Comments

I was reminded recently of the story of Sir Winston Churchill who at a great old age visited his school to give an address to the eager young men. Pupils and tutors gathered in keen anticipation. The old man – now a world icon - rose to his feet in the packed auditorium to deliver an unforgettable speech. He said; “Young men ... Never give up ... “Never give up ... Never give up.” And then he sat down. Keep rattling the cage Tom.

Posted by Trevor Gay at September 4, 2007 3:24 PM

After Labour Day or a Long Weekend 2 things can help me.

1. Smiles In The Eyes. Smiles In The Eyes Of The People I Communicate To.

2. Tom Peters has already got out of bed.

Posted by András Hídvégi at September 4, 2007 11:38 PM

Tears always fade in the rain

To the ends of the earth
the hungry and poor do know
a saying that is true to the heart
a saying inspired in dreams
that "Nothing is Everything"
a meal...a shirt...a sheltering sky
each day a blessing, each day a gift
creativity a must...born of survival
a shoe...some rest...a sunset road
one lottery ticket and infinite hope
one chance each waking day
For all the money in the world...
can never buy you a second of yesterday
hunger so loud...never to proud
to take the step, to take the pain
bleed and fail, yet I have another day
gift it is...so shall we pave our way...
rainmaker we must be...so shall our tears fade away...

Keep driving TP...the road is always beautiful

Posted by PK at September 5, 2007 12:32 AM

Tricky question: be great or stay in bed?!?!

Descartes always thought he did his best thinking/work whilst in bed - Combine the two - now that is genius!

Posted by PaulH at September 5, 2007 7:28 AM

Dr. TP - gaspworthy spin! "... maximizes human potential ..." yes! Joy & fun as operative - perfect! PS - Churchill a bit over-rated it seems & missed optimizing due to drink excess - plus the "never" speech is low energy mainly & "never" negatives are verboten since listeners tend to remember negative ... Churchill lost the 1945 election.

Posted by John at September 5, 2007 9:02 AM

Best advice?
Quit wandering around the world searching for purpose. It's in front of you.
Go back to bed and re-read (hopefully) John W. Gardner's "On Leadership".
Find real purpose - it's not in "organization" or "leadership", it's in making life from gross to detail "better".
Don't forget "purpose with integrity" is the only acceptable purpose. Organizations and leadership are "only" the means to help "us" realize a better, integrity-filled, purposeful life (and this is absolutely NOT an allusion to Rick Warren - don't let people steal the true meaning and application of our language!!!).

Posted by Randy at September 5, 2007 11:24 AM

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Posted by Erin at September 5, 2007 6:46 PM

Why did we get out of bed everyday when we were kids ?

we didnt know the catch-phrases then. we didnt know the jargon.
And we definitely didnt have management consultants to tell us, "Have a great day, buddy " (though we a lot to them, to remind us that, now.)

We got up to have a Wonderful day. We got up in Anticipation of a new, exciting, unique day.

we felt the experience, we lived the experience, everyday - of a fascinating new day!

we woke up out of curiosity, out of anticipation of great things to come !

That was truly wonderful. That was a great reason to get out of bed everyday.

It Still Is out off it.

Posted by Gaurav sethi at September 6, 2007 1:24 AM

Is it possible that the gap between your "utopian" rants (which I am extremely fond of and always gain insight from) and the not-so-mutually-supported reality out there is filled with "horrors" even worse than those we see on the "front page" of the mainstream media?

Here is a woman (with a new book hot off the press) that gets out of bed for entirely different reasons but with passion akin to yours. I think it is safe to say that she would have us direct our Service towards dismantling many of the leading organizations in the world today.

http://www.naomiklein.org/main

Perhaps not a popular message here at tp.com considering the demographics and our likely sources of revenue, but when you open a post with a "what's it all about" philosophical whopper, it's important this forum keeps its intellectual integrity and does not stay too narrowly focused on outcomes with rose colored hues (and juicy hourly consulting rates). In fact TP, your outrage to open Reimagine was clear about the FUBAR status of the most powerful, resource concentrated institutions on earth. Do we reasonably feel that the cries from the wilderness containing earth shakingly great data driven ideas (such as your spot on challenges to exploit the genius lying nearly ignored in women and freaks to name a few of my favorites) are even close to humanizing what Klein has dubbed "disaster capitalism"?

