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Would Socrates Be A Celebrity Today?
Last week, as I was standing in the checkout line of my local grocery store, I found myself staring at the dozen or so magazines on display. As I gazed upon the various photos and headlines praising or trashing the celebrity du jour, I got to thinking. What kind of celebrity would Socrates be if he were alive today? How would we treat him? In what way would he ask his questions in the 21st century? He never wrote much of anything--we know his ideas mostly through the work of his student, Plato. Would he give speeches? Would he have televised debates? Would he have his own talk show? If so, who would be his guests? Socrates was famous in his day. He was loved and admired for his ideas and his relentless questioning, and he was despised for the same things. Like all celebrities, he had his fans and he had his detractors. Socrates himself said, "I am utterly disturbing and I create only perplexity." He understood his role as a provocateur, but he also had the best of intentions. He simply wanted to give people the opportunity to question themselves in order to become better humans. Well, there are a lot of celebrities who push our buttons, but we don't tend to think of them as philosophers! What if we did? What if we could separate the thoughts from the thinkers? We tend to dismiss the whole package--the persona--instead of taking a good look at revolutionary or inflammatory ideas. We marginalize our radical thinkers. The rapper Eminem is a radical thinker, though many would say he is just plain radical. In his way, he is true to himself. He has broken through to mainstream consciousness because he touched a nerve--and got a lot of press. Would Socrates be a rapper today? Would he be a professor? A performance artist? How would we regard him? He was notoriously unattractive. Would photographers surround him, taking photos to sell to the tabloids? Would we care about him if he did not make it on the cover of our favorite magazines? At first glance, it may seem that we are sorely lacking in philosophers today. Perhaps we have an outdated idea of what a philosopher looks like. Not all philosophers have beards! Do you think of Eminem as a philosopher? Do you think of Julia Butterfly Hill, the environmental activist who lived at the top of a massive tree for two years, as a philosopher? Do you think of Rush Limbaugh as a philosopher? Well, they do think. They do question. They provoke discussion and argument, and they are passionate about their ideas. That makes them a lot like Socrates. Who inspires you today? Which thinkers make you think? What is it about them that appeals to you? Is it their ideas or the way they are presented? We've become quite savvy about packaging. We expect professional presentation. We discount the ideas of those who don't look the part of a thinker. Of course, there are exceptions. Albert Einstein could pull off that wild-haired look. Bill Gates isn't known for his sartorial splendor. Some might argue that Stephen Hawking is actually more compelling and impressive because of his physical challenges. Whether we admit it or not, we each have our own biases about the appearance, age, sex, nationality, or religion of the thinkers of today. What are yours? I'm afraid Socrates would need a good public relations team in order to be heard amidst the cacophony of thought-mongers today. The prescribed process for publicizing your ideas now goes something like this: write a book, get a publisher, do tons of interviews and book signings and readings, and cash in. It helps immensely if you appeal to the mainstream culture, or if your book manages to stir up a bit of controversy. Creating buzz is what gets thinkers noticed today. Socrates was good at creating buzz, but he would face a lot of competition in the 21st century thinkers market. I like to think that he would find a way to be who he was and that we would appreciate his gifts. Think about what you read, what you listen to, and what you consider worthy of your attention. As you do so, remember Socrates. There are loads of passionate thinkers in our world today. Look for the ones who aren't shouting from the rooftops, and consider those who turn you off completely. Expand your view of what a philosopher is. In the process, you'll become a better one yourself. About The Author Maya Talisman Frost is a mind masseuse. Her course, Massage Your Mind!: Defining Your Life Philosophy, has inspired thinkers in over 70 countries around the world. She is the publisher of the Friday Mind Massage, a free weekly ezine serving up a satisfying blend of clarity, comfort and comic relief. To learn more, visit http://www.massageyourmind.com or http://mindmasseuse.com.
