Book Review: Tidying Up

I’m having a weird moment as I write this latest book recommendation.

After having done a number of these recommendations over the years, I wonder if you all know a little too much about my issues. Sure, I over share on a daily basis (ask the staff) and tend to be pretty open about my life. However, at what point do you all say, “OK, Paul. Got it.” I don’t think this is the one, but I may be getting close. 

I have a bunch of stuff that I don’t need. From books, clothes, college t-shirts, old concert tickets, and junk drawers (yes, that’s plural), to my office (don’t get me started about organizers), I am realizing yet again how much crap I accumulate. One of the best things about getting engaged and planning to share your life with someone is the inevitable question of “Are you going to keep that?” which is said in such a loving and caring way by your soon to be partner when you know that they are questioning their decision should you respond affirmatively. Oh the fun. Anyway…

So I made the mistake or the good decision of picking up the book by Marie Kondo, “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” and sharing it with my fiancé. I knew it was a good book when she stole it from me and finished it in two days. I knew I would also be impacted by it when she told me to read it immediately. Yep, she told me, didn’t ask. Love her to death. 

Anyway, wow. I was blown away by the mental approach to tidying up being more important than the actual tidying up. If something doesn’t bring you joy when you look at it or touch it, why do you keep it? Damn you, Kondo. Throw my stuff right back in my face why don’t you?!! I’ve looked at clothes I don’t wear any more (bachelor days) and items that irritate me (broken holiday lights), and didn’t bat an eye. Just took it for being a part of my life that was accepted. 

Now, I’m out of control. First of all, “tidying up” is such a better way to say “get rid of your crap” so I don’t avoid it as much. The book’s approach is all about the feel of going through your belongings than it is the actual act of decluttering. Love that. Love the way that I look at my home in a different way. Love the way it makes me think about what is important in life. Love the way that it brings my future partner and I together to be intentional about what we want in our lives. Actually make decisions about what we want in our lives. 

So I did what everyone does when they discover something cool…I posted it to Facebook. By the response from my friends, I’m not the only that has enjoyed the book. I hope you pick it up and feel the same. 

Now back to that pile of clothes in the middle of my bedroom…

Paul

PlayerLeak

Towson University recently celebrated its 10 Year Anniversary partnering with LeaderShape to offer the Institute program at their institution. We are excited to highlight some history and personal experiences from administrators, participants, and facilitators in this blog series.

This post is from 2008 Institute graduate Chris "CP" Patterson. CP graduated from Towson University with a bachelor's degree in Sports Management and a minor in Business. He lives in Maryland with his wife Jenna and dog Raegan. He works full-time both as a Startup co-founder for PLayerLeak and as an IT Project Management consultant for the State Department. In his free time, CP can be found weight training, reading a good book, listening to music, watching a good movie, hanging out with friends, traveling, or building up his crazy sneaker collection. CP's current goal is to help build the world's largest sports network.

How did you get involved with LeaderShape?

My supervisor nominated me for LeaderShape’s Institute program during my sophomore year of college. At the time I was a student employee in the admissions office call center, assisting prospective students and their parents with checking on the status of their applications to attend Towson University. Up to that point, I had been a good student and enjoyed the typical college experience, but had mostly just been “going through the motions”. My supervisor thought it would be a great jump-start for me to participate in the Institute. So, I agreed to do it. I’ll always appreciate the fact that she considered me for the program.

What from your experience at the Institute do you still carry with you?

So much. I still carry with me the awesome memories with my family cluster, the fun activities we participated in together, the workshops, and being around other visionaries and motivated students. There were late night card games, board games, and snowball fights during the day; it was a lot of fun. The camaraderie was awesome. I would say you really find out a lot about yourself and, in the process, share that with others, which brings you closer. I formed great bonds with a few of my suite mates with whom I still try and keep in touch. I remember how when we got back to campus from our session, the majority of our family cluster would still get together to just hang out. We were all so used to being together during that week and we had all gotten so close that it was hard NOT to be together at first. So we would pick someone’s place and all meet up to just hang out, watch a movie or just talk about the highlights of the week. It was pretty cool.

