You are Imago Dei

One wonderful phrase I learned during my seminary days was Imago Dei. I don’t remember if I got the term from a book, or maybe during a conversation with the discalced Carmelites. I was delighted to know that I was created in the image and likeness of God. And that’s how I see you, and everyone around us. We are all created in the image and likeness of God. We are more important than a Mona Lisa, a masterpiece created by the Genius Michael Angelo Leonardo da Vinci. We are more important than the Statue of Liberty, or even the tallest building in the world. We are more important than any of them because we are created by the genius of all geniuses, God. And God created us in his image. I want you to remember that my friend every time you feel ill-equipped, every time you feel that you worth nothing, or every time you look down on other people. Every time we communicate with others, we must communicate the masterpiece that we are.

There are those among us whose only ambition in life is to be like their idols. That I believe is a great mistake. That I believe is ignorance. We don’t need to be copy cats. We cannot be like anybody else but us. There is only one you, and that Y-O-U is a masterpiece, a gift to this world.

The Mona Lisa is valuable. But the people around you are more valuable for they are created by the same artist who created Leonardo Da Vince. It does not matter what you or others believe about you, you are valuable.

You are not only different, you are the only one

You are not only different, you are unique. Someone told me that if I were to become a sellable speaker, I must be different. When I asked how different I must be, she said
“You must try to master American English and speak like an American”
“ Dress to Impress. Get your dress tailored. And always wear a level more formal than your audience”
“ Brush your teeth, comb your hair, and put some perfume. Shine your shoes too!”
“ Bring your calling cards always, smile a lot, and call people by their names.”
“ Attend conventions and conferences, and always bring your pocket speeches.”

I felt that she was describing the boyfriend she never had. I am sure that I will see that kind of speaker when I go out today. That will not make me any different at all. The greater challenge is not really how to be different, but to accept that we are unique and there is nothing wrong about it.

Some of our educational institutions consider themselves like factories of biscuits. They have the model. The product must come out in a particular shape, color, size, and weight. So, they manufacture doctors, nurses, engineers, architects, lawyers. They produce teachers who parrot their teachers. Everyone must conform to the model. Those who do not conform to the model are rejects.

You are what you are

You are what you are.  Yes, and I hope it make perfect sense to you. You cannot change who you truly are. One song said, I am beautiful no matter what people say. A lot of people sing that song without really understanding it. I am beautiful no matter what I think about myself.

I admit my friend that the two ideas — You are what you think you are and You are what you think about –  are powerful tools for these thinking may influence the way you communicate with people, and the way you live your life.  But then, these thinking may also lead you away to what you are.

What You Are Spells the Difference

Some people say (sometimes these people are described as great thinkers, great psychologist, great prophets)
that our picture of ourselves influence the action we take—or that that you are what you think you are. When I think of myself as a Lilliputian I see everything as giants and this thinking limits my actions to small things. When I think of myself as Hercules, I see myself as a hero who can solve every problem and this thinking get me frustrated when I am not able to solve a small thing. How do you picture yourself?

Others say (also recognized great people) that positive mental attitude will transform you into the person you want to be.  That you are what you think about.  This means that you can change your world, the future, by changing your attitude. You will find plenty of these ideas in the bookstores today. Choose your authors: Earl Nightingale, James Allen, John Maxwell, Og Mandino, Norman Vincent Peale, Richard Bach, Zig Ziglar, Donald Trumph. Those who wanted to be rich read their books. Some made it to the Millionaires club, I guess. How about you, what do you think about everyday?

One day, I stopped listening to them.

I was delivering an Icebreaker speech at TOPS Toastmasters. Icebreaker speeches are supposed to be prepared. We must write, edit, and rehearse every word. I came prepared; and I delivered something else.  In TOPS Toastmasters, almost everyone talk about self-talk, positive mental attitude, affirmation, dreaming big, self-motivation. And I was one of them. They come in different voices, but speak with the same tongue.

The words came out smoothly. I said, “Positive Mental Attitude is a self-deception.”

Create a Customer-Keeping Vision

Do you intend to keep your customer?

Let us discuss this Friday how to create a customer-keeping vision. I intend to define vision, look into the purposes of vision, and discuss what to do with vision so that you can inspire your people to new heights of excellence.

Somebody gave me a brochure the other day. I read this:

Vision Statement

To become the preferred professional business and tax

consultancy service provider to a globally competitive client base

Thru

The participation, involvement and stewardship of its key people

Thus,

Enabling the organization to fulfill its humanitarian

role and share the blessings to society

What benefits will you get from this company? I read the descriptions (it is actually a group of companies) and did not find anything that says how the customers will benefit from them. I thought I should call the contact person one day so she can explain to me the benefits of getting their services. Having seen her present before us, however, convinced me that she has only vague ideas about their vision.

This also reminds me of Cory S. who during her inaugural address as leader of her organization only talked about how she won her office. After the meeting I asked her why she did not talked about her vision. She told me that she did not know how. She told me that that was only her slogan since everyone has to have a slogan. What a way of leading her organization.

Let’s continue…

Sometimes, the company vision comes with the “golden rule” of the company, like this one.

