The Mayonnaise Jar

When things in your life seem,  almost too much to handle,
When 24 Hours in a day is not enough,
Remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class
 And had some  items in  front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar.   He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open Areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full.  They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
 Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced  two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents  into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand.  The students laughed..

'Now,' said the professor,   as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, Friends, and Favorite passions –
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and  car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,'  He continued,
'there is no room for  the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.
So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life  may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with  a friend.'

Please share this with other "Golf Balls"

Leading in Challenging Times

June 23, 2009. Wisdom-filled day. 9am starts the Leadership Summit in Edsa Shang with satellites at selected venues.

Here are the snips and snaps.

Understanding changes our mind; Action changes our lives.

In these challenging times, you raise a great nation by raising great people; and you raise great people one at a time.

Put your Dreams to the Test

After writing your dreams. The question is, “How do I become the person I want to become?”

Nothing inspires people more than achieving their dreams; and nothing discourages people more than not achieving their dreams.

Why do people fail to reach their dreams? The reason we don’t achieve our dreams is that we lack valid reasons to achieve them. The more good reasons that you have to achieve you dreams, the higher the odds that you actually will.

There are 33 good reasons why people reach their dreams. but there are 10 questions to counter it.

In stepping forward towards ‘the Dream’ we have to ask these questions.

Question #1: Ownership Question

Is my dream really my dream?

Your first dream when you were a kid is not your dream.

When you own something, you take pride of it and do everything possible to keep it.

Analogy: Rent a Car - you don’t put effort to clean it after using simply because it’s not yours.

We need to shift from being a believer to being a buyer of our dreams and so therefore we are willing to bet on ourselves.

Do you believe in your dream so much that you will buy it?

When we buy into our dreams, we are ready to take a bet on ourselves and nobody will talk you out of it.

How to know if it’s your dream or not:

If it is your dream, you are willing to pay for it. If it’s not your dream you want someone to finance it for you.

Once you find your dream, you will want to invest on it.

Question #2: Clarity Question

Do I clearly see my dream?

Is my dream clear to me?

You don’t have to see everything but you have to see something.

If you are uncertain about your dreams then you will be uncertain about the steps to take.
Do you have a picture of your dream?

Analogy: Puzzles: you look on the puzzle box first where the complete image is, then start working on the small details. Fixing it little by little, looking every once in a while in the complete image, then work again.

It is the clarity of the picture that enable us to put the pieces together.

Make the picture clear first (need) then work on it. Then the solution.

If you can’t explain your dreams to yourself, you won’t be able to explain your dreams to anyone else.

How clear is your dream?

Question #3: Reality Question

Am I depending on factors within my control to achieve my dream?

A leader’s first responsibility is to define reality.

Build your dreams on the foundation of reality and it can go so high!

Disappointment is a gap between expectation and reality

If you believe, you can achieve is a hoax!

What is within my control? Choices, attitude, discipline, natural gift, abilities

Out of control----life, fortuitous events etc.

I can’t control what is outside of me but I can control what is inside of me.

Discover your gifts and let them be part of your dream.

When my gifts and my passion match, I’ll have a masterpiece.

Now, are you using your gifts or are you out of place?

Alam mo ba talaga ang gusto mo? O niloloko mo lang ang sarili mo?

Question #4: Passion Question

Do I feel compelled to fulfill my dreams?

Passion gives us energy.

How do you motivate yourself to go to work?

Only you can motivate yourself?

I don’t motivate people, I hire motivated people.

Dream Achievers have Passion for what they do.

PASSION will pull you up above the crowd and push you out in front of the crowd.

Quit waiting for your boss/job to give you passion, Find your own passion!

Passion will get you to receive things that those without passion will never receive.

Passion will get you to do things that people without passion will never do.

As you pursue your dreams, pursue it with gusto!

Do something not for money, do something that you love.

Passion can keep you going where everybody else won’t go!

Question #5: People Question

Have I included the people I need to achieve my dream?

The Law of Significance – One is too small a number to achieve greatness

The Law of the Inner Circle – A leader’s potential is determined by those closest to him. All great leaders have surrounded themselves with a strong inner circle. If your dream is big, you’ll need people to help you achieve it.

What are you doing today to develop yourself? What are you doing today to develop others? ---For tomorrow.

If you’re gonna have to compound, you’ll need people!

We’re gonna need people to make the Dream Team!

Your Dream Team will require you to grow your relationships with them.

As you travel that path of your dream, the resources will come to you.

The moment you stop travelling, the resources will stop!

Big Dream + Bad Team = Nightmare!

The success of you achieving you our dream is based on the how good your team is!
---is not based on the size of your dream but on the size of your team.

Applies: Law of the Lid: Your level of Leadership will determine your effectiveness!
Analogy: You can’t climb Everest by yourself, you need a team.



Question #6: Cost Question

Am I willing to pay the price for my dream?

All dreams have a price tag.

In the beginning, dreams are free---the journey isn’t

Dreams got toll gates, we gotta stop every once in a while and pay the price.

The price you pay for your dreams is higher and comes sooner than you think.

Success/Dreams does not come on installment plans. You have to pay the whole price in advance. ----there is no shortcut for your dreams.

RULE of 5: You need to find 5 important things u need to do every day to help you achieve your goal.

Analogy: cutting a big tree by hitting it with an axe 5x a day until that final 5x hit and the timber goes.

You don’t have to be smart to achieve your dreams but you have to do the rule of 5---let nothing interfere.

The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.

It’s possible to pay too much for your dream. But you don’t have to sell your soul.

The people who know me the best, loves and respect me the most. [Success]

There is something wrong if people who knew you the least love you the most.

Be grateful, humble, understand that your dreams/accomplishments can be taken away in a moment…but love your family.


360 Degree Leader

Leadership is not a position or a title, it is influence.

Position doesn’t make a Leader, it is the leader who makes the position.

***To lead the person above you, lead yourself exceptionally well.

Do more that what everybody does.

To be successful, quit doing what everybody does. If you stay ordinary, you only get what
every body else gets which is not much…which is ordinary.

Everyday, intentionally add value to people around you!

Ask 10 min to your supervisor

Work harder than everyone else

Make yourself available to your leaders

You influence the people above you by being a lifter and lightening up their load.

Instead of trying to compete with others, spend more time and energy to complete others.

In leading others below you, put them in a winning position---put them in their strength spots.

Always ask: How can I put them in their strength position to help them succeed?

No matter how talented you are, someone will always beat you if they are in position.

Leaders should distinguish themselves during tough times.

Great leaders stretch to the challenge. Weak leaders shrink from the challenge.

You can tell the size of the person by the size of the problems they want to tackle.

To lead in tough times:
1. Face Reality
2. Control your destiny or someone else will. Jack Welch.
3. Be candid with everyone
4. Don’t manage, LEAD!
5. Change before you have to.
6. If you don’t have a competitive advantage, don’t compete.

Law of the Scoreboard
1. A leader can make adjustments when he know where he stands
2. Make good choices every time.
3. In good times think about bad times, define the things you need to know in times of crisis.
4. During crisis, learn from experiences----sometimes you win, sometimes you learn….when everybody else is losing, you are winning.
5. It’s not the fastest person who wins the race; it’s the person who ran first.
Which comes first, Passion or Vision? your Passion must catch your Vision.