On Becoming You

On Becoming You

The greatest compliment you can possibly pay to mankind is to become a true-blue representative of YOU. Become YOU!

A great quote.

When you die and go to heaven,

your maker is not going to ask,

“Why didn’t you discover the cure

for such and such?” 

The only question we will be asked 

in that precious moment is, 

“Why didn’t you become you?”

Elie Wiesel

A personal story:

I’ve had nine or more different careers thus far in my life. Some were a perfect match for my skill set and some were a strain and I really had to work at being good.

One day, in my fifties, I decided to do a bit of self-examination and took out a yellow lined pad and a pen and begin thinking.

My thoughts were on jobs I had had and why I liked them or disliked them. A picture soon began to emerge. It looked like this.

I like to encourage people.
I like people.
I like to build people up.
I like to influence people for the good. 

I’m musical.

I’m creative.
I can speak and sing before audiences.

And then thoughts of past careers came to mind.

In every instance in all nine careers, it dawned upon me that I had attempted to do some kind of work of encouragement, even in selling life insurance and mattresses. Can you believe that?

And today, I’m a writer of hope, encouragement, and inspiration. How about that?

Enough about me.

What about you?

Are you becoming a real version of you?

Once upon a time there was very successful heart surgeon. This doctor was the most amazing and skillful physician at his hospital.

He had a son. As most fathers do, this surgeon wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. The son grew, went to college, got into medical school, and earned his white coat and a prestigious position as a budding surgeon, following in his father’s footsteps.

Dad was happy, the son was miserable.

You see, he didn’t have the finger dexterity of his father. The father could manipulate those tiny instruments during a procedure with such finesse. The son’s skill was sloppy, and careless.

Finally, to dad’s dismay, the son left the medical world and became a real estate developer. He just didn’t have the basic skills required as a surgeon and he realized it.

See the point?

We have innate skills and desires lying silently inside of us and sometimes we just need someone, or some set of circumstances to come along and show us a better picture of who we might become and what we might become.

A huge part of becoming oneself is the great adage of “Know Thyself.”

How can you become YOU?
Do you know and understand you?
What do you like?
What do you think about in your alone moments?
What do you dislike?
If you could change something about yourself, what would it be?

And what about relationships? To what kind of people are you drawn? And there are so many other avenues to pursue in this vein.

Have you considered taking a personality assessment test?
Do you know your strengths, and weaknesses, and do you have a good idea of the kinds of jobs you should seek out or the ones you should leave alone? Are you good with numbers or are you good with using your hands?

Self-understanding is HUGE!

This article could go on, but it is best to bring it to a close. Now is the time for you to go off somewhere by yourself and do some mulling, some cogitating and some serious self-examination and determine the important ideas to which you are attracted for your life and make whatever alignments are right for you.

There is only one YOU. Become the best YOU!

P Michael Biggs 

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration 

Fight in Your Own Armor

One of my favorite expressions as an adult is this – Fight in your own armor.  It is based on a biblical story.  When David, a young lad faced Goliath, a giant, his general tried to put adult-sized heavy armor on David.  He could hardly move.

He chose, instead, armor and clothing he was comfortable in, which meant a simple robe, his sling shot and five smooth stones.  And he defeated Goliath.

My point?  Allow me to borrow a Tiger Woods quote.

Play YOUR Game.

There are a thousand ways to do whatever it is you do.  No one pattern fits all.  You have to find out what works for you.  Go and do things your way

A personal aside:

I am a writer, a drummer, a singer, a conductor and a husband.

I write in a style that I find very comfortable.  My natural gifts include the gift of encouragement, and I attempt to add a bit of encouragement in almost everything I write.  I’m not James Patterson, Tom Clancy or Zig Ziglar, though I come closer to Zig than these other greats.  However, I still have my own unique voice as a writer. 

The same could be said about my drumming, singing, conducting and husband skills.  I play my own game in all those areas.  And so should you.

We learn from others, for sure.  We mimic, we copy, we steal great styles and ideas and then make them our own, and that is the secret – we make it our own.

