Yesterday, I posted on Opportunities and the Character of Business. I recommend the read if you are pondering the future of your work, career and/or business. I truly, humbly and assertively do. I might even (nay, do) recommend also Better Boundaries. That said, in many ways I think they speak to the powerful one-two punch of Acceptance and Accountability.
This morning on LinkedIn, I posted… “#Acceptance is the starting point. We need to accept where we are to figure out where from there. Acceptance is not surrender but an awareness we need … to more effectively move forward. As I progress along my own road to optimal #health … I am challenged to accept where I was at the beginning and at each step along the way. That first report a few months back challenged me to accept my “starting point”. It has effectively given me a baseline which gets measured and revised weekly. Each week, I get to accept a new starting point. To best lay one brick at a time, we must work that brick at that time. We must accept that that is the brick we have to lay right now… knowing we get to move on to the next brick afterwards. One brick at a time gets us there, wherever our “there” is. Acceptance is not fatalistic. It is seeing, and knowing that wherever we are is the next starting point. What needs your Acceptance today? What will that free you to do? For me, my steps back to strong and vital health require my practice of Acceptance every step of the way. It frees me to focus on what needs to happen next.”
I also posted, “#Accountability is Responsibility, in action. We bring ourselves to account each day, acknowledging our trials and triumphs alike… and honoring our successes and missteps along the way. We own our actions. We make amends where necessary. We understand that our lives are our best and only true and real estate and we take diligent care of same. For me, I am reminded how Accountability serves the advancement of #Justice in the face of injustice, individually and collectively. I am also reminded, given an “anniversary of sorts” this week… that was probably the single biggest “missed take” of my life… of how I will always have a life long need to take account for my actions, inactions and amendments where necessary. Accountability is not about shame. It is about aim, and learning to get better at that. Accountability is the ability to manage the account of our life; to get better at our aim, if you will. It empowers us to live our best lives, honoring our highest standards and understanding that we will step and misstep along the way. The key is accounting, adapting and amending. It is about owning our lives, responsible. The question is really about to whom will we hold ourselves best accountable. We might start with ourselves and those that matter most to us. Personally, I hold myself thusly … to my Understanding of God, to the Honor of my parents, sister and loved and admired ones in the Next Realm, to the spirit of my passed #bestlittledoginalltheworlds Panda and to myself in doing so. How about you? Accountability gets us to where we want to best go.”
Imagine these two in unison.
Imagine accepting where we are, how we are, who we are, when we are… as starting point.
Imagine holding ourselves accountable for where we are and where we are going. Last night, I posted this on Facebook.
- “The name “Canada” likely comes from the Huron-Iroquois word “kanata,” meaning “village” or “settlement.” In 1535, two Aboriginal youths told French explorer Jacques Cartier about the route to kanata; they were actually referring to the village of Stadacona, the site of the present-day City of Québec. For lack of another name, Cartier used the word “Canada” to describe not only the village, but the entire area controlled by its chief, Donnacona.” I love Kanata. And it recognizes who the first inhabitants truly were and are. This country is a work in progress and recognized on many fronts for its “quality of life”. That said, a work in progress needs work… and quality of life must be for all. We have work to do to truly be the “village” we were named. Let us work towards a Kanata that is a dream come true for all peoples. We can be an example for the world but we first need to be an example worthy. Much Love and Justice. Let us do the work. Kanata Day.
Whether we are talking social, economic or environmental justice concerns and challenges or whether we are looking at issues and challenges at home, school, work, business or community… Acceptance and Accountability allow us to see where we are in order to figure where we best need go… and to be responsible for our actions in getting there. There is nothing weak in either. Indeed, there is a Nobility in both.
Acceptance and Accountability engage us to see things as they are, and build from there. Their combined practice can see our homes, schools, workplaces, businesses or communities as true works in progress honoring our successes and missed steps … and growing from both.
Consider them two powerful wings to take our best and greatest flight. They power a spirit of Excellence that can lift us to greater heights.
Peace, passion and prosperity…
Barry Lewis Green, The Unity Guy with Epic Engage.
“Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.
Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. ― Abraham Lincoln