Humility (never enough) – Page 2 – Disney Leadership Keynote Speaker

Why did i fail so predictably in the past?

Rainy, cold night in Bethlehem, PA — From the rear driver’s side window, returning to Senior Living Facility from a party. i could see clearly, but the iPhone lens saw it differently.

Why did i fail so predictably in the past? And why i no longer do.

Wasn’t willing to fight like hell for it
Denied, unintentionally, that i was more comfortable not changing
Didn’t feel guilty in failing because so many others failed too
Subconsciously was afraid of what i’d have to commit to if i succeeded

The awakening came when i became a teacher and i saw so many teachers who only preached what should be done, but were too weak to practice it themselves.

i became disgusted with living a lie.

And that was the catalyst that changed everything.

It really comes down to overcoming the victim mentality, which proliferates and justifies excuses – it literally is like being a blind man and then, miraculously, having your eyesight restored.

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On April Fool’s Day 2009, jeff noel began writing five daily, differently-themed blogs (on five different sites). It was to be a 100-day self-imposed “writer’s bootcamp”, in preparation for writing his first book. He hasn’t missed a single day since.

This website is about our mental attitude. To easily and safely leave this site to read today’s post on jeff’s physical health website, click here.

Most ambitious person at Disney Institute?

i love the classroom button — In the classroom, or on the stage, i’ll hold up my ambition to transform others against any other speaker anywhere. Unafraid. Confident. Driven. And nearly invisibly, humble.

Most ambitious person at Disney Institute?

Last week at Gold’s Gym i bumped into a 20+ year Disney Cast Member with a diverse and acclaimed resume. He has helped Disney Institute on some big projects, yet we never worked together – we know the same people though.

He is feeling stuck in his career and is looking to enroll in an advanced degree.

i offered him an alternative thought.

Shared with him (because the conversation led us to this) that a new leader at Disney Institute (DI) became my boss and in our very first one-on-one meeting, i said, “We need to address the elephant in the room. Thirty years at Disney, 15 of them at DI, and i remain a facilitator. Why?”

He, with two Master’s degrees, wasn’t clear on where i was going with the point, so i continued, “Generally we think of ambition as climbing the ladder vertically – a tangible measurement. But i have chosen a different path; to stay at the lowest level. But make no mistake, i’m the most ambitious person on our team.”

Insight: Not everything that can be measured matters and not everything that matters can be measured.

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This website is about our mental attitude. To leave this site to read today’s post on my physical health website, click here.

How many miracles does each human get?

KOHLS 2015 National Conference — KOHL’S 2015 National Conference about to kickoff.

We get a few, plus or minus one handful, of miracles in life.

Today doesn’t equate to:

Being born
Being American
Surviving two potentially deadly car accidents.
Marrying Cheryl
Finding land behind Magic Kingdom
Overcoming disability and becoming a parent

But today does equate to a close second. And is simply this. Today is Mid Life Celebration’s first paid speaking engagement. The client paid the entire asking price – the same price Disney Institute can ask for.

Another close second is years ago entirely by serendipity, Lee Cockerell and i began a trusted friendship.

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Should we try it if the benefits could be staggering?

(photo: Six months is a long time. Imagine an entire year.)

You know the coolest thing about an intensely positive attitude?

You are ok doing the craziest experiments that:

No one else is even thinking of doing.
No one else would even dream of succeeding at it.

Twelve more days to complete one year of not using I, Me, my, or mine.

Not in:

Five blogs a day. And yes, that’s 1,865 posts.
Not in emails for Disney.
Not in emails for MLC.
Not in personal emails.
Not in a single social media update, reply, comment. Not one. For a year.

To be honest, it’s insane.

But some unexpected Magic happened.

Have you ever tried it? For a day? A week? Longer?

See how crazy it is.

The benefits are staggering.

First up was learning an invisible (unknown) definition of humility.

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Humbled by the mental aging process

(photo: Three days, two nights at the Nursing Home and Assisted Living facility)

Humbled by the mental aging process.

Spend one day in the Senior Living facility and adjacent Nursing home and you easily become overwhelmed with the choices we think we have as we age.

History shows that middle aged adults aren’t taking any of these choices seriously.

If attitude really is everything we’ve been led to believe it is….

Guess it’s up to us to manage it and ultimately, to prove it.

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