It was great to see that a number of the students who attended my session would go on to become more involved and assume leadership positions in and around the University. There would be students who would go on to join SGA, lead Greek organizations, run campus shops or centers, mentor other students, create their own sports clubs, become a key player on their varsity sports team, and build organizations of their own, among other things. You really saw students put into action their plans to reach the goals they set for themselves and  step up to lead and help in shaping the future of TU’s student body. It was an honor to be a part of that.

Tell us about PlayerLeak

PlayerLeak is a player development network that helps athletes get to the next level. The platform allows a player to create a digital profile to help build their sports network, promote themselves, and collaborate with other people in the community to progress.

PlayerLeak has a unique feature called a Sports Map, our collaborative goal setting tool. This is where the player can list out goals they would like to achieve and their coaches, teammates, fans and other connections can offer advice and support to help them along. It’s a great way for athletes to help each other get to the next level, and stay motivated and encouraged in their pursuit of achieving their goals.

We believe that by building a dedicated sport networking community, with a focus on collaboration and goal achievement, that we will help participants increase their opportunities and enjoy an overall enhanced sports experience.

What from your Institute experience has influenced or helped you with this project?

One of the most helpful things from my Institute experience that has helped me with this project, and in life in general, is practicing goal setting. At the Institute, we had binders that we carried with us throughout the week, which we used during our group activities to document and complete exercises. By the time we left the institute, we all listed goals in our binder we would like to achieve as we returned to campus. I was fortunate to have achieved at least two of the major goals I set for myself (starting a club basketball team and joining a fraternity). This simple practice of listing goals and going for them is something I have practiced since my institute experience, and I strongly believe that it has helped me to stay focused and excel in the things that I want to do. From starting this project, to the day to day operations of overseeing the project, to goals for our team to reach together, to where we are now, goal setting has helped increase our chances of succeeding in whatever it is we have set out to accomplish

We believe in goal setting so much that it has become a central theme of PlayerLeak, and the inspiration behind our Sports Map feature. This feature is a collaborative goal-setting tool that allows users to list a sports goal and three steps to achieve this goal (or you can list 3 individual goals). You are able to receive comments, positive encouragement, or advice on your Sports Map and the goals you have set, from your connections.  It also shows you your connections with Sports Map so that you can return the favor and share support or advice. It’s an easy way to get your in-season/off-season goals down and stay motivated toward achieving them, as well as receiving help if needed.

What hopes and goals do you have for PlayerLeak?

The goal for our team is to bring the sports community together in one place to advance the athlete, encourage player development, and increase the chances of opportunity for everyone involved in sports.

• We also hope to use the platform we have to make a meaningful impact and be involved in giving back to our sports communities in need.
• We hope to build an environment of collaboration, encouragement, and progress, for players, teams, and coaches worldwide.
• We hope that someday PlayerLeak will have played a role in an athlete or a team reaching their desired level of success.
• We hope that our Sports Map feature becomes a helpful goal setting tool for players, teams, and coaches, and will help motivate those who are a part of the community to reach their goals in sports.
• We also hope that PlayerLeak will become a great outlet for those in sports who have become successful or professionals, to reach back to the community and help guide the next generation toward achieving their goals – by offering feedback to users who have Sports Maps in their area of expertise.
• We envision positively changing the standard of interaction and communication, and providing, for following generations, access to the world’s largest sports networking platform, to pursue their goals and experience greater enjoyment.
• We hope that one day, when others begin to think about what they want to achieve or experience in sports, that their next thought is to sign up for PlayerLeak, build their profile, add goals to their Sports Map, and start to build their network to help them on their way. That would be a dream come true for us.

#Day7: Encouragement

At the Institute and in our other LeaderShape programs, we talk about the power of community. We approach this concept in a multitude of ways because there are so many facets to building, forming, contributing to, and growing with and as a community. Beyond our programs, we as an organization have been engaging in a lot of conversations over the past year about the LeaderShape community in particular. Community is on our minds. Community is everywhere. 

Communities go through stages, ups and downs, times of struggle, times of togetherness. There are times when community members benefit from challenge and there are times when they benefit from encouragement. 

Enter Doug the Pug. In this video he spreads happiness by surprising strangers with notes of kindness. He is about encouraging a sense of community. 

