Why I Think I Do What I Do

So, I've been reading more in, Start with Why, and simultaneously thinking about my personal why and one of my most recent thoughts was, 'We need to get this author to lead our (my library's strategic planning process!' but that is about work and not about me so... I keep thinking from time to time about my thoughts and beliefs and my core values. Why are they so hard to articulate? Companies have core values so, why can't I? Answer: Because it means standing for something and that means having convictions and in my previous experiences most people I know with strong convictions tend to be inflexible and I don't want to be inflexible. But as Adam commented on a previous post, maybe the core of my why can be flexibility. 

My spiritual beliefs and values seem easy to articulate, I think. I mean, I'm heavily influenced by Buddhism and because of that I try not to get attached to thoughts, beliefs, and values; or at least, I try to be aware of when I'm becoming attached. I believe that we have more than one chance at life; we keep coming back until we 'graduate.' I believe that what we call Earth is just a huge learning environment, a practice field. We are all here to learn and to practice applying what we learn and, in turn, to teach others what we've learned, all for the sake of growing into our true selves. We all have different learning and teaching styles. We all don't know what our learning objectives are or what the prescribed pedagogy is. I believe every moment is a learning moment and also a chance to practice what we've learned. When we die, I believe it is our summer vacation: we are removed from the structure of the primary learning environment and given time to reflect on what we've accomplished in this most recent lifetime: what we did really well and how we can help others in those areas and also, what we need to improve on and coming up with a plan on how to improve. Then, we're sent back to school to try again, to learn again, to practice again (which is why we don't come back as the same person because if we did that, then it would mean we hadn't grown at all, that we had failed to learn anything during the previous life). So it goes until we return to pure being at which point we move into advisory roles. 

As advisors, we no longer attend Earth school but instead our work is done during the 'summers' working with Earth students to review their lives and to help them strategize for the next time. We become what I envision staff development coordinators could be if given the chance: learning experience specialists. We look at the big picture and help you figure out what it is you need to learn, what you need to accomplish and then we map out a plan of action: which people you're going to learn from, which experiences you're going to have, when those people and experiences are going to be introduced to you and for how long, etc. We would also look at how you can facilitate others' learning: what role will you play in the learning experiences of others. The outcomes, however, are up to you, we just help you set the stage, review the outcomes, and keep you motivated. 

And that's why I do what I do. 

Because every moment, every person, every experience is a learning moment. To not take a risk is to risk not learning something new, to not gain valuable insight that is as of yet undiscovered. Everyone on this Earth is in practice mode. None of us have gotten it right or we wouldn't be here. My thinking is that we shouldn't behave as though we're Pros because we're not, and we should practice forgiveness and empathy a whole lot because we're all at the same school, going through the same trials, celebrating the same successes and it would be a lot more enjoyable and rich if we supported and celebrated together as a whole. But perhaps that's the greatest learning experience of all?