One of my favorite writers, Paulo Coelho, claims that (to paraphrase):

“we are put on this World to fulfill our Personal Legend, our Purpose. And, if we are on the right track, the Universe will conspire for us to succeed. However, if we are on the wrong track, shit happens…”

This philosophy has resonated with me since I was exposed to it for the first time over a decade ago and it has become a part of my life’s mantra.

Particularly during the Holiday Season, when we can get caught up in the Huff-and-Puff of social demands and obligations, I think it is important that we maintain the clarity of what is important to us and have courage to stay true to that.

For me, this year is about Generosity and Sharing.

Generosity and sharing, when coming from a true and authentic place, can have a tremendous impact on our surroundings.  Think of your last “selfless act” or “random act of kindness” – when you did your good deed of the day. Remember? It not only felt wonderfully warm in your belly, but it gave a twinkle in the eye of the receiver, or perhaps evoked in them an even deeper emotion, affected their action, experience of the moment…

In business, we can build on the kindness we experience with each other now by encouraging more collaborative approaches to mandates, projects or tasks. We can do this by:

• giving the values “teamwork and collaboration” meaning in our daily activities.
• helping foster broad and deep information sharing, innovation and ego-managed competition.
•  giving time to think and not always imposing ridiculous timelines that prevent us from doing the right thing and force us to just “do”
• celebrating the role models and rewarding the good doing.

So the question is this: How can you build on this Short-Lasting-Yule-Infused-Holiday-Spirit? How can you reinforce the foundation of the culture of generosity and sharing while staying true to your organizational purpose and business direction?

 Eggnog anybody?