Golden Rule of L.L. BEAN

Sell good merchandize at a reasonable profit,

treat your customers like human beings,

and they’ll always come back for more.

Or in a company Slogan or Motto,

FORD (Motto in 1980”s)

Quality is Job 1.

What is Vision?

I say that vision is the picture of the beautiful future. That definition would make sense to most of us, maybe except for the pessimists among us. We usually see the current state and we look forward to a future which may be less than ideal but definitely an improvement of the current state. Companies, like people, have visions. But not all visions are the same. Not all visions are customer-keeping vision.

Some companies craft their visions because others have their visions posted on the wall. It is something that makes them feel that they are legitimate companies. Some companies have vision statements that focus on how they rank among the companies in their industry. That is, to be the number 1 and number 2 in their industry. This kind of vision is not necessarily wrong. It simply means that it is not customer-centered. Companies are like people too! Some are self-centered, some are other-oriented, and there are those who don’t know what to do. However, if business means getting and keeping customers, and if business means keeping the customers happy, then it follows that your company vision must be customer-centered. Your customer will make you number 1 or number 9021.

Let me continue this discussion next week. Let’s help each other come up with a more productive conversation. I am inviting you to review your organizations vision statement, purpose, slogan, motto, or dogma. Do you think any of them convey the picture of your organization in the future? Do you think your vision show how you are supposed to serve your customers? Send your answers. I will keep your name in top secret.

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I cannot promise that I can answer your comments until Monday. I am bound for Iloilo this afternoon. I have no laptop with me.

God bless us all.

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Related blog entries:

Keep the Customers Happy Everyday

Johnny the Bagger

Creating Loyal Customers

Dealing With Your Customers

Beware with Deadly Service Attitudes

Using the RATER model in Customer Service

Power of Personal Values

Functions of Vision

Anatomy of a Vision

Walk the Talk in customer Service

How to Make Your Customers Happy

Customer Service Resources

Seven tips to stimulate your creativity

Everytime I read other people’s blog, it always makes me wonder how an idea I am currently thinking simply appears on the screen and is already written by somebody else.

Before that I continue…

I am happy that yesterday I got my highest number of hits so far. Look into the number of visitors I have and you would say that they are not much compared to other popular sites. But I am happy for the visitors keeps on growing everyday. In fact, yesterday I even got three calls because they have stumbled upon my blog. They all want to attend my seminars.

So,to continue…

I was thinking of sharing you the ways I discovered I was doing to be more creative, without actually thinking that I am doing that when I want to be creative. For example,the other night I went to the Quezon City Cirle and jogged for an hour or so. For every round in the oval, one thought is produced in my head which makes me more happy and go for another round. At the end of an hour, I was already done thinking of ways to get sponsors for my newsletter MagiCatchers for all toastmasters in Area 2. Yes, I am now the area governor. I have already thought of ways to make my next seminars more high involving, and got some powerful ideas to include in the book that I am writing now.

And then I stumbled upon Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project. The site has entries that will worth your time. The first that got my attention was of course the one I thought of writing for you today, ways to be more creative. And good heavens, I have actually applied these tips, most especially tip number 1.

So what now? Well, I will just share with you Grethchen’s tips. visit her blog too!

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We all know the feeling of not being able to come up with an idea, a solution, or a strategy. Sometimes my head feels as empty as the Diet Coke cans that rattle around the corners of my office. So what can be done to get those brain wheels turning?

Here are seven tips for having an original thought. Some are backed up by hard science, some are folk strategies that I keep hearing about.

1. Go for a walk. Nietzsche wrote, “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking,” and studies show that the combination of exercise and sunshine increases alertness, focus, and energy. Leave your cell phone behind to allow yourself to think without interruption.

2. Do a headstand. People who practice yoga swear that a headstand stimulates ideas – whether by the increased blood flow to the brain, or the reversed view of the world.

3. Think about a problem, then go to sleep. The dreaming mind keeps working and sometimes presents a solution. In one famous example, Friedrich Kekule dozed off while puzzling over the molecular structure of benzene. He dreamed of a snake whirling with its tail in its mouth, and when he awoke, he realized that benzene’s structure is a closed ring – a discovery for which he won the Nobel Prize.

4. Touch. Several friends have mentioned that touching, or being touched, helps them think—for instance, petting a dog, cuddling children, or getting a massage or manicure/pedicure. It certainly reduces stress, and maybe that’s why ideas begin to flow.

5. Public transportation. For me, looking out the window of a bus or train stimulates ideas. The changing view, the constant speed, the sense of progress, and the temporary suspension from the outside world frees my mind.

6. Shower. Taking a long shower works for lots of people.

7. Talk it out. My friend Michael Melcher, a career coach, pointed out that some people hit on their best ideas by “extroverting their intuition”; by talking to other people, they gain better access to their own ideas. Once he mentioned this notion of thinking-by-talking, I realized that how often, for me, a good idea came out of a conversation.

So what strategies am I overlooking? Do you have a way to spur yourself to think?

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Do you have other tips to add. Feel free to send your thoughts. I will post them here.

God bless us all.