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GUEST COLUMN
Watch Out For The Noise...

By Don Phin

A recent article by a Los Angeles area psychiatrist, Phil Stutz, stated in part as follows:

The nature of reality is this:

̵ Life includes pain and adversity.
̵ The future is uncertain.
̵ Accomplishment of any kind requires discipline.
̵ You are not special. No matter what you do you cannot avoid these aspects of life.
̵ This will never change.

There is love, joy, surprise, transcendence, creativity as well but these never occur separate from the above five points.

In the rest of the article he goes on to discuss many of the same concerns we have about living our lives according to the “noises” out there. One bit of noise being offered through the media is the proposition that we can actually escape these realities and somehow live “happily every after.” This whole concept of “if you do ABC now you will live happily ever after” used to only involve the afterlife. I’m glad that we backed it up to at least within our lifetimes. But what is wrong with focusing on the here and now? Unfortunately, many of us have grown numb in the present moment.

The noise out there tells us that if we only do this or that then nirvana is sure to come our way. As a result, we can tend to ignore the present realities of life and live for future possibilities of escape. However, the noisemakers never explain that once the curtain falls, we don’t necessarily live happily ever after. They don’t explain that life is a series of events that just keeps on happening and happening and happening. They want us to believe that there is an escape ahead simply if we work hard enough, dress sharp enough, use Palm Pilots and consume a lot of soft drinks.

Unfortunately, much of this never-never-land mentality has permeated the workplace. Sure, capturing a corporate vision is important. We talked about it last month. But not if its design is to somehow escape present realities. The danger in being future-focused is forgetting about the present moment, which is the point of greatest leverage, and the point of greatest joy.

Reality is, life was never designed to be fair, it was designed to be a learning lesson. Pain and adversity are sure to come your way whether at an individual or corporate level, no matter what you do to try to avoid it. The future is bound to be uncertain, no matter how much you try to control and plan for it. Accomplishment doesn’t simply show up at your doorstep unless it is accompanied by discipline and persistence. No matter how much you may think you may be above the fray, you are not special. Life will happen to you, too. And lastly, as much as we may try to fight these realities they are always going to be with us. So, let’s stop trying so hard to escape from them!

Don’t forget to adopt strategies and disciplines that allow us to maximize the present moment — because it’s the only one we have. The trap of a “future focus” is that we can find ourselves running so hard toward it that we lose touch with our present feelings and the feelings of those around us. Then, to make matters even worse, if we fail to meet our well planned out future, we will label ourselves a failure and want to blame others for our circumstances. What a pity. Don’t let you or your organization get caught in the trap of tomorrow at the expense of today.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Don Phin is an attorney who for more than 16 years, has specialized in the litigation of employment and business cases. He has represented hundreds of employees, partners and companies in that time. Don has litigated wrongful termination, race and age discrimination, sexual harassment, whistle-blower, trade-secret theft, fraud, partnership dissolution and many other cases to a successful conclusion. In 1995, Don obtained the status of a Certified Professional Consultant to Management (CPCM). Since then, he spends a large part of his time consulting, writing, speaking and coaching.

Don’s seminars, workshops and reports have been delivered to such groups as the International Risk Management Institute, Insurance Marketing and Management Services, The Executive Committee, The CEO Club, The Society for Human Resource Management, Foundation of Enterprise Development, The National Human Resource Association and The National Association of Professional Consultants to Management.

Risk management is about possibilities and probabilities. It’s about assessing the 80/20 of exposure and then committing the strategies and tools needed to protect yourself. I hope these insights will help those of you battling on the front lines. If you have any questions regarding the trials and tribulations of managing in today’s high-risk environment, e-mail or give me a call at 800-234-3304.

riskVue | The webzine for risk management professionals
July 2001