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Issue: #4
April 2010
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THE EIGHT IRRESISTIBLE PRINCIPLES OF FUN
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Greetings! 
Greetings! This fourth issue of Thoughts on Intentional Living is focused on the basics of FUN, inspired by the desire to welcome spring after a long Michigan winter. I raise the questions "What is fun for you?" and more importantly, "Are you having fun in your life?" If either answer is less than enthusiastic, please read on. You will be surprised at what you discover about the underrated notion of fun and how powerful it can be. Michael Bungay Stanier, a business and executive coach in Canada and creator of Box of Crayons, a coaching business, made this wonderful, short internet movie with the sole purpose of helping people do more Great Work and to have more Fun in their lives. I encourage you to either (1) take five minutes to check it out: www.eightprinciples.com or (2) read the words (most of them) of this movie below -- without the movie's animation, music and technicolor but juicy to read nonetheless or (3) do both!
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Principle #1
Stop hiding who you really are.
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Take time to figure out what makes up your DNA. When it comes
down to it, what do you stand for? And then, when you know who you are, turn up
the volume!
"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of
being a second rate version of someone else."
-- Judy Garland, actress
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Principle #2
Start being intensely selfish.
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Get hungry for the things that are truly important to
you. Think of the people you respect and love, the moments you relish, the
impact you want to have, the legacy you want to leave. Don't waste your time on
anything else.
"When you come down to it, all you have is yourself. All
the rest is nothing."
-- Picasso, artist |
Principle #3
Stop following all the rules.
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 With the exception of gravity, almost all of the rules are
negotiable -- someone just makes them up. It's no longer about what you can't
do. It's about what you can do.
"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun."
-- Katherine Hepburn, actress
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Principle #4
Start scaring yourself.
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 Explore your edges. Dip your toe in the bold, the
outrageous, and the unthinkable. Seek out and have adventures.
"Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages. Bitter
cold. Long months of darkness. Constant danger. Safe return doubtful."
--Ernest Shackleton, explorer
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Principle #5
Stop taking it all so damn seriously.
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In this moment, is it a life or death decision? In 10 years, will you remember what you were fretting about? In 100 years, will anyone care? So lighten up, this too will pass.
"Don't take life too seriously. You will not get out of it alive."
-- Elbert Hubba, publisher
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Principle #6
Start getting rid of crap.
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Think of all the stuff that's weighing you down and getting in the way. Not just the things, but the habits, the memories, the attitudes, the people. Get rid of that clutter.
"Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification."
-- Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., civil rights leader
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Principle #7
Stop being busy.
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Being busy is seductive. Just because you're going flat out doesn't mean you are on the right track. If it's the wrong hole, stop digging.
"We are lost, be we are making good time."
-- Yogi Berra, baseball philosopher
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Principle #8
Start something.
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Don't wait any longer for permission to do what you want to do. There are always reasons to procrastinate just a little longer. Enough! Just start!
"When all is said and done, there is a lot more said than done."
-- Lou Holtz, sports coach
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Now it's action time!
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Although these Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun are numbered 1-8, you need not follow them in this order. Quite the contrary! Just for the fun of it, choose one now that speaks to you in some way.... If you were to begin to practice it today, what exactly that look like? Take the plunge! You have nothing to lose and it could be the beginning of a whole new way of living life to the fullest.
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Pass It On
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 I am committed to reaching out and sharing skills, ideas, and practices that I believe can lead people to living their best and intentional life. Please pass this newsletter on to others if you are so inspired, and ask your friends and colleagues to sign up for the newsletter if these ideas interest them. Wishing you well,
Brady Mikusko, ACC, Life Coach
author of Be Smart: Prepare Yourself for Divorce Mediation
WANT TO REDUCE STRESS AT WORK? Click Here
Interested in learning EFT, a powerful stress-reduction technique? Click here
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