Leaders, like astronomers, must learn to overcome the limitations to their vision and the distortions of their vision. We all have impartial vision, regardless of our creativity and imagination. Our perception of the future is hampered by our incomplete knowledge, the finite amount of information we're able to make sense of, and the boundaries of our experiences. Also, after looking at our problems for a while, we habituate ourselves to them until eventually our vision fails to register them. Furthermore, our vision is distorted by our tendency to view the world, not as it is, but as we are.

Capture More Light

The Hubble Telescope does not magnify objects in the cosmos. Instead, the telescope's far-reaching vision is made possible by its main mirror, which catches much more light than the human eye can capture. The primary mirror reflects the light onto a second mirror, which in turn focuses the light onto the telescope's scientific instruments.

As a leader, your vision is restricted to what you're able to see and experience in life. To expand your field of vision, you have to widen the circle whereby you collect knowledge.

• Seek out and form relationships with experts. Obviously, you won't have the time to learn about everything, so tap into the geniuses around you.

• Borrow experiences from those who are farther along in the journey than you are. Learn from their mistakes so that you don't duplicate them, and draw insights from their successes

• Whenever appropriate, collect feedback from customers. Who is better suited to critique your performance and give you ideas than those you're trying to serve?

• Mentor the upcoming leaders around you. In the process of guiding a future leader, you're able to crystallize the lessons of your own experiences. Also, you're likely to be surprised by how much you can learn from those you coach.

• Become a lifelong learner. Make a habit of acquiring and applying wisdom from books, articles, training seminars, and conferences.

Be quick to share your own specialized knowledge, and you will gain reciprocal goodwill. People look for ways to add value to those who have aided them. Also, express gratitude to those who broaden your view of the world. Everyone likes to work with someone who appreciates his or her contribution.

Rise Above Distortions

Gases and water in the atmosphere bend light coming to Earth and blur our observations of outer space. That's why stars appear to twinkle when we gaze into the night sky. The Hubble Space Telescope, from its vantage point beyond Earth's atmosphere, views the cosmos free from distortion.

Leaders eventually grow accustomed to their surroundings, and this tendency can have the dangerous effect of distorting reality. If you look at dysfunction long enough, it starts to seem normal. As a leader, you have to consciously make an effort to see your organization with fresh eyes. This may mean shifting your vantage point by working on the front lines instead of a back office. Or, you may need to take a personal retreat to refocus. At other times, you may need to hire a consultant to come in and point out problematic areas you've been overlooking.

Clean Your Lens

Before the Hubble Space Telescope's main mirror was approved for assembly, it underwent what's known as a null lens test. In the null lens test, a small lens optically alters the mirror so that it appears spherical to incoming rays of light. Viewed through the null lens, if the mirror appears perfectly spherical, then it passes inspection.

Unfortunately, an undetected fleck of paint caused the null lens to be manufactured incorrectly. Consequently, the faulty lens misled scientists into approving the Hubble telescope's main mirror, even though it not built precisely to specifications. As a result, NASA was horrified when the first images transmitted to Earth from the Hubble telescope were blurry. NASA had to send astronauts on an expensive repair mission to fit the Hubble telescope with the equivalent of corrective eyeglasses to fix the problem.

In Winning With People, I shared the Lens Principle: Who you are determines how you see the world. Flaws inside of us warp our view of the world around us. For instance, self-doubt magnifies the obstacles in our path, arrogance shrinks our shortcomings, and fear obscures unpleasant facts.

As a leader, you will have blind spots, and from time to time, your personal biases will color what you see. For that reason, you must surround yourself with trusted advisors to alert you whenever your vision becomes impaired. With their help, you can avoid the trap of faulty vision. As George Bernard Shaw admonished, "Keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world."

Where does vision come from? How does a leader develop a clear vision for the future?

At the earliest stages, the word "vision" may be somewhat misleading, portraying vision as a picture that we can see. The birthplace of vision isn't the mind's eye, but the heart. In the beginning, visionaries are guided by passion not sight. They must feel their way in the dark at first, and only through time do they gain a mental image of what the future could look like.

Vision is what you want to do in life, not only what you think should be done. I can think of a thousand noble causes, but only a select few resonate with my heart. Vision begins as a compelling want or desire. The genesis of vision isn't purely an intellectual exercise; it involves monitoring your passions.

