I'm a firm believer in the idiom that eventually everything comes full circle. However, my definition of "come full circle" is slightly different than most. There are two prevailing definitions: - To make a complete change or reform.
- To complete a cycle of transition, returning to the point of origin.
While I agree with these definitions, my definition states: Eventually, everyone gets what they give. What I mean here is if you're consistently doing good, or bad, you are going to get that in return.
The key to coming full circle is to be consistent with your "giving." If you consistently give good, then you will consistently get good, and vice versa.
If you think of your actions within the coming full circle ideal, you're liable to be more conscious of your actions, and maybe give more good.
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Advances in transportation (mainly flying) and communications (satellite/cellular technology and the internet) have "flattened" the world. We are able to get anywhere on the planet via commercial transportation in roughly twenty-four hours, and we can contact just about anywhere on the planet whenever needed.
How much are these capabilities worth? It's hard to put a value on transportation when you really need to get somewhere and communications when you really need to speak with someone. The easiest way to put this into perspective is to use a couple of simple examples.
If you've ever been away from home when a loved one has become gravely ill, you know the value of jumping the next airplane on short notice to get home. It's usually costly to do this, but at that point in time no cost is too much to get to the side of a sick loved one. The value of transportation for this example is almost infinite, because you would go to great lengths to get to where you need to be.
Likewise, if you are a business traveler with a family, you know the value of being able to pick up the phone and call home, or jump on the Internet and chat or have a web video conference with your family any time, any place. This capability, while not the same as physically being with your family, is the next best thing.
The ability to travel anywhere on the planet on short notice, and connect via cell phone and Internet have made these capabilities invaluable to many. It's hard to quantify the value of these capabilities because when you need them, there value is limitless.
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Often we are hearing, but not listening. The majority of us muddle through life hearing many, many things, but we're not really paying attention to what is actually being said -- not really listening.
We talk just to hear ourselves talk. We are so anxious to get our idea out in a conversation, we don't listen to what the other person is saying -- we're just looking to interject with our idea.
Hearing is something we do naturally. We automatically hear and process sound. Listening is something we choose to do. We choose to listen during a conversation.
Listening requires complete attention and is how we learn. The more we listen, the more we learn.
Next time you find yourself anxious to interject during a conversation, take a moment to really listen to what the other person is saying.
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People often ask me what I do for hobbies. I have always found this a difficult question to answer. It took me a while to figure it out, but I've arrived at the conclusion that I'm not a "hobby guy." I don't do boats, bikes, cars, coins, stamps, etc. I have taken to just saying life is my hobby.
For me, life consists of three pillars: family, work and exercise (the triumvirate). These are my hobbies and they take up all of my time. Sure, I dabble in extracurricular activities outside this triumvirate, but I don't do these activities regularly enough to categorize them as hobbies. If I add anything to the family/work/exercise equation, then one of the three suffers, and I must weigh the cost and benefit.
I'm not saying hobbies are bad. In fact, I appreciate when folks are able to balance their life and include hobbies. I appreciate when someone is truly passionate about their hobby. Any activity that invokes a passion that would cause me to shuffle the family/work/exercise equation is the true definition of a hobby.
How about you? Is life your hobby, or do you have other passions?
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Is it worth your time to attempt that home improvement project, or should you pay the professional to come in and do the job? Is it worth the personal time cost and hassle to do it yourself? At what point is the financial cost so great that it makes the personal time cost worth it? How about volunteering for that "good cause?" Do you want to use precious personal time for volunteerism? These are questions I find myself asking more and more lately.
I had a recent example of weighing financial cost with personal time cost. I was looking to put up a small fence section to keep the dog in the yard. When I say small, I mean small -- it was less than twenty feet of fence anchored on four fence posts. A handyman quoted six hundred dollars for the job (not including the four hundred dollars for materials). For less than twenty feet of fencing on four fence posts, that quote seemed high to me. I opted to install the fence on my own.
I don't really have a formula for deciding what the cost/benefit ratio should be, I just wing it. If my gut tells me the cost is too expensive, and the project looks like fun and is something I may be able to handle myself, then I'll do it myself. But, if you like the empirical approach, a simple formula would be to ask yourself how much you think your time is worth and multiply that by your estimate of how long the job will take, then compare it to the professional quote.
The volunteering question is slightly more problematic. Volunteering for a good cause is a wonderfully enriching experience. Your efforts are helping someone/something, which makes you feel great, but you can't volunteer for everything. There has to be a limit to what you freely give of your time.
Many financial planners will tell you to first pay yourself -- make sure to first set aside money for you. I categorize personal time the same way. If you don't set aside personal time for yourself, nobody else will. In fact, people will have no problem finding things to do with your personal time.
If you are not ruthlessly protective of your personal time, you will soon find you won't have any.
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It's hard to do a job without the right tools. Sure, you can toil away with an ill-fitted wrench on that nut hoping eventually it will break its hold, or you can take a little extra time (and ultimately save time) to get the right tools for the job.
We've all had projects that seemed so simple on paper. Went to Home Depot, read the cartoonized step-by-step instructions for laying that new ceramic tile floor, and said: I can save some money by doing it myself -- only to get home and realize that you really don't have the tools for the job.
The right tool does not have to be a physical implement. It could be access to a particular store of knowledge gained from hours of practical execution.
A true professional not only has the proper knowledge and expertise in their given trade, but also the right tools. You can have all the knowledge in the world, but if you can't supplement that knowledge with the instruments to complete the job, the knowledge is useless.
If you're going to do a job, save yourself the time and hassle and get the right tools.
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That's an old sports theory that I believe also applies to life.
The sports theory posits: As you execute more repetitions in practice and acquire more game-time experiences, the game itself tends to "slow" down. The game slows down in the sense that you are able to anticipate events, more quickly understand indicators and make quicker, more accurate decisions, which ultimately leads to a heightened level of execution. The slowing down of the game makes it much easier to play and be successful.
Life is the same way. As your life's experiences compound, things slow down. You are able to make more timely, better educated decisions. You are able to see life's playing field from a broader perspective -- understanding more completely the subtleties that help you navigate the many challenges life puts before you.
The key to slowing life down is repetition -- otherwise known as experiences. The more you experience, the more you learn, the better you live.
Challenge yourself to be open to new experiences, keep learning and life will slow down.
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That's actually a line from the movie Rocky. If you're not familiar with the movie, that line was delivered by Rocky during an argument with Paulie. Paulie, a down-on-his-luck butcher/meat packer, was trying to get Rocky to get him a job as an enforcer for the local bookie, and thought that just because he was friends with Rocky, Rocky owed him. Rocky tells Paulie that friends don't owe, they do because they want to do.
Not sure why that line continues to resonate with me. If I had to guess, it would probably be because, as a society, we've become reliant on other people for things, or maybe less responsible for our actions. Instead of taking responsibility for our actions, we're more apt to try to pass blame on others, or solve our problems by leaning on someone else for solutions.
Sure, it's okay to lean on friends in times of trouble. After all, that's a trait of a true friend -- the person who will drop everything at a moments notice to help you when you are truly in need of assistance. But, you should be very selective with when you choose to reach out for that support. It should truly be a time of trouble, and not some random problem you can solve by yourself with a little hard work or acceptance of responsibility.
True friends will always be there to support you, no matter what. Just be judicious with your expectations.
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I'm a firm believer in the idiom that eventually everything comes full circle. However, my definition of "come full circle" is slightly different than most. There are two prevailing definitions: 
