12 Principles to Help You Thrive in the Workplace Part 3

Hello friends!

So, as I said yesterday, I'm back with part 3 of the 12 Principles series. I know, 3 parts seems like a lot, but I feel this last one deserves an entry all on its own. This philosophy was assigned to my coworker Jorge. He really ran with it and did an excellent job. Most of the credit for this entry should go to him. Let's dive right into it...

12. Work with Love and Spirit...

In order to really understand what this principles means, let us first break it down. There are three words that truly give this philosophy its meaning; work, love, and spirit.

Work: There is a mathematical equation tied to this concept. Work is the amount of energy transferred by a force acting through a distance. In essence, work is energy. This means that we must put in real effort in order to consider each day a good day of work. When I think of energy, I think of excitement, enthusiasm, and zeal. Be enthusiastic about what you do. Make the most of every task and duty assigned to you. Put your heart into it, which leads me to...

Love: The Greeks broke love down into four different terms (the 4 loves). The first is Eros, which is a passionate and romantic love. This is shared between couples. The second love is Agape, which is called the "ideal love. This love is often a choice made out of principle. It is sacrificial, and unconditional; a love one is willing to die for. A successful marriage relationship consists of both Eros, and agape. The third love is Storge, which is natural affection. We see this with our parents. It cannot be explained, other than to say that our parents love us because we are a part of them. The final love is Philia, which is a virtuous, brotherly love. It is loyalty and affection for friends.

As we all know, to love is to place a great importance on an object or person. It connects you with that object of your affection deeper than anything else possibly could. When you love what you do, the passion and affection is obvious. As is the effort and energy you put into it.

Spirit: In Latin, the word means soul, courage, vigor or breath. When you put your soul into something, it becomes more than a task. It becomes embedded into who you are. It becomes part of your identity. To put your "breath" into something is to put your life into it. Our breaths keep us alive. Essentially, we are breathing life into our work.

If I may, let me give you some personal examples. I sing, create, and produce music. As you may know, this is no easy task. I would spend weeks locked into my little studio creating full songs from scratch. I was also in a rock band, and would spend weeks writing songs with my band. There is no greater example of working with love and spirit than a group of guys getting together through a shared love and passion for music, tirelessly expending energy and pouring their soul into chords, beats, lyrics, melodies, and harmonies. The end result may not appeal to everyone (different people have different musical preferences), but it made me happy because I knew my blood, sweat, tears, heart and soul had been poured into the music.

Another great example would be my wedding day. Over a year of insane planning, sleepless nights, budgeting, tasting, dieting, designing, shopping, premarital counseling, and countless other things...to put together one 5 hour event. No other day in my life has merited this principle more than June 7, 2010. That day redefined who I am as a person, in that it united me with another person until death parts us. My heart, soul, mind, and strength were poured into that year of preparation. I have never worked so hard in my life. Was it worth the effort? Absolutely!!

We must expend energy with great force and effort over distance in a passionate, ideal, and affectionate manner with all our breath, soul, and vigor! If you want to succeed at any task you are endeavoring to accomplish, you must work with love and spirit. True greatness in our work (whether in a piece of art, a business venture, a home cooked meal, or a late inning home run) comes only when we apply this ultimate principle into our work. If you can't see yourself doing this at your current place of employment, then maybe you should be thinking about getting into a new profession....

-Danny
www.cbt.edu
www.cbt.edu/facebook

Giving Back to the Community

As an Event Coordinator and Social Media Manager, I am tasked with putting on big events for CBT College. One thing I have realized in my time as Event Coordinator, is that there is nothing more rewarding than giving back to your community. Here's the greatest thing about that: there are so many ways you can accomplish it! From events, charities, marathons, walks, and fundraisers to nursing home and homeless outreaches, we can truly make a difference in our community and world! Here are some great ways to get involved and give back.


1. Homeless Outreach: There are countless churches, and charitable organizations that go out there and take food and clothes to those less fortunate. You can volunteer at a soup kitchen, or join your local church's "Help the Homeless" ministry. There are various homeless shelters and organizations (Camillus House, Miami Rescue Mission, Homeless Voice, Salvation Army)that could use some volunteers. It would only take a few hours out of your Saturday afternoon. Maybe, instead of going to the beach or eating at Yardhouse one Saturday afternoon, we could all just spend a few hours helping people who need it!

