The Giving Tree
By Shel Silverstein
(Classic)
A young boy grows to manhood and old age experiencing the love and generosity of a tree which gives to him without thought of return.

Just the other night I teared up reading this classic story to my kids as they crawled over me.  There was something that just moved me inside.  I guess knowing that my kids were at the age of climbing up the tree, swinging from the branches and enjoying life in its purest form.

It’s hard to think of them growing up, moving on and not needing us all the time.  I feel like I’m a little kid experiencing an emotion for the first time.  I’ll try to soak up these moments because I know they go fast.

Thanks Uncle Shelby.

BTW, Did you know Shel Silverstein wrote the Johnny Cash hit A Boy Named Sue? Impressive.

“For things to change, somebody somewhere has to start acting differently.”

Per the Heath brothers (authors of Switch), every person has an emotional side (the elephant) and a rational side (the rider) and to effectively change you have to reach both.  Not only that but you’ve got to clear the way (shape the path) for change to happen.  Below are some notes/frameworks around each key constituent.   This is really just a summary for those that have read the book.  It’s (nearly) impossible to fully grasp each item without reading the book for the stories.

Direct the Rider

• Follow the bright spots
• Script the critical moves (specific behaviors)
• Point to the destinations (what are you doing and why it’s worth it)

Our rider holds the reins and seems to be the leader but the rider does not really have the power to change the elephant.  You just have to think about how many resolutions you’ve made and failed to complete/follow through … it’s not because you don’t want to … it’s because the darn elephant!!!

Motivate the Elephant

• Find the feeling
• Shrink the change
• Grow your people

Remember our elephant is lazy and skittish.  Seeking short-term benefits vs short-term sacrifices.  Ain’t that the truth!  I’m going to have another piece of fudge right now … seriously.

Shape the Path

• Tweak the environment
• Build habits
• Rally the herd

Fail to plan and you plan to fail.  If you don’t have a plan … a path … a strategy then it’s over.

This book really resonated with me on a personal level.  There are many things I’d like to change about myself and this really helped me better understand why sometimes I fail to act differently.   It also resonated with me as it relates to building businesses and organizations.

I highly recommend picking up this book.

And if you’re having trouble staying motivated online check out http://shutupandgettowork.com/shutupandgettowork.php.  Make it your default homepage.  Seriously.

On a side note, I’ve downloaded  The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom, a recommended reading from Switch and the source behind the elephant/rider analogy.

1. I had to build something

I’ve been talking about building cornhole boards for nearly a year and for some reason I decided this holiday weekend it was time.  After 4 trips to Home Depot, a few hours reading “how to” articles and countless hours I’m almost done.  I haven’t even finished yet … but soon.

2. I had to prepare “my” room

I knew our baby girl would have a wonderful room.  Kelly has been working hard on it for months and it is prepared.  Beautifully decorated, it’s cozy and welcoming … perfect for our little girl.  I on the other hand needed to prepare my sanctuary: the office.  I’ve had boxes of books on the ground since last summer and I’ve talked and researched book shelves for that entire time.  But last night I got on craigslist (for the 1000th time) and found four 6′ book shelves listed for $10/ea.  Could it be true?  Could my office finally be complete?  Yes.  Thank you Craig Newmark for building a tool that would enable me to complete my office for less than $25 (I only bought 2 shelves).

3. Unforeseen Discovery

After dragging the bookshelves into the office I decided to unpack a box of books.  These are books I have not seen in a few years.  Business books like Good to Great by Jim Collins and branding books by Aaker to spiritual books like Celebration of Disciplines and an Old Testament Commentary.  But then I found a book that I purchased years ago but never started … The Imitation of Christ by Thomas A Kempis (b. 1380- d. 1471).  A classic that was dusty yet unread.  So in my nesting and building I discovered something new which was indeed quite old (written in 1441 and translated hundreds if not thousands of times). So this morning I moved my schedule around and decided to pick it up.

After reading the preface and part of the introduction I knew it wasn’t a coincidence that I “found” this book.  I went straight to chapter one and was pleasantly surprised that it was less than 2 pages long.  What a gentle start or was it.

Of the Imitation of Christ

“So, it is vanity to seek material wealth that cannot last and to place your trust in it.  It is also vanity to seek recognition and status.  It is vanity to chase after what the world says you should want and to long for things you should not have, things that you will pay a high price for later on if you get them.  It is vanity to wish for a long life and to care little about a good life.  It is vanity to focus on ly on your present life and not to look ahead to your future life.  It is vanity to live for the joys of the moment and not to seek eagerly the lasting joys that await you. …

…Make ever effort, then, to shift your affections from the things that you can see to the things you cannot see…”

Unforeseen discovery.  It was a good morning.  More eye opening than the strongest coffee yet more peaceful than anything I could imagine.  And so I am reminded to rest in Him.

