Is your gut right or wrong?

My general feeling when meeting people tends to be overwhelmingly either 1) I like them, or 2) I'm neutral towards them. A very small number ends up being 3) My tail is twitching and there's something about them that doesn't jive with me. Sometimes, they get moved from one bucket to another, but rarely, (if ever?) would anyone go from 1 to 3 or vice versa. And typically, people who start in the 3rd bucket, usually never move out of it.

I met someone - we'll call him Max. He fell immediately into the 3rd bucket, and I couldn't place exactly what he said or did that made my tail twitch. I CONSCIOUSLY decided that under the circumstances we were in, that I would make an extra effort to move him into the 2nd bucket. Perhaps I had an inaccurate perception of him. Perhaps I was judging a book too much by it's cover (sleazy). Perhaps there was a negative stereotype that made me jump to conclusions; whatever the reasoning, I set aside my gut feeling.

Nope. My gut was right. In the past 12 months, I've gotten more details and a clearer understanding of the qualities and specifics of Max that support my initial judgement. Something subconscious and in my brain was able to process countless details and come up with a judgement (3rd bucket - he's not to be trusted) that my conscious side could not piece together. Since then, each and every one of my trusted allies and friends agree and make the same conclusion. And what is the learning here? Sometimes, you need to go with your gut. You do not always have to 'explain it'. I should have trusted my instincts, and although I do not regret giving him a chance, I should not nearly have been as patient and understanding as I have been all these months. Next time, I think I need to provide a time-limit for promotions from the 3rd bucket to the 2nd bucket.

So - is my gut right or wrong? It depends (on the situation) and it really doesn't matter one way or another. We just need to have the confidence to trust and believe in ourselves to the best of our ability and know at the end of the day, it's okay to be right or wrong.

How I got free stuff

A few months ago, I was really desperate. I started telling co-workers (and anyone else who would listen) that I needed a way to get free advertising. Many laughed at me. Many told me you can't get advertising for free.

Today, I shared my success with a co-worker and told him how I got it for free. Now, don't get me wrong, it's not like I got free advertising worth gazillions - no, nothing like that. However, I did get something, and something is more than what many of my co-workers thought was possible when I first posed the question. My success (our success?) was a based on a shift in thinking. Although I called it 'Free', what I meant was "at no dollar cost to me or my budget". What I've been able to do, was get people to think creatively about how it just may be possible. My original confidence that this was possible, allowed them to remove the barriers, and help come up with some plans. I ended up successful at getting stuff for "free".

What other impossible feats are you trying to accomplish and are they really impossible?

Be unreasonable

It has been a long few weeks since the last time I wrote, and I was a little embarrassed and ashamed. Afterall, my last post was about finding time and how we all complain we don't have enough time, and my first thought at my return was - "wow, I've been busy and haven't had time to write". DOH! Am I happy with what I've spent my time on? Generally - a resounding YES. It has only been the last 2 days that I've been feeling an itch. That itch of "am I doing what I want to be doing? Am I happy spending the time doing those things?". And of course, what can I say except that the last 2 days have been difficult. I have not been happy with what I've been doing, and I've had to deal with some bureaucratic bull in the past 48 hours.

Why do we accept this as par for the course? I read a quote that I really liked. It said reasonable people live in the world and accept it as is, while unreasonable people change it. Are you ready to change it? Are you ready to change *your* world? I already feel better and at peace. I'm continuing to change my world, and I'm enjoying it the entire way through.