Yes, it's an animal video. And still, a reminder that a short note or a few words can encourage, inspire, support, cheer, and share love. A reminder that a few words can make someone feel important, feel seen, and feel valued. Actively participating in and perpetuating a strong community in this way keeps the spirit of the Institute's Day 1 theme of Building Community alive and in action. It is a way to live in #Day7.

Who can you encourage today? What words of kindness and encouragement can you offer to someone in your community? Have your answer? Now go tell them. 

Partnerships and Milestones

Each year it’s exciting to take a look at the milestones of our organizational and campus-based Institute sessions. These milestones are important to us because one of the things they represent is our on-going partnerships with institutions that are also committed to making our campuses, organizations, communities, and world the best that they can be.

We are serious about the partnerships we build. This work, the work of creating a just, caring, and thriving world, is work we cannot do alone. It is work that our partners, board members, participants, facilitators, and other community members cannot do alone. But we can make an impact together. Together we create positive change.

Although we recognized our milestone partners at Program Coordinator training in October, many will have their actual milestone session over the summer. If you catch any posts or tweets from them, share our appreciation by offering them an encouragement or message of congratulations. Because we are all in this together.

Cheers to all of our 85 campus and organization partners and to those planning and participating in the 99 sessions that will occur in 2015! And a very special tip of the hat to those who are celebrating a milestone this year.

5 years

Association of Fraternal Leadership and Values

James Graham Brown Foundation

University of California-Berkeley

University of Iowa

University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

University of North Texas

University of Tennessee-Knoxville

University of Texas-San Antonio

10 years

George Mason University

University of Texas-Pan American

15 years

University of North Carolina-Charlotte

20 years

Michigan Technological University
University of Georgia

Imagine a World Where…

Earlier this month we partnered with ACPA on a project for their national convention in Tampa, FL. In the marketplace of the convention we set up a booth and invited people to reflect on and respond to this statement: “Imagine a World Where…”.

And this is what happened.

At the Institute we talk about "embracing a healthy disregard for the impossible." The responses to this prompt truly brought this idea to life. Each person who contributed can see potential in the world. Our campuses, communities, and countries can be better when we embrace the possibility that contributing to the causes and people we care about will indeed create the world we imagine. And through the variety of lenses and experiences that others in our community give voice to, we become open to possibilities that we didn't even consider individually. 

Our challenge to the LeaderShape community is to remember each day how we want to see the world. To make decisions that support the creation of the world we imagine. This is how we build a just, caring, and thriving world.

To our friends who weren’t able to join us at ACPA… what is your response to this prompt? How are you helping to create that world? Tell us in the comment section.

Dates Announced!

The LeaderShape Institute provides a transformative learning experience for those who attend, engage, and participate. The six day program gives participants an opportunity to explore their values and develop a vision for something they care about. They do this work in community with others as they embrace a healthy disregard for the impossible. It is a program we believe in deeply and are honored to work on year after year. 

It's no wonder we are excited to announce the dates for the 2015 national sessions of the Institute! This year we will be holding 4 national sessions in 3 locations. 

• Sunday, May 17 - Friday, May 22
  (Boston, MA)
• Sunday, July 19 - Friday, July 24
  (Champaign, IL)
• Saturday, July 25 - Thursday, July 30

  (Atlanta, GA)
• Sunday, July 26 - Friday, July 31
  
(Champaign, IL)

We are fortunate to have a community of people willing to share their experience at the Institute, so if you aren't sure about the program's impact please visit this page and spend a little time reading over what participants have had to say. Reading these comments motivates us in our work and renews our faith in the creation of a just, caring, and thriving world. We hope they do the same for you!

To reserve space or ask questions about sending students or attending yourself, please contact Vernon Wall at vernon@leadershape.org.

September Book Review: Think Like A Freak

I'll be honest that I haven't been reading as much as I usually do. Most of that is an issue of the summer and being busy coaching baseball, doing yard work, taking and picking up kids from camp, and work. Mostly work. However, I've gotten back into it with a vengeance and began tackling the pile of books that has accumulated over that time. I do love my Kindle, but there is something to holding the book, dog-earing pages, and using a highlighter. Thus, the stack. I really did intend to read them when I bought them. Honest. Be warned though, I read more on the edges of leadership these days given that most of what is written about leadership these days seems to be repackaged. I must be getting old.