• Why does God allow suffering in the world?
• How could a loving God send people to Hell?
• Why isn’t Christianity more inclusive?
• How can one religion be “right” and the others “wrong”?
• Why have so many wars been fought in the name of God?

He addresses each doubt and explains each reason. He uses stories, philosophy, reasoning to explain each. It’s a wonderful, thought-provoking read for both believers in Christ as well as skeptics. The book motivated me to research other teachings and sermons from Keller and here’s what I found:

• 374 sermons, interviews and other videos on YouTube
• A sermon store on Redeemer.com that seemed more exhaustive than iTunes theology section
• A half dozen or so free sermons including “reason for God”, “the Prodigal Son”, “Parenting”, “Stewardship”, “Suffering and Tragedy” as well as others
• All time favorite sermon series include: Marriage, Cultivating a Healthy Marriage Part 1, Proverbs, Friendship, Practical Grace, The Trouble with Christianity, In Christ Jesus, and Christ: Our Treasury.

I downloaded a few of the Marriage sermons. I’ll write a separate post with some notes from it. It was an excellent sermon that I listened to 3 times in two weeks. Anyway, if you have a moment on the computer to listen to a sermon or have a mp3 player, take a few moments to download and listen.

I recently read a blog post from Ben Casnocha on business books, self-education and mental models. It was quite fascinating as he posted an email dialogue between himself and Josh Kaufman. Josh runs the Personal MBA website and has published “The 77 Best Business Books In Print“.

I never counted exactly how many books I read at Oxford but I know that many of these were not on the list (but wish they were). I purchased a few and want to read all of them but I’ll have to practice the discipline of selection until I have another year to just read and study …. not any time soon.

I’d recommend browsing the list it for those that enjoy b-books. I must warn you it can be a bit overwhelming viewing 77 titles at once. Make sure you’re signed into Amazon!

About The Personal MBA Recommended Reading List:

This page lists all PMBA-recommended books and resources for easy printing, bookmarking, and reference. For more information about the Personal MBA, book selection criteria, and project history, read the manifesto.

• For in-depth descriptions of each book, click on the name of the category.
• To jump directly to Amazon.com, click on the name of the book.
• To purchase this entire library of books from Amazon.com at a substantial discount, check out the Personal MBA Complete Business Library.

“This is honestly one of the best, most heartfelt, most compelling,
pure and truthful books I have read. I have no doubt that Jen’s dream
will come true of being able to reach out to young women everywhere
with the love of Christ through her life story. Hold onto your hats!
You cannot read Girl Perfect without looking deeper into your relationship with the Maker!”

– Kelly Marie McFadden, writer and developer, HomeWord

For information on ordering a book, click here

What some others have said:

“Jennifer writes with a raw honesty about her journey in a world where
your value is determined by your appearance. The girl in the picture
was beautiful, but her depleted, hollow soul was the price. Deep into
her spiral, sitting at a table, she whispers the word ‘God’ and is
introduced to the One who could love her deeply and free her from
‘perfect.’ Few will ever live in the world she did, but many need to
hear her message of the tragedy of getting caught up in a pursuit of
externals and missing where true life, joy, and passion really lie.”

– Nancy Ortberg, Former Teaching Pastor, Willow Creek Community Church

I wish every young woman could read Girl Perfect to
help them be very careful what they dream for. And every mature woman
who reads it will surely be encouraged to be satisfied with who they
are and how they look. You or someone you know needs to not just read
this book, but to truly take it into your heart and spirit. I pray it
will illuminate truths you have never seen before.”

– Stephen Arterburn, Founder and Chairman, New Life Ministries

To read more reviews click here

Here’s an excerpt:

The basic argument is very simple. Most creativity is collaborative. It combines different views, disciplines and insights in new ways. The opportunities for creative collaboration are expanding the whole time. The number of people who could be participants in these creative conversations is going up largely thanks to the communications technologies that now give voice to many more people and make it easier for them to connect. As a result we are developing new ways to be innovative and creative at mass scale. We can be organised without having an organisation. People can combine their ideas and skills without a hierarchy to coordinate their activities. Many of the ingredients of these forms of self-organised creative collaboration are not new – peer review for example has been around a long time in academia. But what is striking about Wikipedia, Linux, Second Life, Youtube and many more is the way they take familiar ingredients and combine them to allow people to collaborate creatively at mass scale.

The rest is here:
http://www.wethinkthebook.net/book/home.aspx

ABOUT THE AUTHOR (from the website)

Charles Leadbeater is one the world’s leading authorities on innovation and creativity in organisations. He has advised companies, cities and governments around the world on innovation strategy and drawn on that experience in writing his latest book We-think: why mass creativity is the next big thing, which charts the rise of mass, participative approaches to innovation from science and open source software, to computer games and political campaigning.

www.charlesleadbeater.net