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Aligning Your Life’s Work

Mike Brown  September 2014

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Blog: www.Brainzooming.comEmail: mike.brown@brainzooming.com

Twitter: @BrainzoomingPhone: 816‐509‐5320

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Balance State of equilibrium

Equilibrium

No forces for change

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Alignment Deliberately arranging all things for consistency with your purpose and priorities.

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ExploringSupportingAligning toDrafting

Your Core Purpose

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And as Andy Warhol said . . ."It's not that my philosophy isfailing me, it's that I amfailing my own philosophy. I breach what I preach morethan I practice it.”

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Core Purpose in Business

To give ordinary folk the chance to buy the same things as rich people.

To make global commerce work by connecting people, places, and information.

To solve unsolved problems innovatively.

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Core Purpose for an IndividualWhat matters

The long‐lasting impact from why you’re here

A target for alignment

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Exploring your Core Purpose

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What things motivate you to get up and get 

out of bed daily?

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In what ways are you of the 

greatest service to others?

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What brings you happiness and contentment?

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If you didn’t have to work, 

how would you spend your 

time, talents, and attention?

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At the end of your life, what 

things will make you smile when you look back?

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ExerciseNote three or four thoughts for each of the core purpose questions.

There’s no time for an exhaustive list – just your first impressions.

We’ll pace you through the questions.

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Exploring your Core PurposeWhat things motivate you to get up and get out of bed daily?

In what ways are you of the greatest service to others?

What brings you happiness and contentment?

If you didn’t have to work, how would you spend your time, talents, and attention?

At the end of your life, what things will make you smile?

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RecapWere any questions easier or harder than others?

Did you surprise yourself with any of the answers?

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Supporting yourCore PurposeValues and Spirituality

Perspectives and Goals

Authenticity

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Values and SpiritualityWW

WYTYATHTYCEOD?

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A Basics Checklist Demonstrate integrity. Exhibit a passion to serve others and make them 

successful.

Treat people nicely, be friendly & smile.

Take responsibility for mistakes & fix things quickly and correctly.

Look for ways to personally improve something each day.

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What are your Rocks?What gets your attention first?

What is the focus of your time?

What ALWAYS happens?

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Perspectives and Goals

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Look for Long Lines

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How long will it last?

How long will its impact endure?

How much can I influence it?

Does it REALLY matter today?

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Strategic Patience

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Quick, Vital StrategyQuestions

How do we expect to 

accomplish it?

What do we want to achieve?

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When You Hit a WallWhat else is possible?

Next best ways?Redefine success?

A different path?What IS working?

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Authenticity

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The Stress of Crooked Lines“Some have a style

that they work hard to refine, 

so they walk a crooked line.”

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Aligning to your Core PurposeTalents

Attention

Service and Leadership

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Talents Come in All Types 

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What functions, talents, and skills 

do you use in your professional life?

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What functions, talents, and skills do 

you use in your family relationships 

& duties?

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What functions, talents, and skills 

do you use in your personal interests, 

hobbies, and spiritual life?

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What talents or skills do you use 

aspire to develop?

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Analyze, Arts & crafts, Buy groceries / shopping, Clean, Cook & feed, Coordinating, Credit meetings, Gardening, Hiking, Identify potential problems, Laundry, Learning / education, Listening & empathizing, Make sure everybody has what they need, Managing people, Negotiate, Oil painting, Organization, Organize outings, Play taxi, Prayer, Prioritize, Problem solving, Reading, Shoveling, Skiing, Swimming, Teach kids – family talks –spiritually based, Travel, Volunteering, Write policies

Cindy’s Talents as an example

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ExerciseWrite out eight to ten talents, functions, skills, or activities for each question.

Include both big and small activities you do, enjoy, or even don’t enjoy when do them.

Don’t edit ‐ simply list as many talents and activities as you can.

Your Talents

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Exploring your TalentsWhat functions, talents, and skills do you use . . .  

in your professional life?

in your family relationships & duties?

in your personal interests, hobbies, and spiritual life?

And which do you aspire to develop?

