Five frogs sat on a lily pad…

Five frogs sat on a lily pad; one decided to get off. Now how many frogs are on the lily pad?

We mustn’t confuse intentions, resolutions, plans, and decisions with action.

  • Intending to do something doesn’t change anything.
  • Planning to do something is not synonymous with doing it.
  • Deciding to do something is not the same as doing it.
  • Action is the sine qua non of change and the precursor to progress.

Granted, planning and action are mutually dependent. Action without planning can be ineffective and inefficient. Abraham Lincoln said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” Good planning increases the effectiveness of action. But planning without action is just wishful thinking. 

Business consultant Peter Drucker said, “Ideas don’t move mountains; bulldozers move mountains, but ideas show where the bulldozers have to go to work.” Until you hear the rumble of the bulldozer and feel the resistance of the dirt, you haven’t bridged the gap between planning and action. 

Planning, by itself, can be deceptively easy—even enjoyable. Jerry Brown, former governor of California, said, “The reason everybody likes planning is that nobody has to do anything.” All great ideas must inevitably evolve into work.  

After you have planned, it’s helpful to immediately do something toward reaching the goal; this kickstarts momentum. Indira Gandhi, former prime minister of India, said, “Have a bias towards action – let’s see something happen now. You can break that big plan into small steps and take the first step right away.” All projects can be broken down into small, actionable tasks. Identify one and get started.

Maintain proper balance. Plan your work and work your plan. 

I ask again: how many frogs are on the lily pad?

 

Don’s “best of 2019”

Here are some highlights of my life in 2019 A.D.

Book – The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis. Forty years ago, Israeli psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky wrote a series of breathtakingly original papers that invented the field of behavioral economics. They had one of the greatest partnerships in the history of science. In The Undoing Project, Lewis shows how their Nobel Prize–winning theory of the mind altered our perception of reality. The last page made me weep.

Meal – In December I took my family on our 6th consecutive transatlantic
crossing on the Queen Mary 2. While in London we eat a quintessential four-course English meal at 45 Jerymn.  This year, master Benjamin handled himself well at the fancy restaurant.

 

 

 

Concert – This year I directed my 47th consecutive Christmas program. When I was 19 years old I directed a performance of the Messiah at my church in Austin, Texas. Here are
 pictures of the 1972 concert in Austin and the 2019 Christmas program at Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas. Life would be tedious if devoid of great church music, particularly  on sacred holidays.

Persons of the year – Scott and Barbara Scribner have been our friends for years. They are realtors in the Dallas metroplex. Last year they went the second mile in helping us negotiate a difficult real estate deal. Thanks, Scott and Barbara. If you need a realtor in the DFW area, they are among the best ([email protected]).

 

Travel experience – In August we toured the Greek Isles. It is a beautiful and historic part of the world. This is a picture of the Library of Celsus in ancient Ephesus, constructed in the 2nd century CE.

In October 2020 I’m taking a small group of travelers to Rome, Turkey, Croatia, and the Greek Isles; we’ll see the ruins of this ancient library.

 

Hobby update – In spring 2017  I planted a small vineyard in East Texas. I’m growing Tempranillo, Blanc-du-Bois and Black Spanish grapes. The first two years, the fruit is cut off to channel all energy to the root-system. In July 2020 I’ll be crushing grapes.

 

Fun experience – One of my goals during the summer was to help Benjamin be pool-safe. We practiced several times a week. Here’s a video of his final exam.

In memoriam –  The day after Thanksgiving, Grams passed from this life to the next. Mary’s mother was 95-years old.

Grams was the personification of Micah 6:8—He has told you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.  There is no doubt that God was pleased with her life and testimony.

Grams lived an exemplary life: She put feet to her faith. She was kind to all. Her work ethic was solid. She loved her family. She was prudent and careful. She was a joy to be with…never demanding or seeking attention.

She has left her family and friends a high-standard of love and life for us to aspire to.

We will miss her greatly and think of her often.

How to learn from reading

We can learn just about anything in life if we will simply read and then reflect on what we have read (Warren Bennis).