2. Nursing Home Outreach: I know this one doesn't seem like a big issue, or something of importance, especially since we often don't even make the time to visit our own family. I assure you though, if you were to put yourself in the shoes of these men and women in nursing homes, you would appreciate a visit every now and then. Just a few hours one random afternoon to sit with them, hear their stories, and show them that there are still people out there that care. Again, it doesn't seem like much, but they will appreciate it more than you know.

3. Be a mentor: All across the country, there are young people making all sorts of wrong choices and falling in with the wrong type of people. One thing that you will find is that often, these kids just don't have anyone to look up to. Without a proper role model or support system in place, these kids look to anyone they see as important, and often times that person is not the right kind of role model. Volunteer at places like the YMCA, Boys and Girls Clubs, sign up for mentorship programs with the public school system. I'm not suggesting you became a social worker, or that you put yourself in a situation you don't feel comfortable with, but just that we make an effort to help the youth around us reach their potential for a good, happy, and full life. If it were your child, and you were unable to care for them and parent them, you would want them to have the right influences around them...

4. Child Care Assistance: Volunteer to bring some healthy snacks to a local day care, take part in the day care at your church or former elementary school. If you have a younger sibling at an elementary or middle school, help out with any functions and events. As I said earlier, the right influences...

5. Charities, Walks, Marathons, Relays, etc.: There is no shortage of charitable organizations. They are always having some sort of event. We all know about the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Relay for Life, NFL Play 60, March of Dimes, and several others, but there is a myriad of other great causes. Give a few dollars to help these great causes, maybe volunteer, or sign up to take part in a marathon/walkathon.

6. Animal Shelters/Plant a Tree/Save the World: Now, I have to admit that I'm not one of these people that cries when I see the Sarah McLaughlin commercial with the sad puppies and kitties. I'm not really an animal person. I like to eat meat. I'm all about Texas De Brazil, Grimpa, and Fogo de Chao (Brazilian Steakhouses), because it tastes so good to me. I am not however, an advocate for cruelty, abuse, or violence towards animals. We can volunteer at an animal shelter or hospital. Maybe we can help the environment by planting a tree, volunteering to clean our beaches, or any other activity that helps preserve this planet.


I know we all have very busy lives and finding time do anything is tough, let alone giving back to others. Sometimes we don't even make time to spend a few minutes with our families. So, why would we bother to spend time helping another family? Why give back when I myself don't have enough, right? It's difficult to imagine, in this Instant Gratification/Me, Myself, and I culture, that people would be willing to sacrifice some of their time and resources to give to someone who isn't as lucky. We live in a world that tells us that we are all individuals, to look out for number 1, their is no God, no afterlife, no hope, no purpose...so how can we expect anyone to care about their fellow humans or this planet?

As far as I'm concerned, that philosophy is so misguided and 100% influenced by the selfishness of humans. All problems humanity has ever faced come from our lack of consideration for others. Religion is not to blame for wars fought in their name. God is not to be blamed when a priest does unspeakable acts of evil. Maybe it's time we stop hiding behind our beliefs and blaming them, and start taking responsibility. God didn't command that clergy person to commit those acts. In fact, God abhors that type of behavior. It has no place in the church. When we blame Islam and the teachings in the Koran for extremist groups and their actions (911, and many other attacks), we are in the wrong. Islam does not teach them to do these things. Rather, they are twisting words and distorting Islamic doctrines to suit their agendas. The individuals who commit the acts are solely responsible, not the belief system they claim to follow. I promise you, any person who commits tyranny in the name of their deity, knows nothing about that deity. John Lennon was wrong when he said that if there was no religion, the world would be a perfect place. Humans would find another avenue in order to achieve their horrible, and selfish agendas. Sorry for the little rant there....

Anyway, it's time we stop thinking about me, me, me...and realize that life is about relationships, connections, and love. Love makes the world go round. Love for humanity, love for nature, love for all creation, love for oneself....these are the things that make life worth living. If we give just a little bit everyday, imagine how we could change the world.

Finally, I'm sure you are wondering how I will find a way to tie this to college life, and our professional career. It's simple: Volunteer work, charitable associations and activities look absolutely amazing on a resume. Believe it or not, employers look very favorably on employees that give back to the community. It's especially great for young people, and college students with little or no work experience. You should absolutely list your charitable work on a resume. It could help you land that first great job!



-Danny
www.cbt.edu
www.cbt.edu/facebook