Some people state very clearly that the goal of business is to make money. Others get offended by that and claim that they are in business to help people and to do what they love. What side are you on? Can the door to wealth be opened, so that the two sides come together?
The desire to make money is neither good nor bad in itself. What IS problematic is focusing only on the money: that is like saying “I want to get to New York” without having any idea how to get there. The result, too often, is that the journey is bittersweet. [Read more...]
Walking along a beach near Cape Town one evening, I was enjoying the warmth of the sun, the glorious soft hazy light and the sound of the ocean gently rolling up to the shoreline. There was a sense of a vastness, harmony and perfectly grounded beauty. And Mother Earth was there sharing all of her splendor and energy with me – and with the man in the red shirt and the fishing pole.
Are you in jail, like these orchids?
Why, when walking along the old streets in Paris, did a man feeding pidgeons attract my eye more than buildings, bridges and classic sites? Who knows! It just did! I tend to look at a scene, then quite intuitively distill it down and focus on what it is in the scene that I specifically find interesting. In this case, I was fascinated by how addicted the pigeons were to the man feeding them. They would have followed him anywhere!
Do you ever look up and wish you could fly? I read an adorable story recently about a baby eagle who somehow got separated from his mother and landed upon a chicken farm. He was cared for there and learned to act like chickens act – that’s all he knew, because that’s all he was ever taught. Then one day he saw a big eagle flying overhead and something inside him stirred. He had always felt that there was something different about him… Now he knew: he wanted to fly!
Beaches are often known for their beautiful vistas, but often it’s the little things that catch my eye. One day in Hawaii, it was the little world of a rock, the edge of the ocean, and the sand. I was struck by how they interacted so intimately and so constantly with each other, yet each one had its own distinct identity.
Calm in the Center
Looking back at it now, I am struck by how there is a balance, a calm and a sense of order within this crowded scene. Notice how the chaos and the crowdedness lie all around the outside. [Read more...]