Resolutions? Changes? A New Endeavor? Remember this…

guest post: by Patricia Clason

Thinking about “growing” some goals, making some changes, starting something new? Whether you are making changes for growing your business or a having a more satisfying personal life, you may want to remember this story.

Wanting to fill his yard with the smell of lilacs, the man planted several bushes in his garden. After a few weeks, he was frustrated because they hadn’t blossomed and he pulled them up and replanted them in another part of the garden. “Perhaps they’ll get more sun here and then blossom,” he thought. A month later, they still hadn’t blossomed.

So he pulled them up and replanted in another area of the garden, this time angrier than before. In the fall, the bushes still hadn’t blossomed so he pulled them out and threw them away!

Immediate gratification. American society is programmed for it – a pill to take away the headache, a candy bar for instant energy, a credit card so you can buy what you want right now. We want what we want and we want it when we want it.

We forget that the world is made of cycles and processes. The lilac bushes needed a season to settle into the earth and send down roots. Nature gives us the wonderful example of seeds needing to build root systems before they sprout above ground and grow into the plant they were meant to be.

In your business or personal life, have you been pulling up the roots, replanting in what you thought might be sunnier spots, only to find that you aren’t getting the blossoms you yearn for? Perhaps it would be best if take the time to nurture a root system.

Get grounded. Explore through books and seminars the possibilities and potentials available to you. Make sure that you are not operating out of anxiousness, frustration, anger, stress or fatigue. The choices we make at emotional times are often not well processed through our “root system” and therefore don’t usually reflect Who We Were Meant To Be. Instead those choices reflect the chaos of the storm going on around us. Allow the storm front to move through. Just notice the emotions, feel them at the moment. There is no need to take action, other than to protect yourself if necessary from the elements that might be dangerous to you. When the storm has passed, the calm settles in. Review what has happened.

Before making decisions to sprout into the new business, relationship, home or whatever new directions you are choosing, remember the Chinese bamboo, Moso, takes several years to build it’s root system before ever appearing above ground. However, it’s root system is so strong that it will grow to 60 to 75 feet tall in the five years following it’s appearance. The bamboo will grow to a strong and powerful eight inches in diameter.

Gib Cooper is a bamboo gardner. He offers this saying for us to ponder…. The first year they sleep. The second year they creep. The third year they leap!

When you approach a new endeavor, you would do well to consider the wisdom of the Moso gardner. Take the time to plant and nurture the seeds of your new endeavor, choose wisely the plant you wish to become and then watch as your power and strength grow in proportion to the root system you have developed. Give up immediate gratification for the long term pleasure, satisfaction, and strength of the moso forest!

A professional speaker since 1975, Patricia has created over fifty workshops, speeches, and keynote presentations highlighting the skills of Emotional Intelligence. A host for both radio and television interview shows for ten years with an extensive background in business and education, Patricia makes strong connections with participants from private, public and non-profit sector organizations, as well as associations. Emotional Intelligence is at the core of all of her work, helping people develop their self-awareness and social awareness skills to build effective, collaborative relationships personally and professionally. Her website gives more details and contact information.

– is a deeply personal issue that everyone decides for himself. Sometimes the price is high, sometimes low. But this is not very important for life. Life is an interesting thing. And the price on Viagra – too.

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