Several years ago I was teaching the Lead Well workshop to a group of executives. In one of the sessions I casually asked, “How many of you have read Stephen Covey’s book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People?” Just about everyone had. I then asked, “Which of the seven habits did you best connect with?” No one responded. I gently prompted them on some of the habits (start with the end in mind; be proactive; put first things first) but blank stares and silence filled the room. Reading Covey’s great book had no lasting value for these executives because they had not retained what they read.

Because of that encounter, I formalized my approach to reading with the intent to learn.

In last week’s post, I listed the books I read in 2019. Here’s how I processed each one so as to maximize learning. Let’s begin with a reminder of the importance of reading.

1. Read.

“He who does not read is no better off than those who cannot read.” –  Mark Twain

“Those who do read are better off than those who can read but do not.” – Don McMinn

Make reading a regular part of your weekly routine. Some people read daily, others read for longer periods of time on the weekend. Make reading a priority, otherwise you won’t do it.

There’s a difference between reading for entertainment and pleasure and reading to learn. I read the daily newspaper to relax and catch up on the news, but I don’t read it to learn. I read a few novels every year but I don’t anticipate that I’m going to learn a lot; I read them for pleasure.

Determine that you are going to read with the intent to learn.

Identify written material that you can learn from. Don’t underestimate how hard this can be; a lot of printed material is intellectual cotton candy. Here are some sources for finding good material:

  • Get recommendations from friends who enjoy reading good material.
  • Read book reviews (the Sunday New York Times has an entire section on book reviews).
  • Identify periodicals that feed your mind. I enjoy National Geographic, Smithsonian, The Atlantic.
  • Discover what type of book works for you. For instance, I do not enjoy reading a large book on a single subject; I just don’t have the interest or the patience. I’m a generalist so I would rather read three shorter books about three different topics than one long book about one.

Discover your personal reading preferences.

2. Develop a process that will help you retain what you read. Read and mark.

I’ve developed the following system that works for me. Use it as a general template and craft your own system.

  • Before you start reading, take a few minutes to anticipate what you hope to learn. What is the topic? Why have you chosen this book or periodical? Who is the author? Why should you spend time reading this material? How might it impact your life? Study the table of contents to get an overview of the book.
  • Read the book with pen in hand. When you read something that speaks to you, circle or underline it and then make marks in the upper/outside corner of the page (one mark means “this is good”; two marks mean “this is really good”; three marks mean “this is outstanding.”) Also, in the margins, write key words or thoughts.
  • Each person has his own reading/attention-span. Read until your mind begins to drift and then set the book aside, or switch to another book. I normally focus on three books at a time. I’ll read one for 20 minutes, then switch to another for 20 minutes. With practice, you can increase your ability to concentrate while reading.
  • Quickly find links between what you read and real life. How can the thoughts espoused in the book be lived out in real life? If often helps to share with others what you have learned.
  • When you finish reading the book, put it aside for several weeks.

3. Journal key thoughts.

Re-read the book, focusing on those areas that you marked. This should take about 1/5 the amount of time it took you to read it the first time. Record in your thought-journal, significant thoughts and passages from the book. Formerly, I wrote in a nice leather journal. Now, I use the Evernote app because the files are always with me and it has a search function.

Periodically, re-read your journal entries and highlight salient thoughts, particularly those you want to memorize.

4. Memorize key thoughts.

Knowledge without memory is useless so it’s helpful to memorize key thoughts and concepts. When committed to memory, thoughts will continue to grow, mature, and become clear.

For instance, years ago I memorized a significant thought proffered by F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in your mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” When I first memorized the sentence I wasn’t sure what it meant, but it lingered in my mind for years and one day it came alive. Now it gives me solace and peace of mind.

So, as you re-read your journal entries, identify what you want to memorize. Develop a memorization system that works for you. Some people use index cards, I use Evernote.

The key to memorization is repetition and review.

5. Apply knowledge to life.

Finally, bridge the knowing-doing gap because knowledge without application is minimally useful.

Authors Pffeffer and Sutton wrote a terrific book titled The Knowing-Doing Gap: How Smart Companies Turn Knowledge Into Action (2000). It’s a great read that exposes a conundrum we all face: why is it so difficult to do what we know we should do? Why do we know but we do not do?

In 2020, read more and process what you read.