Reflection on the Rewards of Discipline

I began the week with a blog posting on the principle of Discipline. Given that I was away from home, in Vancouver on business, traveling with my daughter Meryl Fé, and staying with a friend whose internet service was out of order the first few days, exercising discipline was essential to moving through the week productively and gracefully.

Perhaps the greatest challenge and the richest rewards during the week–as is often the case–were embodied in the dynamic tension between the discipline of doing (working late to keep on track with communications and project timelines, scooting out to the local internet café, etc), the discipline of being (hanging out with Meryl Fé at the park, visiting with our friends and hosts Laura and Andrew Mack, etc.), and the exquisite discipline of integrating both during the most extraordinary AWE (Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs) meeting Thursday afternoon (designed and facilitated principally by Laura Mack) and the Authentic Leadership Dinner (designed by Tana Heminsley, and facilitated again by Laura Mack).

Here are some reflections on specific applications of discipline, which I observe, or which others reflected back to me, that I exercised this week, and the rewards. Granted, it was not just me or discipline that produced the results, but I recognize how discipline facilitated my ability to show up and play my part.

Action: Staying up very late to prepare for Catalyzing Conscious Capitalism Summit conference call.
Reward: Extremely tight, productive call, with a calm and steady pace, meeting our call objectives, and more deeply engaging key team members who had been somewhat out of the loop.

Action: Squeezing in yoga, runs, walk, swims, pushups and pull ups, to keep the blood (and all that goes with it) moving, even when circumstances made it difficult and out of my normal flow.
Rewards: Sanity! A sense of wholeness, integration, and relative ease, in spite of disruption of normal routines.

Action: Continuing a pattern cultivated over nearly two years, weaving time with Laura to discuss the meetings, AWE in general, and AWE in Vancouver.
Reward: Easy collaboration, instilling confidence in the participants, laying a deep foundation for ongoing development of broad-based collaboration.

Action: Entering into group meetings (at which I was the only male, in women focused conversations) with clear intentions, openness, and flexibility and employing the discipline of listening and sustaining presence.
Reward: Ease, flow, and deep connection between the participants, recognition of the appropriateness and effectiveness of my participation, and real engagement with and ongoing commitment to the AWE program.

Action: Letting work go for a while to be with Meryl Fé (sometimes the hardest discipline for me to carry out).
Reward: Connection and joy, and the desire for more!

Action: Reflecting on the week and on the relationship between the seeds planted at the beginning (e.g. the principle of discipline) and their effect throughout the week.
Reward: Recognition, reinforcement, learning, and integration.

Until soon.

Be well,

Jeff

www.workingforgood.com