It can be tricky to write in a darkened movie theater. But lines from two movies this week prompted me to risk the quick glances of disapproval from people around me as I searched my bag for a pen and notepad. These were thoughts I wanted to remember, chew on, talk about and share. I wrote in large script, hopeful I’d be able to read what I’d scribbled when the lights went up.
My first note is from the movie “Pina,” a feature-length dance film in 3D that pays homage to the late German choreographer Pina Bausch (1940-2009). Between dance pieces, members of the ensemble talk about Pina and their experiences working with her. I wish I could attribute the female dancer who said this:
“Pina was a radical explorer. She kept asking, ‘What are we longing for? Where does all this yearning come from?'”
Yes! I thought. Two of my first questions for clients are What do you want? and What is your desire? We create for ourselves and shape our experiences with a longing. The basis for creating our life’s work must start there, with a burning desire for something.
Next I was compelled to write down something Meryl Streep says as Margaret Thatcher in the biographical film “The Iron Lady.” She tells us it’s what her father always said:
“Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words for they become actions. Watch your actions for they become habits. Watch your habits for they become your character. You become what you think.”
Funny how she knew that. That her father knew that. Perhaps he was an early reader of Napoleon Hill’s work. Maybe he learned for himself that which is a founding principle of Qinomics: You get what you think about.
Tags: human energy, leadership, managing yourself, Napoleon Hill, personal effectiveness, positive energy, success
