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Name of author Rick Baker, P.Eng.

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Let's not stumble along purposeless roads...let's construct better paths.

by Rick Baker
On Sep 14, 2020

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

"A person with clear purpose will make progress even on the roughest road. A person with no purpose will make no progress even on the smoothest road."

Thomas Carlyle, Scottish philosopher (1795-1881) 

***

When I think about this I wonder if it would be better said - A person with clear purpose makes progress despite the roughness of the road.

Then I wonder if it should be - A person with clear purpose will make progress because of the roughness of the road.

And...

The smoother the road the less likely you will reach your long-term destination.

The smoother the road the less likely you will know or achieve your long-term purpose.

And finally...friends...

Let's not stumble along purposeless roads...let's construct better paths.

 

 

 

Ask value-packed questions. Allow time for people to think, express themselves, and provide value-packed answers.

by Rick Baker
On Sep 13, 2020

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

Part of it is being curious. Part of it is seeking to understand. Part of it is 'Planning Your Work'. 

Much of it is being present and listening.

And you can call it Communication.

Why can't the glass be both half-full and half-empty?

by Rick Baker
On Jun 14, 2020

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

Is your glass at least half-full and half-empty?

Rather than limit people to 2 ways of thinking and claiming one is optimistic and the other pessimistic, we ought to encourage people to view Situations and People's actions from multiple perspectives...by, for example, encouraging people to use tools like Edward de Bono's 'Six Thinking Hats'.

In some Situations, it is appropriate to consider what has been added while in others it is appropriate to consider what has been subtracted. Sometimes we need to consider possibilities. Other times we need to identify the need for urgent action. 

This goes beyond optimism, pessimism, and realism. While that 'mindset' differentiation may be important, with people or with situations, it also may not be important.

Situations & People deserve a lot more thinking than optimism/pessimism tests.

PS: That glass-half-full-glass-half-empty saying has always annoyed me. It is too cliché and it puts people into a 2-dimensional box when all of us know we live in at least a 3-dimensional world.

Tags:

Optimism & Pessimism | Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | Thought Tweets

Don’t blame ‘lack of time’ when the real culprit is personal disorganization and self-imposed mayhem.

by Rick Baker
On May 19, 2020

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

If you free up a few moments, step back, ask yourself "How much time do I have?", and spend some quality time thinking before answering you just might find:

  1. You have only the present time, just like everyone else on the planet.
  2. Just like every other person on the planet, you really have no clue about how much time you have beyond the present moment.
If you think you don't have time you are right....at least from 2 perspectives:
  1. Like Henry Ford, paraphrased, "If you think you do or don't have time you're right."
  2. As any good philosopher or physicist will tell you - Time is an abstract concept...offering nothing tangible for you to possess

Negative thinking cannot be band-aided into insignificance: it is a thick, multi-layered, multi-textured problem.

by Rick Baker
On Apr 21, 2020

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

When you witness negativity, what do you think?

  • Do you have the ability to understand the negative person's position/situation/perspective?

When you witness negativity, what do you do?

  • Do you deliver the help that is required, to the extent you have the ability to help?

What if that negativity you witness is your own?

 

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning." Einstein

by Rick Baker
On Apr 19, 2020

The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet

Good Questions are a, perhaps even the, key to excellence.

Good Questions [to oneself] can maximize Self-knowledge.

Good Questions can lead to excellent communication…and life-long relationships.

Good Questions can lead to excellent Sales Performance.

Copyright © 2012. W.F.C (Rick) Baker. All Rights Reserved.