Recently I received an E-mail from a woman who seemed to feel guilty. Several years had passed since she attended Personal Mastery, Advanced Leadership and Heart of the Samurai seminars, and she had just pinned her contract on the wall. It was as if she thought she was stupid for waiting so long to put up her reminder that she is a confident, beautiful, outrageous woman. But putting the contract up where she could see it is what a smart person does, and at least she did it! Being a compassionate samurai is no different than becoming a master musician, master athlete or master businessperson. All take constant practice.
What are some things we can do to practice the art of becoming compassionate samurai?
Study: Take at least 15 minutes a day to read a book that reinforces compassionate-samurai-thinking. Listen to tapes while you drive or do other activities that don’t require the use of your mind. If How-To’s Were Enough We Would All Be Skinny, Rich and Happy! and When Good Intentions Run Smack into Reality, are two books that reiterate concepts from our seminars.
Reading and listening to tapes represent the repetition side of growth. How can you get emotional experiences that produce quicker transformations? Staff PM, Advanced Leadership or Heart of the Samurai seminars. Every six months is ideal but if that’s not possible, do so at least once a year. Many people find that staffing seminars can be more powerful than first time attendance because they’re not on the “hot seat.”
Quiet Time: There are three advantages to slowing down for a quiet time. For those of us who tend to go, go, go, we need to slow down just to get creative time. This is our creative space where we can come up with out-of-the box ideas.
This is also a time when we can truly be with God (or whatever you choose to call God). If you want to get hooked up and partner with an entity greater than yourself, then it’s important to slow down and listen. God doesn’t usually yell at you, but speaks in a soft voice that requires a quiet heart.
Taking quiet time also alters our rhythm. We’re usually more effective when we operate in more than one mode. If we’re constantly on the go, then we’re not very effective. By the same token, if we’re always slow, we’re not as effective, either. It helps to vary our rhythm.
Cultivate relationships: Relationships take time and unless you discipline yourself, these tend to fade away. Maintaining relationships with likeminded people — whether it’s other parents, compassionate samurai, or businesspeople – can’t be emphasized enough. We become like the people we spend time with.
Practice these three disciplines of study, quiet time and cultivating relationships and you will become the compassionate samurai you desire to be.
by Brian Klemmer