Passion generates vision, but I certainly do not recommend blindly following your heart. When developing a vision it's necessary to realistically assess your strengths, skills, and available opportunities. For example, I may aspire to sing on Broadway, but if the sounds of my voice makes an audience cover their ears in pain, then it's time to focus on another area of passion. Desire alone surely is not sufficient to develop a vision. Yet, every vision starts with an emotional spark.

Passion Births Vision

Ability is not enough to enable us to reach our potential. Opportunity alone will never get us to the top. Knowledge is a great asset, but comes up short helping us "be all that we can be." Even putting together a good team is not sufficient. Passion is the difference-maker.

In my years of observing people, I have never seen an individual reach his potential without passion. Horst Schultze, former COO of the Ritz Carlton says:

You are nothing unless it comes from your heart. Passion, caring, really looking to create excellence. If you perform functions only and go to work only to do processes, then you are effectively retired. And it scares me - most people I see, by age 28, are retired... If you go to work only to fulfill the processes and functions then you are a machine. You have to bring passion, commitment and caring - then you are a human being.

Without passion we stop dreaming and settle for survival. We relinquish heartfelt vision in exchange for security and comfort.

One team of researchers followed a group of 1,500 MBA's over a period of 20 years. At the outset of the study, the participants were divided into two groups, Group A and Group B.

Group A, 83 percent of the sample, was composed of people who were embarking on a career path that they had chosen solely for the prospect of making money now in order to do what they wanted later in life.
Group B, the other 17 percent of the sample, consisted of people who had chosen their career paths so that they could do what they wanted to do now and worry about the money later.

The data showed some startling revelations:
• At the end of the 20-year period, 101 of the 1,500 had become millionaires.
• Of the millionaires, all but one - 100 out of 101 - were from Group B, the group that had chosen to pursue what they loved.

In summarizing the research for his book Getting Rich Your Own Way, Srully Blotnick observed the following: "A missing ingredient had to be present if someone was going to become rich: they had to find their work absorbing. Involving. Enthralling." The success stories choose passion over predictable earnings. They had a vision for life beyond material riches, and ironically, they ended up generating the most wealth.

CONCLUSION

To birth a vision, begin by paying attention to your areas of passion. What makes you feel alive? What matters the most to you in life? What activities can absorb attention for hours? Don't worry about being able to see the whole picture immediately. As you look for ways to make contributions doing what you love, eventually a picture will emerge in your mind of how you can shape the future.

Having been blinded at such a young age, Louis easily could have become detached from the sighted world around him. However, thankfully for Louis, a local priest took interest in his development and spent hours conversing with him and teaching him. The priest, astonished by the boy's sharp mind and ability to learn, convinced Louis' parents to enroll him in the Royal Institution for Blind Youth. So, at the age of 10, Louis left his family and the familiarity of his rural home and journeyed to a boarding school in Paris.

Initially, Louis felt homesick in his new surroundings, but he quickly settled in and befriended his classmates. He loved to learn, and he enjoyed being in a setting tailored to his needs. Unfortunately, his education progressed slowly due to the arduous system of reading and writing used at the school. The system, called sonography, employed cells of twelve raised dots to spell words phonetically. The French Army had developed sonography so that its soldiers could compose and read messages under the cover of darkness. However, army officers found the system too complex, and it was quickly abandoned. Louis and his classmates likewise struggled with the cumbersome system.

#1 Vision Is Birthed from the Passion to Solve a Problem

After two years of study at the Royal Institution for Blind Youth, Louis had grown intensely dissatisfied with the time-consuming process of putting his thoughts on paper. He longed to be able to read and write fluently, but he was stuck using the unwieldy system of sonography. Determined to build a better system, Louis began experimenting with alternative methods.

#2 Vision Energizes a Person to Tackle the Problem

For three years, from age 12 to 15, Louis Braille devoted his weekends, evenings, and summer vacations to improving upon the system of sonography. In his biography about Louis' life, Jean Roblin describes the boy's unceasing, energetic pursuit to create a better mode of communication.

It was at night, especially, that the boy worked. When the breathing of his comrades had grown regular in the great dormitory of the Institution, he would take out his board and stylus and devote himself eagerly to calculations and experiments...Sometimes Louis Braille would doze off from exhaustion, his nose on his board, the stylus in his hand, as though he wanted to keep on working in his sleep. At other times, stimulated by the desire to hit upon a solution and working feverishly with no idea of time, he would suddenly grow conscious of daybreak from the jolting of the first wagons on the street pavement.