Are you a recording engineer like my friend Bob in Nashville?  Make it your own.

Do you run a retail store?  There are thousands of models for being a success in that world.  Make it your own.

Are you a real estate agent?  Some bake cookies for open houses.  Some put out balloons or flags.  Some do major newspaper spreads.  What do you do?  What is your armor as a real estate mogul?

If I haven’t mentioned your area of expertise, you are not off the hook here.  Read between the lines and figure out your unique niche for your product or service and go make it, do it, sell it, build it, invent it, write it, sing it, paint it, record it.

We want to see you at your very best and as an original.

After you copy some elements from others and adapt them to your own style you are then ready to make it your own.  Create the new you.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

The Brother to 'Choice'

I've written more than a few blogs about the importance of making good choices.  You see, the power of choice IS our greatest gift. 

Let’s push this a bit further.

The brother to choice is … responsibility. 

RESPONSIBILITY!

We take action – that’s choosing.

And we take responsibility.  That’s integrity.

We show integrity when we own our choices. 

We blame no one for how our lives roll along.  

We choose our food and the amounts

We choose our work environment

We choose the ways in which we spend our income

We choose our friends,

We choose our voting record or lack thereof

You see what’s happening here?  We are choosing the dimensions of our lives, present and future. 

And we take responsibility for those choices. 

The next ten years are being determined NOW by the choices we are making. 

The most encouraging thing I could say to all of us is this …

Plant good seeds for your future.

You deserve as good a chance

as you can give yourself.

Choices and Responsibility.  Brothers to the end.

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words Web Site

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

A Great Résumé

A resume makes the world go round. It gets attention, it opens doors, and it is a badge of honor we sometimes wear. Our resume speaks of our life, our skill set and future contributions.

Those close to us are the ones who perhaps know our true resume. They see us with all the trappings stripped away. And what do they see?

Here is what I want them to see in the resume of my life.

   

Reliable/Consistent
A friend to many
A man of integrity
A man of faith

When it comes down to it, who cares about the brilliant writer we may be, the amazing singer we once were, or the corporations we've built, the growth of the stock or the impressive status in the eyes of Wall Street our companies may be.

What I want on my résumé is a picture of a credible man who sleeps well at night, whose word can be counted as true gold, and one in whom others place great trust because it is earned through steady and reliable living. 

That to me is a great resume! 

P Michael Biggs
Up-Words Web Site
Offering Hope
Encouragement Inspiration
One Word at a Time

Giving from Nothing

Have you ever given what was never yours? 

Let me explain.  I am friends with two brothers.  I knew these boys when they were small – 6 months old and 3 years old.  Their father abandoned them and their mother right after the youngest was born, so for thirty-plus years their father-figure influences have come in spurts and bursts from uncles, grandfathers, a strong loving mother and perhaps books read and life experiences.  There has never been a steady full-time father figure in either boy’s life to guide him, nurture him.

Today, both brothers have children of their own.  One might surmise that their child rearing skills would be lacking.  Not so. As I watch these men from a distance, I see stellar qualities.  I see love, delight and joy over their own flesh-and-blood child.  Somewhere along the line both boys realized the beginnings of their own lives did not have to be passed forward and made great decisions along the way to change the outcome for their own kids. 

Instead of abandonment, I see cherished times.

Instead of rejection, I see love and delight over their kids.

They have found a way to give great love, great nurturing, and great acceptance out of an empty well in their own story.  They are giving from a place that never existed. 

How can one do that? 

To answer that, I need to relate another short story.

There once was a father who had twin sons.  The father was an alcoholic and showed no responsibility for his family duties and ended up abandoning his sons and family.  His life ended in death from a drunken stupor.

As the sons grew, their lives took divergent paths.  One son followed in his father’s footsteps and he too became addicted to alcohol and a life of irresponsibility.

The other son became an upstanding man of his community and an abstainer of alcohol in all forms.

When in their sixties, both boys, now men, were interviewed and they were asked why they turned out the way they have, given the kind of role model they had in their birth father.

Both men gave the exact same answer. 

