More Wisdom from
Gently Down The Stream
Matt Weinstein and Luke
Barber
Go With The
Flow
If you want
to succeed in life and work, it is important to realize that reality
is constantly fluid and changing, and that there is no one “true”
way to see the world. Once we learn to be open and flexible to what
is happening around us, once we learn to “go with the flow”
of reality, then it is much easier for us to travel “gently down
the stream.”
---From Chapter 13, There Are Many Ways To Look At The Same
Situation
When we allow
our life to go gently down the stream, we trust that whatever happens
to us is exactly what is supposed to happen. That doesn’t mean
that everything that happens will be “good” all the time.
It simply means that we are open to the notion that we can find meaning
and value in life no matter what happens to us at any given moment.
It means that we are not invested in a particular outcome to any given
situation
---from Chapter 15, Developing Basic Trust
Whenever I find
myself in stressful, difficult, negative situations, I ask myself, “What
would water do? It helps remind me to flow instead of struggle.
---from Chapter 16, What Would Water Do?
When we can
let go of trying to control those things that are really outside of
our control, then we can choose a path that makes our lives better and
less stressful. Only then can we truly flow gently down the stream.
---from Chapter 17,See Things As They Are
Negative situations
are called “burning problems” for a good reason--- if you
hold on to them too tightly, you’re sure to get burned. When holding
tightly to that burning problem begins to cause you pain, the best thing
you can do is to just let it go.
---from Chapter 20, Let It Go
Learn To Think
Differently
The practice
of looking for excuses for failure can become habitual – a habit
we want to avoid. When we row our boat toward success, we want to leave
excuses behind in our wake. The habit we want to form, instead, is the
practice of taking personal responsibility.
---from Chapter 5, Carmichael Did It
When we can
open ourselves up to looking for solutions that are counter-intuitive,
incongruous, and even ridiculous, then we will often discover a result
that makes our lives better and more successful.
---from Chapter 3, A Very Big Box
When we learn
to think like a child, we look at the world with deep wonder, fresh
eyes, profound innocence, and with appreciation for the immeasurable
possibilities and opportunities of life.
---from Chapter 4, Think Like A Child
Learn To Play
the Fool
We all have
a fool within us wanting to come out to play and to help us go more
merrily about our lives.
The fool’s
role has traditionally been to invite others to take risks, to encourage
them to try new things, to leave their zone of safety, and in general
to explore life more fully. Most important, the fool helps other people
to avoid taking themselves too seriously.
---from Chapter 27, Playing The Fool
It is not just
individuals who can find great value from playing the fool--- groups
and organizations can benefit from displaying their fool-like qualities,
as well. Organizations who intentionally cultivate boundary-busting
activities such as taking risks, trying new things, creating rituals,
and laughing together soon discover that they have banished terminal
seriousness from their place of business.
---from Chapter 28, The Organization as Fool
Life Is But
A Dream
When our days
are filled with laughter and play, then our life becomes a dream. When
we can lighten up and laugh at ourselves, we can turn nightmares into
dreams. We have the choice of habitually suffering the pangs of terminal
seriousness--- or we can laugh out loud and have the merry heart of
the wise fool.
---from Chapter 32, The Importance of Habit
Simply put,
our life becomes a dream when we are following a path that we really
love – a path we have freely chosen and not one that has been
chosen for us. Success is about shaping an external reality that is
in harmony with our internal passion. When we have clarity about what
real success will be for own unique self, then, rowing and flowing merrily,
we will be able to say with Lewis Carroll, “What is life but a
dream?”
---from Chapter 31, Life as a Yardman