Louis' vision gave him an endless reserve of motivation and spurred him on until he made a breakthrough. By age 15, Louis had worked out what we today know as Braille. He abandoned sonography's reliance on phonetics, instead returning to normal spelling. He also simplified the number of raised dots in each cell from twelve to six. As a result, his system was far more intuitive for students and could be navigated much more quickly by them.

#3 Vision Provides a Sense of Purpose

Louis Braille's creation of a superior system of reading and writing filled him with a renewed sense of purpose. From then on, he saw it as his duty to spread the news about his invention. He accepted a teaching post at the Royal Institution for Blind Youth, and shared his methods with his students. He also authored books to publicize his system of reading and writing. From the time of his invention until his death at age 46, Louis tirelessly worked to demonstrate and advertise the benefits of Braille.

Summary

Over 150 years after the death of Louis Braille, blind persons across the globe employ his method to expand their minds, broaden their intellect, and share their ideas with the world. A young boy's vision of a better way for the blind to communicate has influenced generations of those without sight. In the words of Helen Keller, "We the blind are as indebted to Louis Braille as mankind is to Gutenberg . . . Without a dot system what a chaotic, inadequate affair our education would be!"

In 1882, construction began on Barcelona's Sagrada Familia. 129 years later, the cathedral remains unfinished! The church has already been named a UNESCO World Heritage site and attracts more than 2 million visitors each year. Yet, officials estimate another 15 years will be needed to complete it. That the project has attracted the interest of donors, architects, and builders for more than a century testifies to the powerful vision of its designer, Antoni Gaudí.

Gaudí's passion for the Sagrada Familia is legendary. He spent the last 12 years of his life working exclusively on the church. He even lived on its premises during his final months. Although obsessed with the project, Gaudí had no illusions that the cathedral would be completed in his lifetime.

"There is no reason to regret that I cannot finish the church. I will grow old but others will come after me. What must always be conserved is the spirit of the work, but its life has to depend on the generations it is handed down to and with whom it lives and is incarnated."

As the man responsible for erecting the Sagrada Familia, Gaudí paid surprisingly little heed to its "life" or actual construction. Instead, he painstakingly sketched drawings and crafted models to clarify the vision behind the cathedral, or its "spirit." In the 85 years that have elapsed since his death, the 3D renderings Gaudí left behind have guided work on the Sagrada Familia. "They contain the entire building's structural DNA," explains Mark Burry, an architect with 30+ years of experience on the project. "You can extract the architectural whole even from fragments. The models are how Gaudí met the architect's challenge: taking a complex, holistic idea and explicating it so others can understand and continue it after your death."

CLARIFYING YOUR VISION

Gaudí spent over a decade fine-tuning his vision, and its clarity has been the driving force behind a project that has spanned three centuries. The renowned Spanish architect understood a fundamental principle of leadership: what must precede how. Leaders have to define where they're going before they begin to move.

Seeing the Vision Clearly Requires Your Effort

Clear visions only come into focus through sustained effort. For me, the whole process begins with questions I must ask myself. What are my deeply felt concerns? What are my values? What strengths do I have? How have my experiences shaped me? These questions uncover how I am wired and what I hold dear in life.

Once the vision starts to come together in my mind, I share it with the key people in my life. These relationships refine my vision. As the vision crystallizes, I also surround myself with inspirational resources (books, movies, paintings). In the early stages visions must be stoked, and resources stir up the passion behind them.

Seeing the Vision Clearly Specifies Your Direction

Why should we make the effort to see the vision clearly? Because vague visions cannot serve as compelling guides. Followers do not rally behind a leader's fuzzy picture of the future. Rather, they are attracted and motivated by leaders who can paint an instantly recognizable portrait of tomorrow.

A leader's vision acts like a transmitted satellite image; the signal strength of the vision diminishes the further away it gets from the source. As your vision spreads throughout the organization, it will fade. Thus, the more people you rely on to support your vision, the clearer it must be. A powerful vision must have sharp enough resolution that even when weakened it remains easily identifiable.

