You never know when a call’s going to come.You never know exactly what direction it’s going to lead you in.
And you never know exactly how it’ll all work.
All of which drives most of us round the bend till we start to get our groove on with the whole ‘letting go’ thing (and even then it can still be a tug-o-war sometimes)…
But one thing you can always count on is the perfect timeliness of every calling.
And ‘timely’ perfectly describes the latest calling of Michael Katz, Chief Penguin at www.BluePenquinDevelopment.com (an esteemed member of our True Callings Associate Faculty team).
Last fall during one of our monthly faculty calls, Michael mentioned feeling something was up, but what he couldn’t yet say.
All he could say was that it had him a little on edge, seemed to have something to do with money, and with making a differencephilanthropicallysomehow.
Earlier this month a couple of very intriguing opportunities and ideas came his way.
And as a guy who gets the value of playful and creative experimentation as well asletting go, Michael’s giving the ideas that most excite him their due, just to see where they might lead.
One in particular is a simple but sassy pay-it-forward-with-a-twist kinda thing Buddhists would call ‘enlightened self-interest’ - an idea that’s quietly building buzz and word-of-mouth participation: www.spendtwentydollars.com
In this quick audio clip Michael explains how this calling came to him (and one of primary reasons it intrigues him…)
And here’s what a member of the True Callings Tribe had to say after checking it out and jumping on board:
Thanks for the “heads up” on the twenty dollar deal. I signed up and enjoyed treating my son’s girlfriend and I to a new restaurant haunt (very healthy options). By the way, I really like Michael Katz. Adjectives that come to mind are innovative, creative, authentic, warm and kind! It’s easy to see why you two are peers!
P.S. If you’d like to hear Michael actively explore and get a more solid feel for WHY this has him so jazzed (great learning!), send us an e-mail and we’ll send you the entire 6+ minute MP3 audio free.
A really good comic can slice through all kinds of social mores and get right down to the wacky truth of things with a well-worded joke, exceptional timing and canny observation (a la Seinfeld).
Before you know it, they have you busting a gut laughing at something you might simply accept as the status quo and otherwise defend to the death or feel powerless in the face of.
Truth is, few things are better than really good humor for cutting through cock-eyed or catastrophic thinking!
Which is why we love this bit from comedian Louis CK.
While on Conan O’Brien recently he let fly comedically about how the economic downturn might actually be something we need, ‘because everything’s actually amazing right now, but nobody’s happy’.
If you have 4 minutes, give this a watch.
And prepare to snort, chortle and think differently.
P.S. The last 20 seconds of this are a teeny bit crude, so buckle your virtual seat belt…
I’ve come to the realization that it’s actually impossible to plan an authentic life - it’s only possible to be authentic and watch as your authentic life manifests around you.
Susan Piver
from The Hard Questions for an Authentic Life
We had ourselves a very quiet New Years this year. I’m two days past one of the wildest intestinal bugs I’ve ever had, and Randy’s smack dab in the middle of the bug boogaloo right now.
Despite the quivering, quaking queazies, we managed to watch WALL-E (great flick) while cuddling on the couch grateful simply to be together.
Ah well: so much for all those plans for a chipper 8th Wedding Anniversary/New Years Eve…
Now, if that sounded like it might have been cranky or resentful, it wasn’t. Really. Because when I say, ‘so much for our plans’ I’m wearing a bit of a Mona Lisa smile.
See, the last 8-odd years have taught us that goals, objectives and plans - even when they do work out - don’t necessarily turn out to be all (we thought) they’d crack up to be.
Nor does holding to our way of doing things guarantee the results we’re most looking for (Jon Swanson’s brief but brilliant Nice or Necessary post says this best).
But the stuff that ‘just happens’ - that we simply couldn’t conceive, envision or anticipate on our own - when we’re just being us always works out WAY better.
And often a lot quieter, softer and sweeter too (including getting the flu over the holidays).
When you think about it, who really needs flash and fantasy when the solid truth of love and deep friendship (not to mention the anticipation of another new year’s promise) is - all on its own - so much more?
Which kinda begs the question: just what is it we’re after when we’re busy trying to make a moment great instead of just letting ourselves experience and enjoy all the nuances of greatness in the moment itself?
Really. What do you think it is?
P.S. The sweetest of Auld Lang Syne’s to you and yours!
We had ourselves a very quiet New Years this year. I’m two days past one of the wildest intestinal bugs I’ve ever had, and Randy’s smack dab in the middle of the bug boogaloo right now.