Anyway, I've been thinking a lot these days about asking good questions because I believe that most of the major issues we face in the world are a result of asking bad questions. Asking questions of "who is to blame" instead of "what are WE going to do about it," is just one example. So I'm gravitating to books that help me think more clearly, more often, and more openly. I found a really good one that you should pick up by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner…two economists…hang with me.

They are the authors of Freakonomics, Superfreakonomics, and their latest Think Like a Freak. All of them made me go "hmmm" out loud because they look at issues, problems, and challenges from the perspective of asking good questions to get at the root cause not just what it would appear to be on the surface. Our news comes to us pre-washed and shrunk to sizes that apparently we consume best – two sentence tweets. With that, we miss nuance, debate, perspective, the works. I truly believe that if we moved past the lens that we have crafted to see the world and actually see the world for what it is, many of these challenges facing us could actually be addressed. 

Kicking the can down the road is not a solution any more. We will continue to find ourselves asking why we are in the same place as we were years before. Being economists, the authors write a lot about incentives and how to truly influence other people. As LeaderShapers, we embrace living in possibility every day and thinking about how best to influence others and ask good questions seems like an exercise worth doing.  I would pick up Think Like a Freak as it is their latest and I think best book. I think you will really enjoy reading it. It's hard to put down.

On to the next book in the stack.  Here we go…

Paul

Day 7: Interns and Possibility

LeaderShape has two new members on staff!

This summer, there are two interns working in the office. Two graduate students who believe in LeaderShape enough to pick up and move to central Illinois for the summer. They live in an apartment they didn’t select with someone they don’t know in a town they have never been to. Their first day was at an office they had never seen with people they had never met.

When we think about Day 7, sometimes we become hyper-focused on moving forward with the vision work that was done at The LeaderShape Institute. And working towards one’s vision is an amazing way to make a difference in the world and to the causes that are most important to us. Your vision is important, so keep at it!

It’s also important to recognize that there are many other ways that we see Day 7 take life.

Like taking a risk that may bring you to an unknown town for a new job working alongside strangers, all of which can offer a different experience, perspective, and serve as an additional way to embrace what we learn during our LeaderShape experience.

Building community, embracing change, believing in possibility.

Stephanie and Joe

Life's a Journey...Live in Wonder!

Eric Saperston, friend of LeaderShape, speaker, author, and film director, is this week's contributor. Currently, Eric lives on an organic farm in Maui and travels the globe inspiring the world to Live in Wonder. You can see clips from Eric's project and film, "The Journey", in our one-day Catalyst program. 

When I graduated from college, instead of getting a job or going to graduate school, I decided to take a year off, follow the Grateful Dead and work a ski season in Aspen.  Prompted by my mentor to make the trip more meaningful, I decided when I wasn’t following the Grateful Dead and working a ski season, I’d call up the most powerful people in the world and take them out for a cup of coffee.  

The reason: To find out what values they’ve lived by, the struggles they’ve endured and what advice and counsel they’d give to me and my generation to better prepare ourselves for the road ahead.  

Fueled with optimism and driven by curiosity, my Golden Retriever Jack and I jumped into my bright, yellow Volkswagen camper bus and we hit the road. 

One thing that prevents people from going on great adventures is that nobody wants to appear foolish.  But for me, too late!  

Being willing to appear foolish and having the courage to speak my commitment into the world  a portal of possibility opened up and I jumped right through. 

The great American writer, John Steinbeck, said, “Sometimes you take a trip and sometimes the trip takes you.”  Well, this trip took me well beyond anything I could have imagined possible.

How I funded my adventure? I would pull into rest stops and sell "Sexy, kind, grilled cheese sandwiches, made with love, for one dollar!" 

Guess what? People actually bought my sandwiches and after they discovered what I was I up to, they’d not only give me a dollar for my grilled cheese, they’d give me two dollars, five dollars, twenty dollars... One time I even got a fifty dollar bill once for two pieces of bread and some cheese! Now that’s what a college education is all about: learning how to market fifty dollar grilled cheese sandwiches!!