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RecapWere you able to identify satisfying talents across all the areas?

Did you surprise yourself with any of the items you listed?

Your Talents

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A Talent Isn’t a Talent Isn’t a Talent

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Your Distinctive TalentsDistinct to you

You improve all the time

Beneficial to others

Source of energy and satisfaction

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YourDistinctive Talents vs.

Areas of ExcellencePerform well, but lesser energy boost

Areas of CompetencePerform adequately, but don’t improve over time

Areas of IncompetenceDon’t perform well, and get worse over time

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A Talent Isn’t a Talent Isn’t a Talent

Review the talents you listed, and decide whether each is:

A Distinctive Talent

An Area of Excellence

A Competence

An Incompetence

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A Talent Isn’t a Talent Isn’t a TalentDistinctive Talent

What activities are distinct to you, you get better as you do them, they’re beneficial to others, and they energize you?

Areas of ExcellenceWhat activities do you do well, but lack the energy boost that would make you want to do them more?

Areas of CompetenceWhat activities do you perform adequately, but don’t see any improvement from spending more time on them?

Areas of IncompetenceWhat activities don’t you perform well and your performance worsens over time? What would you like to stop doing or spend less time on?

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RecapHave you identified items across all four of the talent categories?

How much time do you spend with your distinctive talents?

How much time do you waste on your areas of incompetence?

Your Varied Talents

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Where do you focus Attention? 

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Downsides of Multitasking

More prone to distraction by unimportant information (Stanford)

$650 billion in lost productivity annually (Basex)

Longer to reach destinations when driving and using the cell phone (University of Utah)

75% of people miss obvious visual events around them (Western Washington University)

Nearby cell phones cause friction in relationships (University of Essex)

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To‐Do ListBucket ListNever Going To‐Do List

Freedom!

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Service and Leadership

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Be Your Own Leader

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Exploring Your Foundation

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What can you Control?The Integrity of Your Effort

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The Integrity of Your Effort“Your teaching must have the integrity of serious, sound words to which no one can take exception. If it does, no opponent will be able to find anything bad to say about us, and hostility will yield to shame.”

‐ Paul of Tarsus, Titus 2:8

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Saying and Meaning “I’m Sorry”When you mean it

Not just when you’re caught

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PraisingandCongratulating

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ExploringSupportingAligning toDrafting

Your Core Purpose

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Putting It All TogetherCore Purpose Questions

Talents

Supporting Elements

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Drafting your Core PurposeMost Important Things

MotivationsThings that Create Happiness

Time InvestmentUnique Abilities and Talents

Look for Common Themes that emerge

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3M Wal‐Mart

To (verb) make solve give

What or Who?

global commerce work

unsolved problems

ordinary folk

How, What or Why?

by connecting people, places & information.

innovatively. the chance to buy the same things as rich 

people.

Working with Your Answers

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Draft #1 Draft #2 Draft #3

To (verb) help

What or Who?

people overwhelmed/ not seeing hope /who haven’t been given a chance 

OR people who have been labeled or 

marked

OR people who have been overlooked

How, What or Why?

by providing resources.OR

by showing them a more positive 

side.

ORby showing them their talents.

Cyndi’s Core Purpose Draft

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Personal Core Purpose FormatTo VERB                

WHAT? Or WHO?

HOW? WHAT? Or WHY?

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Core PurposeQuestions

What things motivate you to get up and get out of bed daily?

In what ways are you of the greatest service to others?

What brings you happiness and contentment?

If you didn’t have to work, how would you spend your time, talents, and attention?

At the end of your life, what things will make you smile?

Drafting your

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RecapWere you able to make progress in forming some words / phrases?

Does anyone feel like they figured it out right away?

Were any parts more difficult than others?

Your Core Purpose

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What Questions on what’s next?

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“The world is more malleablethan you think,  and 

it’s waiting for you tohammer it into shape.” 

‐ Bono

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Blog: www.Brainzooming.comEmail: mike.brown@brainzooming.com

Twitter: @BrainzoomingPhone: 816‐509‐5320