Seeing the Vision Clearly Determines Your Priorities

Every leader has limitations. Limited time, limited resources, and limited energy. As such, nobody can have it all in life. In light of our limitations, we each have to make sacrifices and scale back the scope of our ambitions. Seeing the vision clearly helps us to prioritize which opportunities to bypass and which activities deserve our dedication.

The choices we make either draw us closer to our vision or push us farther away from it. If we're unsure of the vision, then we won't know how to make decisions that carry us in the right direction. Clear vision illuminates the path in front of us as we select which roads to travel down in life.

Hey Guys,

Hope the New Year is going well so far for you and all that you are doing! I am really excited about the "Necessary Endings" simulcast coming up and hope you are planning to join us. As I have worked with CEO's, executive teams and leaders, this topic is one that everyone relates to at a significant level. It is one of those that has the power to literally change a business, as the concept of "necessary endings" MAKES us focus on the tough calls that might be standing in the way of getting where you need to be.

When we think about it.....facing reality about something, or someone, whose time is past, is one of the most difficult things leaders have to do. To end a product line or strategy, to fire a person, to take responsibility away from someone and make a change.....those are tough calls. There are people that are affected and many other potential areas of angst. So, we avoid and delay. BUT, without those "endings" businesses, teams, and people stay stuck. This event will give you guidelines on how the best leaders diagnose these calls and then execute them.

Knowing how to diagnose when to end something is key! I will be giving you a paradigm that you can use to diagnose when something, or someone, truly has hope of getting better, or not. Once you know when to have real objective hope and when to not hold on, it brings a lot of clarity.

Also, we will look at how to diagnose the people you are dealing with so you will know what strategies to use. Whether dealing with an employee, peer, customer, key alliance, or whomever, the simple diagnostic paradigm we will discuss will bring a lot of clarity to why a certain person has been difficult for you, whom to invest in and whom not, and whom to protect yourself from. It is a great concept to think about in order to know your next steps with people, especially the difficult ones.

I hope you get your team, or your entire organization together and use the broadcast as a training and development event. Watch it, then discuss it with your team or key reports. Use the paradigm that you will learn to lead an offsite or a day of planning with your team. Or just use it to equip yourself with next steps. The good thing is that the content that you will learn will be useful to you in any position you hold for years to come. Endings will always be necessary, and we can always get better.

So, I look forward to being with you that day!

For more information, and to register for the FREE Necessary Endings Simulcast, click here.

See ya there!

Henry

With Americans aspiring to better diets, you might expect PepsiCo, known for its sugary drinks and salty snacks, to be in a perilous position. Yet, thanks to the strategic leadership CEO Indra Nooyi, PepsiCo was able to anticipate the trend toward healthier diets and adjust its course. Today, PepsiCo enjoys a diverse line of products and has the agility to feature nutritious brands.

Take a Long Range View of the Future

When driving a car, you don't fix your vision only a few feet beyond the front bumper. Instead, you peer into the distance so that you can anticipate curves in the road, locate upcoming turns, and steer clear of any potholes or debris on the roadway. Looking farther ahead gives you the reaction time needed to pilot the car safely to your destination.

As CEO of a corporation whose financial size exceeds that of many countries, Nooyi has tremendous responsibility to steer PepsiCo in the right direction. She must look years ahead, not only to ensure the future profitability of PepsiCo, but also to ever-enhance its influence as a global citizen. To lead well, Nooyi makes a practice of projecting herself into the future. Doing so allows her to identify market trends in advance and gives her time to position PepsiCo to capitalize on them.

As early as the mid-1990s, while serving as chief strategist of PepsiCo, Nooyi saw consumers turning to more nutritious products. In response, she spearheaded the acquisition of Quaker Oats Co., giving Pepsi a heavyweight sports drink (Gatorade) and recognizable health foods like Quaker oatmeal. Later, she purchased Tropicana so that Pepsi could add a prominent fruit juice to its lineup. Meanwhile, she convinced executives at Pepsi to abandon their foray into fast food by selling Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. As a result of Nooyi's efforts, by 2006 only 20% of Pepsi's sales came from soft drinks compared to 80% for rival Coca-Cola.

Conclusion

As a leader, you're responsible to look ahead, sense impending change, and make the course adjustments necessary to keep your organization on track. Remember: you cannot see the future with your nose to the grindstone. To lead strategically, it's essential to withdraw from the urgency of day-to-day business in order to plan the direction of your organization's future.

