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Buddha: Turning arrows into flowers (turning emotional pain into mindful compassion)
“The moment you begin to worry, the moment you acknowledge the worry, you solidify it into existence, which is why we chose to ignore and ignore we did. All you have is perception. There is no objective truth. You create the truth you want to inhabit.”
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“The ceramic cup was never meant for me. It was meant for the position I held. I deserve a styrofoam cup” — Lesson in humility from the US Undersecretary of Defense
Remember this as you gain fame, fortune, position, and seniority. People will hold doors open for you and get you a ceramic cup of coffee. They will call you sir and ma’am and give you stuff. But without the position you hold or when you no longer possess that position you held, you will lose all that stuff and will always deserve a styrofoam cup.
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Enrique Camacho: From US Army Colonel to Uber Driver — Your job title doesn’t define your identity. Your personal values and how you treat others define your identity
“We’re only as good as our last race. People don’t really care what we’ve done. They’re interested in what we can do for them today and tomorrow.” — Enrique Camacho
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CEOs say: A person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter, or to others, is not a nice person
“Sitting in the chair of CEO makes me no better of a person than the forklift operator in our plant… Your value system and ethics need to be constant at all times regardless of who you are dealing with… Be especially wary of those who are rude to people perceived to be in subordinate roles.” — CEOs
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Leadership: Power of circle meetings, and benefits of being last to speak
When Nelson Mandela was asked, “How did you learn to be a great leader?” he said he learned two things from his father during tribal meetings: (1) They would always sit in a circle, and (2) His father, the tribal chief, was always the last to speak.