LIVE...LOVE...LEAD

A number of years ago, I was traveling on a business trip.  I really don't remember where I was going that day, but I do remember something that I saw that made a lasting impact on me.  

I was sitting in the isle seat on the left side of the plane, and a couple of rows in front of me and on the right side of the plane sat a young adult.  I would say he was either still in college or just out of college.  It wasn't so much what this person was doing, how he was interacting with his travel companions, what caught my attention was his t-shirt and what it said on the back of it.

I LOVE motivational and inspirational statements.  Whether I read them in a book, see them on a billboard, tattooed on someone or even on a t-shirt.  This is what this guys shirt said:

• Live Without Regrets
• Love Without Limits
• Lead Without Compromise

I took out my planner and wrote this down and then began to think about this.  I read what I wrote over and over again; LIVE....LOVE....LEAD.  I asked myself, "I'm I doing this?  Do I live this out in MY life?"  I concluded that, to some extent, I live this out, but not as much as I wanted to.  So I started to think about what each of these statements meant to me:

LIVE WITHOUT REGRETS:

At the time I saw this, I had MANY regrets.  Bad decisions that led to hurt and pain for myself and others.  Regrets, if not dealt with, can immobilize you and keep you looking back to a place you aren't at, all the while trying to take you back and live there.  There are 3 SELFs to look at: Your PAST self...Your PRESENT self...Your FUTURE self.  The question to ask is WHICH SELF DOMINATES YOU?  If it's your past self, you will not be much good in the present or future.  If you are always looking to the future, you'll miss out on all the good things that are going on in the present.  Protect and work on your PRESENT self so that your FUTURE self will thank you.  Remember this:  Make your FUTURE BIGGER than your past!  NO REGRETS!

LOVE WITHOUT LIMITS:

This is truly a hard one.  I "think" I do a good job of loving others....but I also know that if I can only "think" I'm doing it, am I really loving like I should?  It is REALLY easy to love those that love me....but do I love those that don't love me back the way I extend love to them?  How about this one:  Do I love myself the way I should?  How do I talk about myself, to myself about my dreams....my goals....my attitude...etc.?  LOVING WITHOUT LIMITS doesn't mean that I'm a doormat to get walked all over, it means that my response to others is my responsibility and I should think before I speak or react.  Can I...Do I "turn the other cheek?"  NO LIMITS!

LEAD WITHOUT COMPROMISE:

Recently, I read a REALLY excellent book called HALF TIME by Bob Buford.  Mr. Buford was a very successful business man in what he refers to as his "first half."  As he was going through his "Half Time" in his life he was after much more than success, but looking for impact...looking to have a life of significance.  He was in the Cable TV industry and was challenged, to keep up with other competitors, to compromise and add channels that were against his values and the morals he lived by.  He made a choice to not compromise, but to demonstrate leadership by holding on to what he knew to be true of his values.  I read one time something that Roy Disney (nephew of Walt) said that really resonated with me: "When your VALUES are CLEAR, decisions become EASIER."  Notice he didn't say they become EASY...just EASIER.  When you LEAD WITHOUT COMPROMISE, your values will be your "NORTH STAR"...your "COMPASS" to guide you as you journey through your life and your BEST YEAR YET.  It's not always easy, but it is very simple.  NO COMPROMISE!

Maybe you do all of these really well.  Maybe you don't.  Take just one area and begin to work on that discipline in your life.  Once you have that one down, move on to the next and then the next.  Take it one at at time!

LIVE....LOVE....LEAD

NO REGRETS....NO LIMITS....NO COMPROMISE!