Not only did people give me more money than my sandwiches were worth, they also told me where I could go, in a good way.  Places to visit, monuments to see... But here’s the most serendipitous thing that happened: random people I just met on the side of the road over grilled cheese sandwiches, began giving me the names and numbers of some of the most amazing people in the world and encouraged me to go interview them.   I was given names of presidents, poets, artists, CEO’s,  community activists, farmers, Olympic athletes, astronauts, teachers and rock stars.   

Needless to say, a wonderous and life-altering door opened up and I soon realized I wasn’t just meeting amazing people; I was capturing the living oral history of some of the most phenomenal people on the planet.  

On my travels, at first, all I had with me was a still camera and a journal.   As the journey unfolded, I began sharing with others the quality of my conversations with these amazing people, and I was soon encouraged to buy a video camera and begin documenting my adventures.   

Another thing I had learned while out on the road is what separates those who achieve greatness from those who do not. Some people believe its communication skills, or having a clear vision, or being tenacious, finishing what you start.  All those are essential qualities and characteristics to be successful for sure.  In addition, one super important quality which is often times overlooked is ones ability to ask others for help.  

It's unfortunate that we’ve become such a culture addicted to looking good, believing you need to "fake it until you make it", "never let them see you sweat" and "only raise your hand when you’re sure".  Most people believe asking others for help is a sign of weakness.  It’s not.  It’s a sign of strength.  

Joseph Campbell, author of The Power of Myth, said, "How do you know when you are following your bliss?  The invisible hands kick in and begin to guide and maneuver you in helpful ways."   

I’m happy to report that my summer vacation became my vocation.   My dog and I lived in my VW bus and spent close to four years traveling around the country.  Along the way we picked up three other travelers.  The four of us  bought a video camera and a book on how to use the camera.  

We also discovered we needed a boom pole to capture sound.  They were way too expensive and since we couldn’t afford one, we headed the wise words of Eleanore Roosevelt who said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”  So we went to Home Depot, bought a $12.95 light-bulb-changer, a $50 microphone and a roll of Duct-Tape.  Voila! Boompole!!!

Our team traveled from coast-to-coast, shot over 500 hundred hours footage, interviewed over 200 of the most extraordinary people on the planet.  Got a development deal from Walt Disney Studios which helped turn our road-tripping adventure into an award winning feature film.  We made a short film first and sold that at the Sundance Film Festival.  Our feature film won South By Southwest (SXSW)  and several other film festivals, played in theaters to sold out shows and standing ovations, led to appearances on the Today Show, CNN and we have been written up in the New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.  We just finished our first book Live In Wonder: Quests, Quotes and Questions to Jumpstart Your Journey, created an inspirational clothing line and now have the privilege of writing this note to you.  

After taking this odyssey, people  alway ask me, "What did you learn?"  

I learned that extraordinary people Live In Wonder. 

That means to live in the awe, the marvel, the astonishment and to say "yes" to the great mystery of life unfolding... This is to Live In Wonder!

When you Live In Wonder – you’re open, curious and grateful for everything, no exceptions. All your senses are awake. Your life is an adventure.  You are completely paying attention and present, like a warrior, you’re keenly aware of your surroundings. Your smell, taste, touch and sound – all your senses  –  are heightened.  

That way when the portal of possibility opens up in your life, you’ll know it and jump right through.  

When you live in wonder, the world is refreshing, exciting and new.  Anybody know what’s going to happen next?  I sure don’t and that’s what makes life so fascinating.  

So let's do our part to enhance the world. If more people live in wonder, then more people are getting up excited and going to bed fulfilled. And if more people are fulfilled, then the world is a better place. 

I believe there are no ordinary people out there unless they themselves agree to be that.  All of us have direct access to being extraordinary right now by simply being in the wonder of the moment, of what's right in front of them. There is no where to get to, no one to become 'someday'. We are all extraordinary human beings, right now in this moment being exactly who we are.

In fact Oscar Wilde said it best, “Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken.”

Life’s a journey... Live In Wonder!