Sharing what I have learned from what I have read: A blog by Joe Abittan
When we feel jealous of another person, what do we actually feel about ourselves? In his book, Some Thoughts About Relationships, author Colin Wright writes, “Jealousy, at its core, is about feeling threatened.” Many of our reactions to the world and people around us, in my opinion, tie back to tribal forces that have been … Continue reading Feeling Threatened
In his book Becoming Who We Need To Be, author Colin Wright explains how training in certain areas changes us. "Training our instincts is like feeding our subconscious. It grants us more informed, helpful knee-jerk reactions, rather than blind and potentially damaging impulses." For examples, Wright writes about the ways that experienced auto mechanics are … Continue reading Training Our Instincts
Marcus Aurelius was the emperor of Rome in the second century and in his position became one of the most powerful people on the planet. But even in his position as emperor he was able to find ways to remain humble and to look at other men in a way that elevated them. He reminded … Continue reading A Dose of Self-Awareness
In his book Meditations, Marcus Aurelius talks about overcoming obstacles by changing our perspectives and judgements surrounding the difficulties that we face. In his view, we are not directly affected by challenges and obstacles in our lives, but our mental state determines how we are limited or impacted. For Aurelius, how we will respond to … Continue reading Obstacles and Opinions
Leadership is one of the ideas that Fred Kiel addresses in his business book Return on Character when he focuses on the importance of strong moral character for the CEOs and leadership teams of companies in todays competitive business world. Kiel employs the term virtuoso to describe those leaders who are able to display strong character while … Continue reading A Thought on Leadership
The next quote from Allison Vesterfelt in her book Packing Light is one that has proven to be hugely important for me recently. She wrote, “We can’t measure the value of our decisions based on outcomes.” This simple idea was true for Allison before she took her 50 state road trip, and over the course of … Continue reading Success & Judgement