These are my 6 highlights of the week…
H1: Meditation as a tool for clarity (Podcast)
This week, an entertaining chat I had with Mar Del Cerro on her podcast was published. A conversation as enjoyable as it was insightful, in which we explored topics such as meditation, mindfulness and other tools I use to stay balanced, empower my team and help other leaders.
If you want to listen to it, I’ll leave it here…
H2: The “average zone”
Last Thursday, I saw an interview with author Shane Parrish in which he explained the concept of the “average zone”.
According to Parrish, the “average zone” is that point where you get used to things because they work well enough that you don’t change them.
Change generates fear, and also discomfort, because in order to materialize it we need to make an effort. In the “average zone” we become complacent, because since things are working well enough, change is not necessary.
The dangerous part is that when we reach inertia we lose momentum, and with each passing day it will be more difficult to do what we have to do.
The “average zone” and the “comfort zone” may feel good for a moment, but in the long run they end up becoming a limitation.
Never stop moving forward and growing!
H3: A reflection on happiness
Many people remember their childhood as the happiest, most joyful time of their lives, but that is not my case. For me, my first 8 years were the most challenging, complex and least happy of my life.
My childhood was not easy. Although my family always gave me a lot of love, understanding, support, and never lacked anything, I was fragile, sensitive, very emotional and always lived in my own world, a bit isolated and disconnected from what was going on around me.
I didn’t think like kids my age, I was bored doing what was considered “normal” and I always had so many questions (both for others and for myself.) It was as if my mind and my age were on totally different paths.
I was fortunate enough to grow up in a family where spirituality and personal development came naturally, and that allowed me, as I grew up, to find my true essence.
And that moment came in third grade, at the age of nine… In one of those typical moments when the teacher asks the children what they want to be when they grow up, my answer was very direct, “change the world”.
You could call that 9-year-old boy ambitious, unbelieving, naïve, dreamy, or any other adjective you find relevant, but that moment changed my life, because it taught me what (for me) happiness is.
To have clarity, something to strive for, a clear mission, something I am passionate about, direction, focus, something that motivates me, a reason to wake up and do my best every day. For me, that’s happiness.
If I reflect on my current life, my happiness, accomplishments and all of what I do, I owe it to that discomfort I felt in my childhood. Without the curiosity, without questioning everything (or everyone) and without the rebelliousness, ambition (or naivety) of that 9 year old boy who believed it is possible to make this a better world.
H4: Hagakure
One of the most rewarding parts of my professional experience is that it has allowed me to meet and work with people from 5 continents with whom I have forged a very good relationship.
James is one of those people. Founder of a New Zealand startup called Narrative, which I was supporting between 2018 and 2019. He, like me, has a very creative mind but is also very analytical, which made it easy for us to connect.
James tends to be very busy lately, but we do catch up from time to time, and this week we had a chance to chat for about 15 minutes. We caught up, shared stories and before we said goodbye, he recommended a book that “reminded him a lot of me.” The book in question is called Hagakure, and it is about the ancestral wisdom of the samurai and what I have read so far has been very interesting.
Summarizing what I have learned so far from the book:
The life of a samurai was not to be based on the pursuit of honor or wealth, but on mastery of self, service and the relentless pursuit of excellence. By accepting mortality, maintaining his loyalty and committing to continuous improvement, the warrior could face life’s challenges with grace, unwavering determination and integrity. The samurai’s path, marked by the balance of strength and compassion, culminated in the realization that the true victory lay in the quality of his character and the impact of his deeds.
Profound and inspiring.
I’ll keep reading!
H5: A quote that gave me food for thought
Now that I am focused on this blog project, I have started to research and learn more and more about the art of writing.
Yesterday, Saturday, I finished a course with author James Patterson on creative writing, and of everything I learned, this sentence was the one that stuck with me the most:
"If you're blocked, it's because you haven't done enough research. If you don't know or understand what you're writing about, you don't have enough information."
I think this is great advice, because it doesn’t just apply to writing.
For example, if you are facing a challenge that you are unable to overcome, you may not have enough information to do so, and you may need to research or learn something new to help you.
H6: Lesson from a mother (and Ghandi)
Monday night while waiting to board my flight to Barcelona, I witnessed a sobering scene of a mother with her 2 daughters.
The little girls, about 6 or 7 years old, were visibly upset (I imagine they had fought among themselves), so their mother, adapting Ghandi’s original quote, told them:
"That tit-for-tat nonsense will only serve to keep them hurting each other."
From the lesson that the mother gave to her daughters, I extracted 3 key points that I want to share with you to close this week’s newsletter:
- Revenge is harmful. Even if someone has wronged you, it does not mean that you should do the same.
- Even the people who love you the most can hurt you, but that’s no reason to stop doing the right thing.
- Avoiding getting hurt is not as difficult as forgiving the one who did it, or accepting the blame for the conflict.
A great teaching for the girls, and a great reminder for me.
Until next Sunday, with 6 new highlights ❤️
Feedback? I would love to hear from you. Remember that you can contact me at any time through vladimir@younity.one.