“With a father like mine, what did you expect?”

One saw his derelict father and felt the only course open to him was to follow in those footsteps.

The other son saw his derelict father and said, “There has to be a better way.”  He sought and found that better way.

What are we talking about here?  We’re talking about the power of CHOICE!”

We each control the button of choice.  My two friends in the earlier story chose to respond in love, integrity, responsibility and nurture.  Their bold actions stopped the cycle of abandonment.  They are giving two small children a life full of hope and love.

What choices can you and I make that have good and lasting effect for now and for generations to come?

That is my constant question, and I’ll never stop asking, seeking and answering that one.

Have a marvelous New Year!

P Michael Biggs

Up-Words.net

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Make a Living or Make a Life

I just Googled my blog title.  There are numerous books, blogs, and articles that have used this as fodder for their content. 

Still I submit my thoughts.

In another blog I posted today I tell the story of an 84-year-old woman who went back to school to get her degree.  In a speech she gave, she closed with this thought.

“We make a living by what we get.

We make a life by what we give.”

This is the perfect quote for a philosopher such as me. 

So, what are we giving?  What legacy and what marks do we leave on this world that says “I passed by and this is what I want to leave for the next generation.”?

We can rest in confidence that we have lived a full life if we leave something of value and worth to others and for others.

Carolyn and I visited the Gates Foundation in Seattle a few months ago.  Bill and Melinda are such prime examples of giving back literally to the world in abundant measure.  They are strengthening the infrastructure in numerous countries around the world, and they are providing medical cures for countless children in so many less fortunate countries. 

Yes, they are allowing their lives to make life easier, longer lasting and healthier for countless individuals.  God bless them.

And you and I … what is our role in making a life by what we give?

For me, I want to offer a word of hope and encouragement to mankind.  I am fortunate that my blogs are now read in 105 countries.  That amazes me, and yet it weighs heavily on me to assure I produce words of quality, words of accuracy, and words that are true, reliable and believable.  I must write with integrity.  I pray I write with integrity.

What can you give back to mankind in your corner of the world? 

   Can you help a family in need?

      Can you bake a pie?

         Can you rake a lawn?

         Can you give a sack of groceries?

      Can you secretly give a stash of cash?

   Can you in some way enrich someone’s situation in a truly redeeming way?

That is the essence of this post.  If we can help another human being along the way, and then each recipient pass that along, look at what we would start. 

We would start a revolution of human kindness.

That’s not a bad way to live.

P Michael Biggs

www.up-words.net

Offering Hope

Encouragement Inspiration

One Word at a Time

Sine Cere - Without Wax

Once upon a time in Italy, there were some less-than-honest sculptors who would make mistakes when sculpting and to hide their flaws they would fill their statues with wax, yet pass off their work as the real, unblemished thing. On a hot day the wax would melt and their deceit would be revealed.

The authentic master sculptors of that day would advertise their work as “Sine Cera” – “Without Wax”. In other words, “My Work Is True Blue, with integrity. No Flaws.”

What a way to live: Being an authentic person.

To be a person of value and to offer value I want to be “without wax”, an authentic representation of who I say I am.

What do I say about myself?

Am I an authentic me?

So my question is this. Am I acting in a way that is consistent with the principles I hold?

If I hold myself up to be a man of integrity, when I think that no one is watching, do I act and think like someone of integrity? Am I without wax?

People can tell whether you care or not. Am I acting and responding in a way with other people so that they know without a shadow of a doubt that I care? Does my integrity shine through?

I am a reader.  One book I’ve read recently is called The Go-Giver by Bob Burg & John David Mann. In it they state “The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself." Let’s offer an authentic representation of ourselves to our world.

I like giving gifts, especially good quality stuff that has enduring qualities and lasting value. My chief aim is to offer a true representation of who I say and believe myself to be.

Authenticity


          Integrity


                    Sine Cera


                              Without wax

William Shakespeare says:

“This above all: to thine own self be true;

and it must follow, as the night the day.

Thou canst not then be false to any man.”

I choose to live each day

without wax -- with authenticity.