life’s Moments principle, I want to encourage you to get personally involved. To really take away the full meaning of this principle, you must experience the meaning in it yourself. You need to discover it.

Two Ways to Experience the Meaning for Yourself: 

In the chapter, Detect the Meaning of Life’s Moments (Page 79) in Prisoners of Our Thoughts, there are two exercises beginning on page 93. One is called High Altitude Thinking and one is called the Eulogy Exercise. Read about them and do one or both. Come back and tell us about the meaning you discovered for yourself and bring your questions.

Recall a situation in your work life in which you were forced to deal with the fear of change (this may even be your situation today). Perhaps you were:

--- Facing a down-sizing or merger
--- A change in management/leadership style
--- The need for job re-training
--- Retirement or other major life change impacting your work

How did you first come to recognize the fear of change?
What if anything, did you actually do about it?
What did you learn from it? What meaning did you discover in it?
What did you learn about your ability to confront your fears and respond to change?

I invite you to share your thoughts and experiences…ask a question, share an opinion. I welcome hearing from you and will enjoy reading your posts. I'll be checking in from time to time and look forward learning from you about how you are working to detect the meaning of life’s moments.

All the best,

Alex

___________________________________
Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.
author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts
founder, Center for Meaning

Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 2 - Realize Your Will to Meaning

Welcome to the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS conversation series. I'm glad to "see" you and welcome you back if you visited previously for the first of Viktor Frankl’s principles, Exercise the Freedom to Choose Your Attitude. If you missed the post, I think you will benefit from reviewing it as we move on to the second principle: PRINCIPLE 2: REALIZE YOUR WILL TO MEANING --- commit authentically to meaningful values and goals that only you can actualize and fulfill. Unlike Sigmund Freud’s belief that as human beings we are driven by our will for pleasure, known as the Pleasure Principle, or Alfred Adler’s belief in our striving for superiority or will for power, Frankl considers our main concern as people to be fulfilling a meaning and actualizing values --- will to meaning --- rather than simply the gratification and satisfaction of drives and instincts. In Prisoners of Our Thoughts, I cite a number of business examples we all recognize for each of these principles: · Will to Pleasure – Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski’s $2 Million birthday bash that he threw for his wife at company expense. · Will to Power – Ken Lay (Enron) and Bernie Ebbers (Worldcom). · Will to Meaning - Those CEOs, who although they may also want (or seek) pleasure and authority, demonstrate that the primary motivation for their existence is neither. Bill Hewlett and David Packard demonstrated Frankl’s will to meaning principle, building Hewlett-Packard from a one-car garage into one of the world’s most admired success stories. It was a particular set of meaningful values, known as The HP Way that guided them in identifying and meeting their objectives, in working with one another, and in dealing with customers, shareholders, employees and others. "A man who becomes conscious of the responsibility he bears toward a human being who affectionately waits for him, or to an unfinished work, will never be able to throw away his life. He knows the ‘why’ for his existence, and will be able to bear almost any ‘how’.” --- Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION... I'd like know what you've experienced ... and observed in your work and everyday life. Recall a situation in your work life where you were challenged to examine your commitment to meaningful values or goals. This may even be your current situation. Perhaps it was or is a job assignment that isn’t lining up with your personal values. Perhaps you were or are just unhappy with the work you are doing. Consider these questions… · How did you first recognize this challenge? What were the first signs? · What, if anything, did you do? What would you like to do? · How to you ensure that you remain committed to meaningful values and goals, thereby realizing your will to meaning at work or in your workplace? We had well over 100 people come to READ the Prisoners of Our Thoughts discussion in January and we had a few BRAVE friends who posted. As we move on, getting to know one another better, I invite you to share your thoughts and experiences. I'll be checking in from time to time and look forward learning about how you have recognized and continue to realize your will to meaning. All the best, Alex ___________________________ Alex Pattakos, Ph.D. author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts founder, Center for Meaning Visit the Viktor Frankl COLLECTION at the Global Dialogue Center

Principle 1 - Exercise the Freedom to Choose Your Attitude

Welcome to the PRISONERS OF OUR THOUGHTS conversation series.
I'm glad to "see" you and look forward to getting to know each of you over time as we explore finding deeper meaning and fulfillment in life and work.

Let me start by having you think about a couple of questions:

Why do some people seem to have an easier time dealing with complex and challenging situations than others?

Why do some people seem more capable of dealing with change than others?

Recently, we have all had the opportunity to witness these differences, seeing the power of the human spirit in the worst of situations. It is timely that we start this series by exploring the first of Viktor Frankl's core principles:

PRINCIPLE 1: EXERCISE THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE---in all situations, no matter how desperate they may appear or actually be, you always have the ultimate freedom to choose your attitude.

"Everything can be taken from a man but---the last of the human freedoms---to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's way." ---Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

PUTTING MEANING INTO THIS CONVERSATION...
I'd like know what you've experienced ... and observed in your work and everyday life. Recall a situation in which you consciously exercised the freedom to choose your attitude about it. This could even be your current situation or one where you were confronted by a co-worker or difficult boss or unexpected change in the past. What was your initial attitude? How did it change? Did you actually "do" anything to change your attitude? If you have a difficult time focusing on yourself at first, think about your observation and inspirations of others that might help us all apply this principle in our own lives.

Talk with me. I look forward to learning from your thoughts and experiences.

All the best,

Alex

_____________________________
Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.
author, Prisoners of Our Thoughts
founder, Center for Meaning