In 2011 – Resolve to Listen to Your Echo

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To My Magnificent Agents, Staff and Friends:

Dr. Alex Pattakos, affectionately nicknamed “Dr. Meaning,” is the founder of the Center for Meaning, based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the author of the international best-selling book, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Victor Frankl’s Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work (www.prisonerofourthoughts.com). In a blog he wrote last year for the new year, Dr. Pattakos suggested that, at this time, when we traditionally reflect, look forward, and make commitments to better ourselves and our lives, “it is an especially good time to reflect on our own human-ness and the human-ness of others.” He points out that , in this regard, there is a humanistic concept advanced in South Africa called “Ubuntu” that he suggest we resolve to incorporate as part of our mindset in the coming new year.

The full expression in Zulu of this concept is UBUNTU NGUMUNTU NAGABANTU, which, translated roughly into English means “A person is only a person through other persons.” Pattakos says that it is important to note that Ubuntu is not about relationships per se; rather, it is about “human-ness and how only human beings can establish the human-ness of others. In effect, our human-ness can only be truly expressed as a reflection of others. This also means that we must be able to extend beyond ourselves (also known as ‘self-transcendence’) so that we can fulfill or realize more of ourselves.”

To illustrate in a more layman’s way the point Pattakos is trying to get across, he cites a story that appears in his book, Prisoners of Our Thoughts. The story is entitled “The Echo”:

A son and his father are walking in the mountains. Suddenly, the son falls, hurts himself, and screams: ‘AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!’ To his surprise, he hears a voice repeating, somewhere in the mountains: ‘AAAhhhhhhhhhhh!!!’ Curious, he yells out: ‘Who are you?’ He receives the answer: ‘Who are you?’ And then he screams to the mountain: ‘I admire you!’ The voice answers: ‘I admire you!’ Angered at the response, he screams: ‘Coward!’ He receives the answer: ‘Coward!’ He looks to his father and asks: ‘What’s going on?’ The father smiles and says: ‘My son, pay attention.’ Then the father screams: ‘You are a champion!’ The voice answers: ‘You are a champion!’ The boy is surprised, but does not understand. Smiling with love and wisdom, the father explains: ‘People call this ECHO, but really this is LIFE. It gives you back everything you say or do. Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart. If you want more competency in your team, improve your own competency. This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life. Life will give you back everything you have given to it. Your life is not a coincidence. It’s a reflection of you.’

In the hustle and bustle of your busy life, amid the demands of your business and personal life, with society’s obsession with Twitter, Facebook and cell phones, can you even hear YOUR echo let alone pay attention to it? Perhaps we should all resolve in this new year to pause periodically, ponder, listen and observe more closely what we say and do, and pay more attention to OUR Echo. In doing so, what we all should hear is that from what we are calling out to life, life will be calling back out to us.

Have an AWE-full New Year!

Bill Bacque’