I have my doubts, and I too have trouble remembering what it is all about some days. Or as a good friend of mine from the UK likes to say: "I've lost the plot". REM put it a different way with a tune in the 80's called: "Can't Get There From Here". Can we?

Rock on TP. I know you are a true radical in your own right. Stay angry maestro.

Posted by michael at September 6, 2007 9:43 AM

Great stuff!

If we're not compelled to get out of bed because of the work (for $$$) we do, we should still be awakened and motivated by the life we live. No "wretched organization" to blame here. Work is but a part of it.

Even in the "wretched organization" (it's the lucky person who hasn't had to lead in one)the "better is better than nothing" statement is profound. There's NO ONE and there is NOTHING, no matter how indifferent, no matter how bureaucratic, that can't be made "better." It's printed--bold letters--and pasted above my monitor. Thanks, Tom.

Posted by Ed Di Gangi at September 6, 2007 9:54 AM

John (Sean) - 'Churchill lost the 1945 election' - You are right of course – thanks for the history lesson – which we actually know here in the UK - and by the way, as a small aside, Churchill’s leadership won the Second World War. Unless I am mistaken Churchill is regularly quoted by TP as a great leader. Request - please give us your REAL identity rather than alias and meaningless links.

Posted by Trevor Gay at September 6, 2007 4:59 PM

Churchill - lived his own message too!

He didn't give up - after the issues with his naval leadership in the 1st world war (Dardanelles disaster) and suffering from bouts of depression he fought back to be the "right person at the right time" for the top job when this country was facing it's toughest test.

In terms of low energy - that's the way we Brits like it - Understatement shows class - empty noise is just plain vulger.

Posted by PaulH at September 7, 2007 5:56 AM

Cheers Paul :-)

Best illustration of what you say is the Brit Naval Captain in charge of the miraculous sea-bed rescue of the Russian Submariners a couple of years back. At the press conference worldwide media reps jumping up and down whooping it up. It was put to the Captain by the excited reporters ‘You must be excited and thrilled with the outcome for those seemingly doomed submariners’

The Brit Captain replied calmly and phlegmatically ‘Just doing our job.'

No frills - no hoopla – just typical Brit professionalism and understatement – no ‘empty noise’

Posted by Trevor Gay at September 7, 2007 6:11 AM

Maybe Dr. Peters should say "Wow" 20 times [to the crowd of 1000] then leave the room - Churchillian! Trevor (Gay) ... please don't flatter yourself that now 2 find you of interest! :>)

One must question authority as my Boomer parents say - Churchill a winner at pub crawling! JFK known to 1000's of women as the "best 20 seconds of my life"! And that ties back to the theme of "Get Out of Bed"! :>)

Posted by John at September 7, 2007 9:30 AM

Hi Sean - 3 people actually - My mom still rates me :-)

Posted by Trevor Gay at September 9, 2007 2:31 PM

Seems to me that the ultimate idea here would be to get out of bed and go do what you preach. First, be a leader of a company -- CEO level ideally -- so you have a clearer understanding of what faces leaders on a day-to-day basis. You can then formulate your theories and rants from a realistic perspective. Second, stop preaching to the choir. Any organization willing to pop for the $40K+ you charge obviously does not need your wisdom. The true spreading of gospel was done by the original martyrs, who were not preaching to the converted, and were often burned or stoned for their "rants." Force your way into the boardrooms and plant floors of companies that do not know who you are or of what you speak. Guerrilla WOW actions, front page news confrontations with dimwitted "leaders" who hate your guts or don't even know you. Get arrested for your beliefs, even. THAT would be the ultimate fulfilling of this calling you have.

Posted by Mike at September 10, 2007 12:28 PM