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Coaching Leadership Is Action?Not Position! People respond to good leadership! Period! It is in all aspects of our lives, not just business. A mother is a leader in her home; a son may be leader of a team sport or a daughter the leader of the debate team. A group relies on the person in charge to actually lead them to success. A true leader is highly ethical, honest and respected. Leader is Not a Title There is a steady flow of information in the form of books, articles, white papers and training all in the context of [ "what is leadership" or "how to develop a leader"]. In this issue, I will avoid those two questions and write about two others that I believe might be on the minds of a lot you readers and they are: Act on Some of the Facts Making any decision without having all of the information and facts beforehand can be very tough. I spoke with a young man recently and he told me that some of his professors had changed the rules on him in the administration of his classes. The syllabuses of a couple of his classes had been altered, which switched exam dates. He was also notified of these changes after the semester's grace period. The grace period in which he could get his tuition money back after dropping a course had passed. Because of the changes, he would have two to three exams on one day. Cub Scout Leader Outdoor Experience Recently I attended Cub Scout Leader Outdoor Experience training. This was a 24 hour course starting Friday evening. If you are a leader whose Council officers this kind of training, I would highly recommend it. The Death of Potential While reading my latest book on politics and economics, I came across a reference to a bible story called "Parable of the Talents'. In this story three servants are each give 'talents' (a monetary denomination used by the Greeks). To the first, the master gave 5 talents, to the second he gave 2 and to the third he gave 1 talent. The master gave each a different amount of money (talents), according to their ability. Two of the servants doubled their money and the master was pleased with their results. The third servant, fearful of losing it, buried his money where no one benefited from it, including himself. When the master summoned the third servant to get an accounting of what he had done with his talent, he was angry and displeased to find out the servant had simply buried it and where the money had no opportunity to earn interest. The servant tried to explain to the master that he knew how 'exacting' the master was and he did not want to lose His money. The master did not buy it. He ordered that the one talent be given to the first servant who was able to convert 5 talents into 10. (Reference Matt 25:14 and Luke 19:12). Although I believe the story or parable was strictly about economics and frugality, it can be extended to include, not only money, but true talents (i.e., ability). The cornerstone of my book, The Logic of Success, is the premise that unless you find out what it is you were meant to do, true happiness will elude you. Finding out what it is you truly want takes time, patience and perseverance. In the first chapter I discuss how to create 'search patterns' to find your true calling. (Get a Free copy at www.thelogicofsucccess.com). Now, I want go beyond the obvious of telling you about your hidden talents (you already know you have one, two or more). I want to address the 'How' talents were (and are) buried within us. As children, we all loved to discover new things. We even did things when others advised us not to (e.g., touching the stove when Mom said it was hot). We wanted to learn, we wanted to discover for ourselves the world around us. Failure and pain were not yet transformed into anxieties. As we got older, we were expected to act a little more responsible and accountable for our actions. Like in any soap opera drama, this is the scene in your life where 'society' steps in and starts benevolently imposing its norms on your behavior. You are now expected to: Leadership Prep So you want to be a leader? Or you want to be a better leader? It can be done, you know. No matter where you are in your leadership journey, you CAN move forward. You CAN lead better. You CAN lead more people. You CAN lead your organization to higher ground. Give Your Valentine A Very Special Gift - Empowerment Delegating is a commonly misunderstood concept. Delegating is not about dumping problems or chores you dislike doing onto the shoulders of others, it is an invaluable tool for "motivating and training your team to realize their full potential." (Blair) The Leadership Talk As A Living Hologram The hologram is a three-dimensional photograph made on a flat surface with laser beams. The Power of the Leader Within - The Keys to Martial Arts Life Mastery, Key#1 "What do you want to be when you grow up?" C4 Leadership: Taking Your Leadership (and your Life) from Good...To Explosive! Chances are if you are interested in this post, you are looking for a few tips to take your leadership and/or your life, up a notch or two. Read on for a few things that have really helped me make my leadership more explosive after first defining what C4 is. Sometimes Leaders Need to Get the Boot Today I stood up to a guy right in front of his boss. I challenged him, the former leader, to change his position and give up his position of power. He had fallen from that position though no fault of his own, yet, he did not deserve the power that he desired. Are You Playing or Practicing Leadership? Anne was a new supervisor, and like many new supervisors she took the new role as a manager and leader seriously. She took advantage of training that was offered to her. She learned how to do performance reviews effectively, listened to other leaders to learn from them. She read several books recommended to her by others. Women in Leadership - How to Get Promoted It is often much harder for women to get promoted than men. The most common characteristic of successful women is that they know how to express their excellence in a male dominated environment. How do they do it? People or Objects? - - You Decide "How you think determines how you act. How you act, in turn, determines how others react to you." 7 AAA Ways To Succeed! [Abounding Abundant Ample Ways To Boost Your Growth!] Steps to Becoming a Good Leader STEPS TO BECOMING A GOOD LEADER: 1. Develop a master plan. What are your goals? What are the organization's goals? How are you going to reach them? 2. Develop a leadership style. To manage people, you need to know how you are going to do it. Be comfortable with the leadership style you choose, and it will lead to future success. 3. Know the risks. Making any decision has its risks. Know the risks involved and whether the organization can afford to take them. 4. Get the authority you need. You need authority to achieve goals. If you don't have enough, get assertive. Tell your superiors you need more authority to make decisions. 5. Be decisive. Don't get caught saying, "Let me get back to you." Consult staff, but you make the decisions. 6. Be firm. If you believe in your decisions, then stick to them. However, be open to suggestions and be flexible. Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive Common Mistakes Extraordinary Leaders Dont Make When people make a decision (either consciously or unconsciously) to follow your leadership, they do it primarily because of one of two things: Your Character or your Skills. They want to know if you are the kind of person they want to follow and if you have the skills to take them further. Yes, there are other variables but these are the bulk of the matter. This week we focus on the kind of skills that cause people to follow your leadership, specifically things that an Extraordinary Leader doesn't do! Blowing Your Own Leadership Horn There are two streams of competitiveness running through every organization. The first goes outward: It's the organization's competitive activities toward its competitors. The second goes inward: It's the competitiveness of leaders inside the organization who are vying against one another for power, recognition, privilege and promotion. Two Vital Abilities Any Leader Must Have As a business owner, you are a leader whether you like it or not. Whether you like it or not you have to guide your group in order to expand your organization. And whether you like it or not, there are some difficult situations that you have to confront and handle -- hopefully in a way that inspires confidence in you from your staff.
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