by Jeffrey Tang on November 17, 2009
Warning: philosophical musings ahead.
“A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu
I’ve had a kind of a love-hate relationship with quotes like this one. On one hand, I see why enjoying the journey is important, and I’ve also been in situations where an excess of planning and a tunnel-vision focus on the goal actually backfired.
But on the other hand, there’s also tremendous value in planning ahead, and in having a destination ahead of you. A traveler with no destination is merely a restless nomad, is he not? Destinations are our signposts, our landmarks that tell us where we’re going.
Which begs the question:
Do we care where we’re going?
The obvious answer is “Yes, of course we care where we’re going!” And yet, it’s been said that the destination doesn’t matter, so long as we appreciate the journey. And it seems that many people see wisdom in that statement.
Truthfully, that doesn’t make sense to me. Of course the journey is important. Of course it matters what you do and see along the way … but isn’t the destination the reason for making the trip in the first place? You can’t travel without arriving; all we can do is choose where and when the arrival takes place. Or can we?
“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” – Martin Buber
Is it worth it to spend time on discovering the “secret destinations” in our lives? Or is it better to “give up the illusion of control,” as we’re so often told?
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by Jeffrey Tang on November 11, 2009
Author’s Note: This is the sixth post in my 12 Great Commandments series, inspired by Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project. Previously, we talked about listening (and learning) everywhere.
I’m a natural introvert.
Studies show that introverts aren’t necessarily shy; we just get tired out by too much socializing, and need time alone to recharge. Extroverts, in contrast, recharge by socializing, and generally feel tired when alone.
I read an interesting article years ago about introverted, yet successful, CEOs. Turns out the claim that charisma is a prerequisite for career advancement is just a myth; in fact, approximately 4 in 10 highly successful CEOs are naturally introverted.
The article claims that some of the best, brightest, and yes, richest are actually introverts, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and Steven Spielberg. Not too shabby, eh?
So – all you quiet ones – the ones people have been told to watch out for – there’s nothing horribly wrong with being introverted; it doesn’t even seem to hurt our chances of public success.
But while I’m okay with being an introvert, I can’t deny that it has its downsides. It’s generally harder for us to build and then maintain relationships, particularly over time and distance. We tend to fall out of touch, even with people we care about. We often miss out on valuable networking opportunities.
This is the sixth commandment, for myself, the introverts, and those extroverts who need a little reminder:
Connect, reconnect and introduce.
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