When driving, have you ever approached a busy intersection with a non-working traffic signal? The scene is generally one of chaos and confusion. Hesitant drivers gingerly inch their vehicles forward until they're certain it's their turn to cross the intersection. Other, more daring drivers speed through the intersection, presuming that less aggressive drivers will yield them the right-of-way. Lacking authoritative guidance on how to proceed, people do whatever they think is best. The result is disorder and inefficiency.

As illustrated by the nightmarish intersection, movement without strategy gets nowhere. For movement to make a difference it must be guided and directed by a unifying plan. "Leader" is the name history gives to the person who steps forward to channel the energies of people into productive outcomes by providing clear strategy.

The Strategic Leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

In the 1950s and 1960s, black Americans stepped up their resistance to the system of racial oppression that relegated them to second-class status in society. For example, in 1955 Rosa Parks defied orders to move from her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. In 1960 four college freshmen in Greensboro, NC refused to leave when denied service at a lunch counter. While such valiant acts played a vital role in emboldening the black community to challenge racism in society, they were not part of a coordinated strategy to combat institutional racism.

The genius of Martin Luther King, Jr. lay in his ability to unite the many voices speaking out against racism into an orchestrated chorus of non-compliance. Under his leadership, impromptu protests were replaced by premeditated mass demonstrations, and spontaneous sit-ins gave way to organized boycotts and marches. His strategic guidance pooled the influence of like-minded individuals and groups, and gave the civil rights movement the force it needed to prevail.

Strategy of Confrontation

"What is needed is a strategy for change, a tactical program that will bring the Negro into the mainstream of American life as quickly as possible." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

King knew hope wasn't a strategy. Having been denied their rights for the entirety of United States' history, African-Americans could not expect change by politely working through the usual political channels. The quest for racial equality would require radical activism. As King noted, "Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed."

Inspired by the Montgomery bus boycott, King conceived of a national strategy of widespread non-cooperation to challenge racist institutions. He worked with fellow civil rights leaders to engineer public displays of mass resistance: marches, sit-ins, and protests. The scale of the demonstrations attracted media attention. They also forced racist authorities into a lose-lose situation. When the local police allowed the marches and sit-ins, the civil rights movement appeared strong. Yet, when choosing to harass and imprison peaceful protestors, the police looked cruel and hateful. Regardless of how local law enforcement responded to the demonstrations, the civil rights movement picked up steam, eroding the power bases of racial prejudice.

King saw the need for radical activism, but he also understood the importance of restraint. By resorting to violence, the civil rights movement would sacrifice the moral high ground. By responding to hatred with hatred, they would be seen as no better than their bigoted oppressors. On the other hand, if the civil rights protestors could remain peaceful, even when the victims of violence, they would expose the ugliness and malice of racism. Thanks to the strategy of composure and self-control preached by King, demonstrators remained non-violent, even when brutalized by nightsticks and showered with tear gas. Their poise and courage pricked the conscience of the nation, and furthered the cause of justice.

Summary

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. exerted his influence to unite the civil rights movement behind the strategies of mass resistance and non-violence. In doing so, he channeled its energies to bring about widespread social change. This month, as we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. King, we can also draw inspiration from his strategic leadership.

"Good planning always costs less than good reacting."
~ Wayne Schmidt

In October 2010 the most expensive public works project in America, ARC, officially met its demise. The project would have constructed two tunnels beneath the Hudson River to add much-needed railways between New Jersey and Manhattan. However, poor planning led to wasteful spending and put the project on pace to exceed its budget by at least $1 billion.

A federal audit of the project brought to light an embarrassing lack of planning. The audit charged NJ Transit with failing to draw up plans to combat fraud and waste in its financial practices. The same audit chastised the FTA for authorizing NJ Transit to spend $1.35 billion without having seen a project management plan, master schedule, or financial plan from the agency. On account of ARC's runaway costs and inadequate strategic plans, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie decided to cancel the project.

The Appeal of Planning Ahead

As a leader, you may be tempted to initiate action without taking the time to map out plans. After all, it feels unproductive to think about how to do something when you could simply roll up your sleeves and start making things happen. However, it's far less of an investment to prepare for a project in advance than to repair a project after it has gone awry.

