“You will continue to suffer if you have an emotional reaction to everything that is said to you. True power is sitting back and observing things with logic. True power is restraint. If words control you, that means everyone else can control you. Breathe and allow things to pass.”
Warren Buffett
Take a deep breath… Pause… Will how I react now to whatever this situation is carry more impact a year from now than the actual situation itself?
I want that tattooed on the inside of my eyelids. (no, not really) But having a “pause & think” button would a great skill to further develop. When I think of the times when I have reacted more emotionally, or when I see others do it, it seems to happen when people “need to be right” as opposed to being focused on “doing what is right.”
Perhaps working to always separate yourself from the need to be right and only focusing on doing what is right can be the “pause and think button” we need in life and leadership.
2 Responses
Great message.
This is a great one. I grapple with this daily and try to teach my kids this. Much easier to teach it than practice it. One of my old bosses said “Eckert, every time someone speaks to you, before you respond, count to three”. I failed out of the gate with, “why three seconds?” This is truly hard for people who are passionate, the same passion and vigor that is immensely valuable to get things accomplished, is the same hindering trait in conversations.