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Executive Insight
Tip of the Week
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Hi !
Welcome to this week's issue of Executive Insight.
Hurry Up and Wait Tell me the truth: have you ever repeatedly pushed an elevator button magically expecting that the elevator will arrive faster? All of us have done this. Two back-to-back incidents reminded me of this yesterday. The first happened when I left a meeting and the elevator button wouldn't light up. That was unusual, so I kept pressing it thinking that it was a glitch. It turned out that there was an electrical fire in the building and the fire department had shut down the elevators. I had to go to my next appointment, so eight flights of stairs later (I know - I was lucky that I wasn't on a higher floor), I was on my way. When I arrived at the next appointment, someone walked with me to elevator and proceeded to press the button repetitively. When we got on the elevator, she did it again. Finally, she turned to me, laughed and said, "Do you think we'll get there faster if I keep doing this?" These two episodes had a yin and yang quality, something akin to "hurry up and wait." The point isn't about patience being a virtue. Instead, it's about reacting to things that are out of our control, and realizing that the reaction is only about instant gratification. We feel that we have to do something. These are good times to practice being mindful. By doing so, we actually become a little more centered. So the next time you're waiting for an elevator or listening to an endless prerecorded telephone menu or waiting for a traffic light to change, remember what you have control over. Who knows? You might even make it a mini Zen experience. Have a great week!  Copyright 2010 Lisa M. Aldisert
Lisa Aldisert is the president of Pharos Alliance, Inc., a management consulting firm that works with organizations in the areas of strategy, business development, and organizational/leadership development. Give us a call at 212-332-3242 to see how we can help you create strategies that make sense for your organization, and result in increased revenue and profitability. |
 Issue #54,
April 8, 2010 ISSN 1947-2889
Our goal is to provide you with timely tips so that you can more effectively run your business. We know you have a ton of mail in your inbox, so we're committed to brevity and practicality.
Leadership and the
Bottom Line
"Never let yesterday use up too much of today." - Will Rogers April 1 Trivia
Today is the seventh annual National Love Our Children Day. On this Day in History
For all of you baseball fans, Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run in 1974 breaking Babe Ruth's record.
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