(A quick backstory,) It's spring, I am visiting my son, having a coffee at a wonderfully delightful cafe in Wroclaw Poland. I am writing in my journal when my I-phone rings. It is a longtime friend who refers to me as the Idiom, Euphemism and Slang Guy ( end of backstory )
I have been fortunate to have participated in dozens of joint ventures, a few dozen more acquisitions and a handful of startups.
During each of these events, I kept a journal of different lessons learned, mistakes made and successes achieved.
My journal (as you can imagine) is a bit worn and as I have the better part of 3 days over Labor Day Weekend, I thought now would be the best time to commit a handful of favorite quotes to my digital file in the cloud and THEN ( in my tiny brain ) occurred a thought of posting a few to the "interweb".
AND, SO, what follows is a collection of Idioms, Euphemisms, Slang OR Jargon I have committed in writing over the years.
I could spend a great deal of time expounding on each one, but that's not the point. The point is - I hope you find a few of them useful or applicable IN YOUR Current journey.
Consensus decisions are often at odds with intelligent ones.
“Do not fear mistakes. You will know failure. Keep on Keeping ON.”
"A good character is the best tombstone. Those who loved you, and were helped by you, will remember you when forget-me-nots have withered. Carve your name on hearts, not on marble"
“Light yourself on fire with passion and people will come from miles to watch you burn.”
“Life’s tragedy is that we get old too soon and wise too late.”
Know Yourself “There are three things extremely hard: steel, a diamond, and to know one’s self.”
I used to think that people are OUR most important asset. But the truth is IT’S THE RIGHT PEOPLE that are the most important assets.
Listen Much - Speak Little ( clearly I haven't learned this one...yet )
Learn to say NO, so your YES means something.
BE. HERE. NOW. ( slow your mind and listen to what is being said )
Tension and Conflict ( know the difference. One is necessary for the organization to grow. One is destructive )
Three things man should not be content with:
With His opinions
With his character
With his spiritual condition
Three things with which a man should be content with:
With whatever happens
With friendships and possessions
With his pure thoughts
Actions Speak Louder Than Words and A Picture Paints a Thousand Words
I could fill blog after blog with these, as each book I have read over the years has had a real life application that jumped off the pages to me.
Certainly, none of the above are originals attributed to me, Somebody, Somewhere said them and I committed them to a journal that has been quite useful to me over the years and in a small circle of friends has earned me the Title of idiom guy ( though possibly they really mean idiot guy and are just being kind )
Here's hoping you have a family friendly, relaxed, but reflective Labor Day Weekend.