In leadership, all is well that begins well. Leaders who carefully craft strategies enjoy success, while those who haphazardly race forward experience heartache.
Strategy functions as a leader's blueprint, playbook, or script. It aligns action and focuses energy toward a goal, preventing costly delays and wasted resources. By following a coherent strategy, leaders arrive at a predetermined destination instead of wandering in an uncertain direction.

These nine simple steps outline the leadership planning process. I trust they will be beneficial to you as you make plans for a successful 2011.

Predetermine Your Course of Action
Lay Out Your Goals
Adjust Your Priorities
Notify Key Personnel

Allow Time for Acceptance
Head into Action
Expect Problems
Always Point to Your Successes
Daily Review Your Progress

Walking Away from the A-Bomb

During World War II a U.S. Army initiative, codenamed the Manhattan Project, raced against scientists in Nazi Germany's to develop the atomic bomb. In 1944, word reached the Manhattan Project that the Germans had abandoned their nuclear weapons program. Upon receiving the news, Joseph Rotblat was the lone scientist to resign from the Manhattan Project. Absent the fear of Germany building an atom bomb, he felt it was morally wrong to invent such a destructive device.

In 1955 Rosblat co-authored a manifesto with Albert Einstein calling on prominent scientists from around the world to pool their efforts to deter thermonuclear war. He then spearheaded the Pugwash Conferences in 1957 to provide an international forum for scientists and public leaders to talk about ways to limit the threat of atomic weapons. The private meetings, held several times per year, brought together Soviet and American scientists at a time when the Cold War had severed all other ties between the countries. Over the years, Pugwash Conferences have played a vital background role in securing test bans on nuclear materials and brokering arms limitations agreements between governments.

In 1995, at the age of 86, Rosblat became the oldest recipient of the Nobel Prize on behalf of his efforts to promote international peace and stability. He used the platform of his award to call for enhanced ethics in the field of science. Much as a medical doctor has responsibility for a patient's life, Rosblat felt scientists have a solemn duty as caretakers of knowledge that has the power to affect the destiny of mankind.

Envisioning the End

Joseph Rosblat finished strong on account of his powerful vision to secure a peaceful planet for future generations. What is your vision for the final weeks of 2010? By the time the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, what do you hope to have accomplished?

At this stage, the punctuation you put on 2010 will not depend as much on what you do but on your point of view. As you look back on the past year, you likely experienced highs and lows, encountered blessings and victories alongside hardship and heartache. As you wrap up 2010, be sure your attitude toward the last twelve months is providing you with the healthy perspective needed to finish strong.

Here are three suggestions to help you adopt a mindset that makes the most of 2010.

1) See the lessons in every setback.

Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.
~ John Wooden

As you think back on the past year, don't be ashamed by the mistakes you made. Failures are stepping-stones to success, not proof of inadequacy. If you're not stumbling from time to time, then chances are you're not going anywhere worthwhile.

Failures are not fun, but neither are they fruitless. Opportunities to learn and grow are embedded in every setback we undergo. Instead of dwelling on the disappointment of things going wrong, seize the insights of the experience. By doing so, you'll emerge as a stronger person.

2) Show gratitude for the blessings you've received.

Gratitude is not only the greatest of all virtues but the mother of all the rest.
~ Cicero

To cultivate gratitude, Oprah recommends keeping a gratitude journal:

"Every night, list five things that happened this day that you are grateful for. What it will begin to do is change your perspective of your day and your life. If you can learn to focus on what you have, you will always see that the universe is abundant; you will have more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never have enough."

In addition to writing down what you're thankful for, take action to show gratitude to the people who have helped you over the course of the past year. Expressing thankfulness to others encourages them, strengthens your relationship with them, and positions you to receive their goodwill again in the future.

3) Turn the page on the past and take joy in today.

Hoping to get a glimpse into history, an interviewer asked an 87-year old woman, "What was the world like back in your day?" "Hmph!" she responded, "This is my day!" I love her attitude. Instead of being wistful about the years behind her, the elderly lady's mindset was on making the most of the day in front of her.

The close of the calendar year can be a time of reflection. We think back to the happenings of 2010 and assess where we are in life. Although life can only be understood looking backwards, it can only be lived moving forward. No matter what has transpired this past year, today is a blank slate. So set aside any regrets you may have about 2010, enjoy the holiday season, and look forward to a fresh new year.